The women’s basketball team began their defense of the Summit League title with a 74-53 victory over Western Illinois on Dec. 5 in Macomb, Ill. Leading 31-24 at the half, the Jacks used a 17-6 second-half run to pull away for good.

With 7:40 to play, Ketty Cornemann hit a 3-pointer to put the Jacks up 22 points at 60-38.

In the middle of the first half, Maria Boever hit a basket, giving the Jacks a 15-4 lead.

Western Illinois responded with a 9-2 run to make the score close at 17-13.

That didn’t last long, as both Jackrabbit’s bench players Katie Lingle and Steph Paluch added 3-pointers.

Cornemann and teammate Boever both finished the game with 14 points. Kristin Rotert tallied 13 points in the win. Boever also pulled down a team- high six rebounds.

For Western Illinois, Erica Lewis scored a game-high 17 points and pulled in seven rebounds in the loss. Teammate Jordon O’Brien had nine points and four rebounds for the Fighting Leathernecks.

The Jackrabbits moved to 3-4 (1-0 Summit League) on the season, while the Fighting Leathernecks dropped to 2-5 (0-1 Summit League).

The Jackrabbits completed the weekend conference sweep by downing IUPUI 85-77 in Indianapolis, Indiana, on Dec. 7. Cornemann led the Jacks with 18 points, a season high.

Boever had 14 points in the win and scored her 1,000th point in her SDSU career, making her the 27th player in SDSU women’s basketball history to reach the mark.

The basket by Boever that pushed her into SDSU history gave the Jacks a 30-28 halftime lead and one that they would never relinquish.

A 5-0 start to the second half for the Jacks, courtesy of a Boever basket and Jill Young 3-pointer, gave the Jacks a double-digit lead, but that wouldn’t last for long.

With 15:39 to play, the Jaguars’ Gretchen Gaskin hit a three-point shot to trim the SDSU lead to 50-48.

The Jaguars got within eight as the game ended.

Two other Jackrabbits also scored double digits, Jennie Sunnarborg with 13 points and Young with 11.

Bench players led IUPUI, as they accounted for 46 of the team’s 77 points. Jessica Huffman scored 22 points for the Jaguars in the loss.

With the win, the Jacks moved to 4-4 (2-0 Summit League) on the season, and IUPUI fell to 1-8 for the year (0-2 Summit League). SDSU leads the all-time series with IUPUI 6-0.

Up next, the Jackrabbits will take on Middle Tennessee State at noon on Dec. 13 at Frost Arena.

Now that the college football season is over, minus the bowl season, I will take a moment to reflect on my time as Assistant Sports Editor here at The Collegian.

In this column I won’t try to interview the Campanile or Coughlin-Alumni Stadium but rather just attempt to reflect on memories I have.

During my two-semester tenure, I covered some amazing events such as the NDSU Bison games at the Summit League Basketball Tournament in Sioux Falls (the men won and advanced to the March Madness tournament) or watching the women’s soccer team suffer two double overtime defeats and then rallying to win their last five games to claim the Summit League regular season title after a victory over NDSU.

Seeing firsthand some of the Jacks’ early success at the Division I level (both as a reporter and some as a fan) was vital to my growth as a journalist. Not only were the events big but they were also history in the making for Jackrabbit athletics. There is a positive outlook for the future of Jackrabbit athletics because these teams are only going to get better and the writers that will step in when I depart will see this firsthand. I see good things ahead.

I will leave The Collegian with many fond memories of this place, from all the wise editorial board discussions that we debated to the 2 a.m. (or later) Wednesday mornings spent editing pages.

On another note, I would like to thank all the coaches and players that I have interviewed for stories during my time at The Collegian. Without them, the stories I wrote would have been pretty bland.

As for SDSU, I will remember all the good friends I have made, the amazing memories and try to forget the homework that I procrastinated. Thanks for the memories.

SDSU defeated Southwest Minnesota State 95-70 on Dec. 8 at Frost Arena.

With SDSU up 10-5, the Jacks blew the game open with a 15-4 run early in the first half. SDSU pushed a 39-22 lead with 2:47 left in the first half on a Kai Williams jumper.

In the second half the Jackrabbits pulled ahead as they built a lead of 20 at 68-48 with 9:26 left in the second half.

The Jacks poured in 27 more points over the course of the final nine minutes to gain the lopsided victory.

