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University of Akron
Valparaiso
Akron Eyes Third-Straight Win Visiting Valparaiso
December 08 | Women's Basketball
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GAME NOTES NO. 8 AKRON AT VALPARAISO (12/9) (PDF)
Akron (3-4) at Valparaiso (1-6)
Wednesday, Dec. 9
Athletics-Recreation Center (5,000)
Valparaiso, Ind. • 8 p.m. ET
Live Stats: www.valpoathletics.com
Webstream: www.valpoathletics.com
Radio: SportsRadio 1350 AM (WARF) in Akron (flagship), for free at SportsRadio1350.com and on iHeartRadio. Bill Morgan will have the call starting with the pre-game show starting at 7:50 p.m.
Television: ESPN3/Watch ESPN
What's Ahead
Akron seeks to extend its winning streak to three in a row as the Zips travel to Valparaiso, Ind., to battle Valparaiso in a 8 p.m. ET tilt on Wednesday, Dec. 9.
A Look at Valparaiso
Valparaiso (1-6) comes into action on Wednesday, Dec. 9, having dropped six of its first seven games of the season following a 63-62 win over Cardinal Stritch on Monday, Dec. 7. Sophomore Jasmyn Walker and freshman Meredith Hamlet direct the offensive exploits of the Crusaders averaging 11.1 and 9.4 points per game. Valparaiso is posting 58.1 points per contest, while seeing its opponents post a 78.1 scoring average. The Crusaders are connecting on more than 35 percent (.354) of their shots from the field, while dialing long distance at a 29.6-percent clip. Valparaiso is rated 46th nationally in free throw percentage (.736).
Series History
Akron and Valparaiso are meeting for the 15th time in program history with the Crusaders leading the all-time series, 9-5. The Zips registered a 100-65 victory over Valparaiso last season on Nov. 25, 2014 at James A. Rhodes Arena.
The Coaches
Valparaiso: Tracey Dorow is in her fourth season as head coach of the Valparaiso program, owning a 24-75 (.242) record. In 18 years overall as a head coach, she maintains a 256-238 (.518) ledger.
Akron: In her 10th year on the Akron sidelines as head coach, is Jodi Kest, who has a 145-143 mark (.503), including 371-296 (.556) overall, in her 24th year as a head coach.
Barilla's Triple-Double Sparks Akron to 74-54 Victory Past UCF
University of Akron seniors Megan Barilla (Fairview Park, Ohio), Anita Brown (Warren, Ohio) and DiAndra Gibson (Ravenna, Ohio) each registered record-setting performances to lift the Zips to a 74-54 victory over the University of Central Florida on Saturday, December 5, at James A. Rhodes Arena.
Barilla had arguably the biggest afternoon for Akron registering a triple-double with a 10-point, 10-rebound and 10-assist performance.
Brown hit a career milestone surpassing 1,000 points for her career as a Zip in the second half en route to netting a game-high 20 points. Gibson recorded a career-high 15 points and dished out three assists, pulled down three rebounds and rejected a pair of shots. Junior Hannah Plybon (Orrville, Ohio) added 14 points to go along with three assists and two rebounds.
Leading the Knight's offense was Makenzi Reasor with a team-best 16-point and 11-rebound outing. Joslyn Massey also posted a double-double scoring 14 points, while corralling 10 rebounds.
The Zips shot well beyond the arc shooting 13-of-33 for 39.4 percent, while limiting UCF to a 1-of-16 (6.3 percent) effort from distance.
Akron scored 28 of its points in the paint shooting 30-of-63 (47.6 percent) from the field.
The Knights connected on 23 of their 67 attempts (34.3 percent) from the floor, scoring 30 points in the paint. The Knights had 22 offensive rebounds that led to scoring 22 second-chance points.
UCF outrebounded Akron in the affair, 46-31, including 22-9 on the offensive glass.
At the 6:54 mark of the fourth quarter, Brown shot a three pointer to put her over 1,000 career points. The Zips continued to lead the Knights throughout the fourth en route to a 74-54 victory of the Knights.
Balanced-Scoring Attack Leads Zips to 103-37 Win Over Rochester College
Five players scored in double figures to lead the Akron women's basketball team to 103-37 victory over Rochester College on Wednesday evening, Dec. 2, at James A. Rhodes Arena.
The Zips' 103 points marked the fourth-best single-game effort in program history, matching the 103 points tallied at Saint Peter's on Nov. 26, 2012. The last time Akron scored over 100 points at home in a regular season game was on Nov. 25, 2014 against Valparaiso.
