Katie Donovan had 27 points, 11 rebounds and five assists to lead Illinois State past Odyssey, a team of former college players from the Chicago area, 85-65 in an exhibition college womens basketball game Sunday at Redbird Arena.
Freshman Ashley Sandstead hit four three-pointers and finishe dwith 16 points while senior Michelle Harakas drained seven of nine shots for 14 points as ISU out-shot Odyssey .431 to .369 for the game. Amy Herrig-Tanney led Odyssey with 24 points and eight rebounds.
The Redbirds were missing two key players because of injuries. Senior guard Jaci McCormack is sidelined with a sprained left ankle. Sophomore guard
Megan McCracken is nursing a left heel injury. The result was three newcomers in the starting lineup: freshman guards Tiffany Hudson and Sandstead, along with junior-college transfer center Holly Hallstrom. Hudson had nine points, five rebounds and four assists. Hallstrom had nine rebounds to go with three points.
The Odyssey lineup included former Redbird players Mary Jane Hibben and Steph Reichle, who had 10 points and eight rebounds. The former ISU players were impressed with the current group.
I think they are a well-rounded team with a lot of talent, said Reichle. When I played here we didnt have the athletes they have now. They had three key players on the sidelines and still looked very impressive.
I like the intensity, said Hibben, who was Mary Jane Johnson when she played at ISU in the mid-1990s. Full-court offense and defense they never give you a chance to relax. I saw the difference in intensity last year, and theyve stepped it up from there.
Odyssey coach Keith Kula, who was short two regulars on his own team, was impressed with ISUs depth.
We didnt see their best with some starters missing, said Kula, also a prep coach at Cary-Grove High School. We are impressed with the job Robin is doing. A year ago I said she would bring in recruits from Illinois and she has brought in some good ones we saw today. We know shes going to do an outstanding job here for Illinois State.
Redbird coach Robin Pingeton was pleased with her teams effort.
Our kids stepped up and did some really nice things, said Pingeton. There are a lot of exciting things we can build off of. We did a really good job on the boards. Amy Herrig was a big-time player in the Big Ten and we
The Redbirds hit their first five shotsfour of them layupsto take a 10-3 lead. But Herrig-Tanny hit four straight shots inside and Odyssey went on a 15-3 run to take an 18-13 lead on a Reichle three-pointer with 12:01 left in the half.
ISU rallied behind back-to-back three-pointers by Donovan, who had 21 points at halftime, and Amber Shelton to take a 28-24 lead. The Birds stretched that lead to 44-36 at halftime as Hudson drained a three-pointer with 32 seconds left and, after a turnover against Redbird pressure, Lashawn Johnsons layup finished the first half.
The Birds came out in the second half playing a variety of lineups and pulled away, leading by as many as 22 points late in the game.
ISU plays its second exhibition at 2:05 p.m. Nov. 7 against Saint Xavier before opening the championship season Nov. 12 at Notre Dame in the SportsView.tv Preseason Womens NIT.