Garret Callahan led the Jacks with a game-high 27 points while adding five rebounds while Kai Williams chipped in 16. Griffan Callahan added a game-high seven rebounds and five points.

The Mustangs were led by Scott Roehl, who poured in 22 points and grabbed five boards, tied for the team high, while Andrew Peschong added 12.

With the win SDSU moves to 4-5 while SMSU fell to 4-2 on the season.

The Jacks return to action Dec. 12 vs. Nevada in Reno, Nev. at 9 p.m.

The SDSU women’s basketball team snapped a three-game losing streak with a 60-56 win over Charlotte (N.C.) on Nov. 26 at the Junkanoo Jam Reef Division Tournament at Grand Bahama Island.

Up 57-56 with seven seconds left, Kristin Rotert and Macie Michelson made key steals that kept Charlotte from taking the lead.

After Rotert’s steal, she missed the front end of a one-and-one, but Ketty Cornemann rebounded the loose ball and got the ball to Michelson who was fouled. Michelson hit one of her free throws and then got a steal on the ensuing Cavaliers’ possession. Boever made a basket just before time expired to seal the game.

“Every win feels good for the team,” SDSU head coach Aaron Johnston said. “We have had far more winning streaks than losing streaks, so it was nice to get passed a couple of losses. Still, there is a lot of work to be done and one win does not change that fact.”

Charlotte took its first lead of the game on a 3-pointer by Kendria Holmes to make the score 37-35 with 12:55 left.

That did not faze the Jacks, as they scored 14 unanswered points.

Charlotte continued to rally, as the score remained close throughout the rest of the game.

SDSU’s Maria Boever had 14 of her 18 points for the game in the second half due to first-half foul trouble. Rotert had 13 points, while Jill Young added 10.

“Throughout the game, we had players step up and make good plays,” Johnston said. “We are still searching for some consistency from our leaders. Until we get that, it will have to be done by committee.”

The women’s basketball team fell to its fourth loss of the season to No. 15-ranked Virginia 78-66 in the Junkanoo Jam Reef Division Tournament Championship on Nov. 27.

Three Jackrabbits – Maria Boever, Steph Paluch and Kristin Rotert – led the team with 14 points each, but it wouldn’t be enough to get the victory at Grand Bahama Island.

SDSU had a 28-20 lead with 6:22 left in the first half after Paluch hit a 3-pointer. Paluch finished the game 3-of-3 from the 3-point line.

“It was good to see Steph Paluch and Cala Westergard give us good minutes,” SDSU head coach Aaron Johnston said. “Both are young players with bright futures.”

Westergard played 12 minutes in the game, recording three points and three rebounds.

Late in first half, Virginia went on a 19-6 run and went into the locker room with a 39-34 halftime lead.

The Jacks wouldn’t be able to get closer than six points after the Cavaliers made the first six points after intermission.

“We made enough shots in the first half to cover up some turnovers, but in the second half they caught up with us,” Johnston said. “We played very hard and competed very well, just made too many mistakes.”

A bright spot for the Jacks was that they held Virginia’s All-American candidate Monica Wright to eight points. While Wright struggled, her teammate Paulisha Kellum stepped up to score a game-high 25 points.

“We did a good job of taking away their All-American, but Kellum ended up hurting us instead,” Johnston said. “She took advantage of our smaller guards in the post, and she rebounded well.”

SDSU out-rebounded Virginia 37-35 in the defeat. The loss moves the Jacks to 2-4 on the season, while Virginia moves to 5-1.

“Quite simply, we need to play better in all phases of our game,” Johnston said. “It is not that we have a bunch of big errors to correct, it is just a combination of little things that keep holding us back. I am excited to see how we respond to some adversity in the loss column.”

Up next for the Jacks will be a matchup with Western Illinois on Dec. 5 in Macomb, Ill.

This weekend will officially end the regular season of college football, with conference champions being crowned and the bowl games being announced on Dec. 6.

No. 16 Oregon State vs. No. 10 Oregon

What’s at stake: Rose Bowl berth

With no conference championship, the Pacific-10 Conference comes down to this game. Whoever wins goes to the Rose Bowl to play Ohio State, and whoever loses will be visiting an earlier bowl. Oregon State has the tools to win in Jacquizz Rodgers at running back. Rodgers rushed for 165 yards on 24 carries and scored two touchdowns in the Beavers 42-10 rout of Washington State on Nov. 21. Oregon is led by quarterback Jeremiah Masoli, who kept the Ducks’ hopes of a Pac-10 title alive by throwing a touchdown pass with six seconds left to force overtime against Arizona.