Hannah Plybon finished with a game-high 19 points, notching her fifth double-figure scoring game of the season. She made an impressive 5-of-9 attempts from beyond the arc in 19 minutes of play.
Sophomore Greta Burry (Lakewood, Ohio) contributed a career-high 18 points after going 7-for-10 from the field and making 4-of-5 attempts from the charity stripe.
DiAndra Gibson marked her first career double-double adding 10 points and 12 rebounds to the Akron cause. Seven of her rebounds were off the defensive glass. Anita Brown was one rebound shy of a double-double with 10 points and nine rebounds, while sophomore Lauren Hung (Waterford, Mich.) chipped in 12 points for Akron.
Megan Barilla dished out four assists and a game-high three steals on the night for the Zips. All 13 players for Akron scored in the affair with all but one turning in double-digits minutes in the contest for the Zips.
Akron shot 45.7 percent (37-of-81) from the floor for the game, while the Warriors made 21.6 percent (11-of-51) of their shot attempts. The Zips held a 58-35 edge on the boards, including a 40-10 advantage in points in the paint and a 24-5 control in second-chance points. Akron also forced 31 turnovers, which results in 38 points for the hosts.
Rochester jumped out to its only lead of the night, 5-3, with 7:19 on the clock in the first quarter before Akron went on a 19-1 run to take control.
After holding a 49-16 margin at the half, Rochester College never threatened Akron from there as the Zips led by as many as 68 points down the stretch. The Warriors used a 6-0 run with under four minutes to play, but that was all they managed as the Zips pulled away with the 103-37 win.
Akron garnered a 43-22 margin in bench points sparked by 12, nine, six and six points, respectively, from Hung, junior Alex Ricketts (Mercer, Pa.), redshirt freshman Megan Sefcik (Austintown, Ohio) and junior Sophia Simone (Silver Lake, Ohio).
IN OUR LAST MEETING
Akron def. Valparaiso, 100-65 (Nov. 25, 2014)
AKRON, Ohio - Akron increased its season-opening win streak to four games as five Zips scored in double figures to cruise to a 100-65 victory over Valparaiso at James A. Rhodes Arena.
The victory marked the 350th in the head-coaching career of head coach Jodi Kest.
Anita Brown led all players in scoring with 21 points in 20 minutes of play. Brown connected on 10-of-12 from the field to go with four assists.
Sina King followed, notching a double-double posting 19 points and a then career-best 17 boards, including pulling down 10 caroms on the defensive glass, in 25 minutes of action.
Kerri McMahan came within one assist of a double-double posting 13 points while dishing out a game- and career-high nine assists.
Lauren Hung went 4-of-8 from three-point range for 12 points off the bench in just 10 minutes, while DiAndra Gibson recorded 11 to round out the Zips' double-figure scoring.
Akron also benefited from six assists by Megan Barilla and a six-rebound effort courtesy Katie Nunan.
Akron's bench was responsible for 28 of its total points.
The Zips shot 50.0 percent (39-of-78) from the field and 36.4 percent (12-of-33) from behind the arc en route to the victory while also converting 19 Valparaiso turnovers into 26 points.
Akron outrebounded the Crusaders on the glass, 54-46, including 41-30 on the defensive end.
The Zips also notched five blocks in the affair, while distributing 28 assists.
Barilla Among Elite Company With Triple-Double
Megan Barilla's 10-point, 10-rebound and 10-assist effort against UCF marked the first triple-double for a Zips since the NCAA Division I record book began for following the 1985-86 campaign. The triple-double also represents the 12th by a player from the current 12 members of the Mid-American Conference over the same span. The 10-point and 10-rebound efforts established new career-high marks, while she matched her career-best 10 assist performance in a 102-101 victory last season at Toledo.
Brown Joins 1,000-Point Club
Anita Brown joined the 1,000-point club at Akron when she connected on a three pointer at the 6:54 mark of the fourth quarter in the Zips' 74-54 victory over UCF on Saturday, Dec. 5.
News, Notes and Story lines
• Akron enters contest versus Valparaiso on Wednesday, Dec. 9, having won 41 of its last 56 games dating back to the 2013-14 campaign.
• Anita Brown entered the 2015-16 campaign as the Zips' active leader in career scoring. She will enter Akron's game with Valparaiso having amassed 1,007 points and has shot nearly 45 percent (.447) from the field and at a 35.3-percent clip from beyond the arc.
• Greta Burry is shooting more than 59 percent (.592) from the field for her career having made 45 of her 76 shots, while shooting 88.1 percent from the charity stripe.
• Megan Barilla leads Akron in assists distributing a team-best 5.6 dimes per game. Over the past two seasons she had posted 147 assists.
• The Zips have won 20 or more games in each of the last three seasons.
• With its win against Bowling Green (March 7), Akron surpassed the 2012-13 squad for the most regular season victories (22) in program history.
• The Zips' 12 league wins represented the second-best single-season mark in program history.
• With its 67-55 triumph over Miami (March 4), Akron's established a new school record for home wins in a season (13).
• The Zips have won 10 or more home games in four of the last six seasons under head coach Jodi Kest.
• With its triumph at Kent State (Feb. 25), Akron registered its third-consecutive 20-win season. On the strength of the win, Akron currently owns the longest active streak among league teams of winning 20 or more games having done so in each of the previous three campaigns (2012-13, 2013-14 and 2014-15).
• Akron posted the second-, third-, third-, third-, third-, fourth-, fourth-, fourth- and fifth-best single-season marks in program history in winning percentage (.710), assists (508), field-goal percentage (.435), scoring average (74.4), three-pointers made (205), points scored (2,307), field goals made (858), triples attempted (596) and three-point percentage (.344).
• Akron's 10-game winning streak to begin last season represented the second-longest such streak in program history.
• Megan Barilla checked in at No. 9 nationally in assist/turnover ratio (2.77) on the strength of dishing out 3.5 per night.
On This Date in Akron Women's Basketball History
The Zips will be playing for the sixth time in program history on Dec. 9 when Akron battles Valparaiso on Wednesday. The Zips own victories over Edinboro (77-63 in 1983) and St. Francis (Pa.) (73-49 in 1986).
Akron Notes
• Three Zips' established new career-high marks versus UCF including DiAndra Gibson (15) and Megan Barilla (10) in scoring. Seven Akron players set career-best numbers against Rochester College, including Megan Sefcik (6), Lauren Hung (12), Greta Burry (18), sophomore Kaitlyn Flowers (Lompoc, Calif.) (2), Alex Ricketts (9) and Sophia Simone (6) registering career-best efforts in scoring.
• The 103 points scored against Rochester College, Dec. 2, marked the fourth-highest single-game point total in program history. Seven of the top-10 single-game scoring outputs have occurred under 10th-year head coach Jodi Kest.
• Seven players in Anita Brown (7), Hannah Plybon (6), Greta Burry (4), DiAndra Gibson (3), Megan Barilla (1) Lauren Hung (2) and Alli Ball (St. Louis, Mo.) (1) have scored in double figures for the Zips this season. A year ago, led by 31 and 28 double-figure scoring games, respectively, from Sina King and Brown and 18 and courtesy of Plybon, Akron had players surpass the double-digit scoring plateau 91 times a year ago.
• Hannah Plybon is averaging a team-best 8.7 points in the first half of games this season, while Greta Burry is shooting 61.9 percent (13-21) in the initial 20 minutes of the Zips' tilts on the campaign.
• In the second half of games this season, Anita Brown leads the offensive efforts for Akron averaging 12.0 points. As a team, the Zips are shooting 46.4 percent from the field in the final 20 minutes of their seven contests this season.
• Hannah Plybon connected on five three pointers in the Zips' 103-37 victory versus Rochester College marking the eighth time in her career in which has made five triples in a game.
• Akron's 62 rebounds against Winthrop marked the ninth-best single-game performance in program history.
• Greta Burry and Alli Ball (St. Louis, Mo.) registered their first career double-doubles at Florida Atlantic.
• The Zips' +21 rebounding advantage against Florida Atlantic was the largest margin for Akron since outrebounding Bowling Green, 56-32, in the 2014-15 regular season finale on March 7, 2015.
• Akron's 22 offensive rebounds at Florida Atlantic and at home versus Winthrop equaled the top-performance for the Zips during the entire 2014-15 campaign. Akron pulled down 22 offensive caroms in a 79-71 victory at Bowling Green on March 7, 2015.
• Akron equaled or outrebounded its opponent in 15 consecutive games before being bettered on the boards, 39-37, versus Florida Gulf Coast.
• Anita Brown pulled down a career-high 13 rebounds, respectively, against Winthrop, while Greta Burry scored a then career-best 16 points.
• Greta Burry's eight offensive rebounds against Florida Atlantic equaled the top single-game performance last season by a Zip, set by Anita Brown, who pulled down eight offensive boards in an 80-49 triumph over Binghamton.