Pick: Last year the stakes were the same as No. 23 Oregon throttled No. 17 Oregon State 65-38. This year, Oregon State will look to steal the show against Oregon, but I don’t think they will have enough offense to keep up with Oregon. Oregon wins by at least 14 points.

No. 2 Alabama vs. No. 1 Florida

What’s at stake: Winner will play in the National Championship game in Pasadena, Cali., on Jan. 7, 2010.

Last week, Florida throttled rival Florida State 37-10, while Alabama scored with 1:24 left to beat Auburn 26-21 in the Iron Bowl. Heisman-hopeful Mark Ingram was held to 30 yards rushing on 16 carries and left with a bruised hip late in the game.

Pick: Alabama will have to have a lot better performance in the Southeastern Conference Championship game to even compete with Florida. Both teams are 12-0, and the stakes are high for the loser. Florida will again beat Alabama and go to its third national title game in four years. Florida wins by 13.

No. 5 Cincinnati vs. No. 14 Pittsburgh

What’s at stake: Big East’s Automatic BCS bowl berth

Pittsburgh, who lost to West Virginia 19-16 on Nov. 28, still has a shot to make it to a BCS bowl game. They just have to beat Cincinnati. This Big East Championship will be determined if Pittsburgh can slow down the offense of Cincinnati. Tony Pike is back at quarterback for Cincinnati, who beat Illinois 49-36 on Nov. 27. Pike passed for six touchdowns against the Illini and has found the end zone 23 times this year as opposed to three interceptions.

Pick: If there is a team in the Big East conference that can beat Cincinnati, it is Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh will be looking to end Cincinnati’s perfect 11-0 start and avoid giving the Bearcats the conference’s automatic BCS bid. I think Cincinnati is just too good this year. Despite a few close games against Connecticut and West Virginia, Cincinnati has looked pretty dominant all year. Bearcats beat the Panthers by 10.

The season is wrapping up, and rivalry games will determine conference finishes. TCU remained undefeated and increased its chances of going to a BCS bowl game or the national title game if Florida, Alabama or Texas lose. The Horned Frogs face Wyoming and New Mexico, who have a combined 5-15 record in their final two games.

No. 9 Ohio State vs. Michigan

Michigan is 5-6 and has lost six of its last seven games (63-6 win over Delaware State). Ohio State is coming off a 27-24 overtime victory over Iowa that booked the Buckeyes a trip to the Rose Bowl. This rivalry is one of college football’s best, with Ohio State winning the last five contests in a row. The teams have met 105 times, with Michigan owning the series lead 57-42-6. In the final game of the season, Michigan needs a win to become bowl eligible.

Pick: Michigan will play their hearts out, but to say they have any chance of winning would be a lie. The game is in Ann Arbor, but Ohio State has way too much talent for Michigan to pull off an upset. Ohio State wins by 17.

No. 10 LSU vs. Mississippi

Ole Miss came into the season as a team that could win the SEC West Division. Three losses later and poor quarterback play by Jevan Snead have many critics calling the team a bust, with their best victories coming over Tennessee and Arkansas. Ole Miss has won two straight (38-14 over Northern Arizona, 42-17 over Tennessee), but will have their hands full with LSU. The Tigers’ only two losses are to No. 1 Florida and No. 2 Alabama.

Pick: Unless the Rebels can get another “out-of-this-world” performance from senior receiver Dexter McCluster, they will lose. LSU’s offense is finding its rhythm, and the defense is suffocating. LSU wins by 14.

A tired Jacks women’s basketball team that played into overtime two nights before returned to action Nov. 15 against No. 11 Arizona State in Tempe, Ariz., losing 74-64.

ASU’s Becca Tobin had game-high 18 points, 12 in the second half to defeat the Jackrabbits; Tobin went 7-of-11 from the field.

“We were just very timid and un-aggressive in most areas,” SDSU head coach Aaron Johnston said. “We did not rebound well enough nor did we defend well in the half court. On offense we forced some passes and missed some easy shots. ASU’s aggressiveness was the difference in the game.”

A lackluster 9-of-26 field goal attempts in the second half by the Jacks ended any hope of another SDSU rally. ASU shot 48.4 percent in the second half. ASU also out-rebounded SDSU 43-35 for the game.

Kristin Rotert had 14 points in the loss, including 3-of-5 from behind the arc.

“Kristin made some shots for us, but all in all we need her to be more complete on the court,” Johnston said. “Passing, defense, rebounding, are also a big part of her role on the team.”

Boever just missed a second consecutive double-double game, tallying eight points and nine rebounds.

With the loss SDSU moves to 1-1 on the season while ASU went to 1-0.

Up next SDSU will play Illinois State on Nov. 19 at Redbird Arena in Normal, Ill.

The women’s basketball team rallied from a 33-28 halftime deficit to defeat Gonzaga 75-71 in overtime on Nov. 13 at Frost Arena.

Jill Young hit two free throws in the late seconds of overtime to seal the win for the Jacks.

“We showed some good toughness to keep making plays when things were not coming easy to us on the floor,” head coach Aaron Johnston said. “It also shows we need to be better on offense and defense so that we are not down in the first place.”

With 8:36 left in the game, SDSU took its second lead of the game, the other being a 5-4 lead early in the first half on a Ketty Cornemann three-pointer.

SDSU was up three with 2.2 seconds left in regulation until Gonzaga’s Tiffani Shives hit a three-pointer to send the game into overtime.

“The entire second half we were stressing the message that we were right there and in the game,” Johnston said. “We just needed to be the better team at the end. We stressed the same message in the overtime. It gave us a clean slate.”

Maria Boever led the Jacks, recording a double-double with 21 points and 11 rebounds. Young added 15 points, going 6-6 from the foul line.

The Jacks pulled out the victory despite having a lower shooting percentage than Gonzaga. The Jacks went 23-61 with a 37.7 field-goal percentage, and the Bulldogs went 26-61 for a 42.6 field-goal percentage.

SDSU forced 30 Bulldog turnovers – 18 in the second half – that helped the Jacks retake the lead. The Jackrabbits had 27 turnovers, but only 12 in the second half and overtime combined.

The No. 1 seed Jackrabbits women’s soccer team prevailed in the opening round match of the Summit League tournament on Nov. 6 over Western Illinois 1-0. Kaitlin Justice connected for the game-winning goal with 2:49 left in the second overtime on Nov. 6 at Fishback Soccer Park.

Each team fought back and forth as the Jacks dominated the Leathernecks in shots 29-9 for the game.

On Nov. 8 the Jackrabbits season ended at home to Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis 4-1. Danni Healy scored the lone Jackrabbit goal in the first half.

The Jaguars used four second half goals to put the Jacks away. They tied the game on a Stephanie Hoffman free-kick with 36:40 left in the second half and took the lead on a Kelli Parks goal that got past the Jacks goalkeeper Brie Rogers.

“I think that we struggled with our game plan in the second half,” SDSU coach Lang Wedemeyer said. “Part of that was due to some tired legs from Friday’s game, but part of that was due to IUPUI stepping up their pressure and we didn’t answer. As we became fatigued in the second half, we lost our momentum and our focus.”

IUPUI would add two more goals before the final seconds ticked away on goals from Chelsi McHenry and Megan Hock.

“I always believed that no matter what obstacles were in our way, we were talented enough to overcome them,” Wedemeyer said. “And we did, time after time, until the end.”

Jaguars’ goalie Jamie Farrell was elected Tournament MVP with her seven saves in the win over SDSU.

SDSU players Justice, Jess Heine and Christa Nyblom were named to the All-Tournament team. The Jackrabbits ended the season with an 11-7-2 overall record.

“It was definitely a season of ups and downs,” Wedemeyer said. “Having lost so many starters from last year’s team put a lot of doubt in people’s minds as to whether we could accomplish the same goals this season. We were hit with some season-ending injuries and the flu ran through portions of our team, but the girls kept coming back and making things happen. Probably the game that stands out the most is our short-handed win over IUPUI in the regular season as to where we really gave a great effort mentally and physically.”

Wedemeyer said the team appreciates all the students that made it out to their games, especially the other athletes who supported the team. “It makes such a difference when you have those fans in the stands cheering you on, so we greatly appreciate all who made the effort to come out this season.”