• Anita Brown and Hannah Plybon own 17 and eight career 20-point performances after Brown poured in a team-high 20 points versus UCF.
• The Zips have won 28 of their last 33 games at the James A. Rhodes Arena, including a 3-1 mark this season.
• Akron was 16-2 last season when scoring 70 or more points.
• Akron equaled a school record connecting on 13 three-pointers in its win at Central Michigan on Jan. 24, 2015. The Zips' effort matched the 13 triples Akron drained versus the Chippewas on Feb. 21, 2005.
• Anita Brown's 36 points against Toledo (Jan. 14) represented the fourth-highest single-game scoring effort in program history, while Megan Barilla notched the ninth-best performance for assists with 10 dimes.
• Since 2010, Akron has surpassed the 100-point plateau in scoring on nine occasions, including versus Valparaiso and Toledo last season. The Zips' record all-time when scoring 100 or more is 11-0.
• The Zips' 102 points at Toledo (Jan. 14) represented the fifth-best single-game scoring output in program history.
• The Zips displayed their defensive presence in the squad's 31 games last season as Akron committed the same or fewer turnovers than its opponents in 15 of its 31 games.
• The Zips have garnered eight Mid-American Conference East Player of the Week selections last season with Anita Brown (Nov. 17, Dec. 1 and Jan. 20) and Sina King (Nov. 24, Jan. 26, Feb. 16 and March 9) leading the way earning the award three times each. Taking home accolades on Jan. 12 was Hannah Plybon.
• The Zips' 67-59 win over Bowling Green marked only the fourth-ever triumph by Akron versus the Falcons.
• The Zips' 100-65 win over Valparaiso marked the 350th in the coaching career of Kest.
• The Zips made their fourth postseason appearance in the last six years last season, advancing to the Women's National Invitation Tournament (WNIT). The Zips ended their postseason run with an 86-68 loss at Kansas State.
• Kest, now in her 10th season at the helm of the program, has collected the most wins of any Akron women's basketball head coach in the history of the program.
Brown Named MAC East Player of the Week
Anita Brown was selected as the Mid-American Conference East Women's Basketball Player of the Week, the league announced on Nov. 17.
Brown directed Akron's efforts in the Zips' 91-77 setback at Florida Atlantic on Nov. 13, registering a team-high 27 points.
She connected on nearly 48 percent (.476) of her shots from the field, while going 2-of-4 from beyond the arc. She also pulled down seven rebounds, while dishing out three assists.
The accolade was the fourth in Brown's Akron career and the first for a Zip this season.
Akron Hosts Third-Annual Education Day
The University of Akron Women's Basketball team held its third-annual Education Day on Nov. 20, as the Zips hosted Winthrop in the opening game of the Akron Classic.
Nearly 1,000 fifth-grade students attended, which marked the largest class yet in the event's three years of existence. Students came from all across Akron with nearly 20 schools attending.
Students had pre-, in-, and post-game "homework" that they will complete based on the outcome of the game. Questions were integrated into the assignments relating to the game of basketball for example: score at halftime, leading scorer, scoring percentages, etc. as well as a portion about promoting an active and healthy lifestyle.
Zips Add Six the 2016 Recruiting Class
The University of Akron women's basketball team, under the leadership of 10th-year head coach Jodi Kest, has announced the addition of six student-athletes joining the Zips' squad for the 2016-17 campaign.
Donning the Akron uniform next season will be Alyssa Clay (Indianapolis, Ind./Pike), Shaunay Edwards (Pittsburgh, Pa./Seton LaSalle), Shayna Harmon (Ashville, Ohio/Teays Valley), Brooke Kurucz (Parkersburg, W.Va./Parkersburg), Haliegh Reinoehl (Westfield, Ind./Westfield) and Caitlin Vari (Richfield, Ohio/Revere), who have signed National Letters of Intent to join the Zips' program for the 2016-17 campaign.
A 5-8 guard from Pike High School in Indianapolis, Ind., averaged 11.6 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.0 assists per contest as a junior en route to earning honorable mention all-state accolades. She has helped guide the Red Devils to back-to-back sectional championships and was tabbed to the 2015 Indiana Junior All-Star team. A strong student, Clay owns a 4.45 grade-point average and is the top-ranked student in her graduating class.
A 5-3 guard, Edmonds averaged 11.0 points, 8.0 assists, 6.0 steals and 4.0 rebounds per contest as a junior at Seton LaSalle High School in Pittsburgh, Pa. The 27th-rated point guard in the country by ESPN HoopGurlz rankings, she helped lead the Rebels to a state championship as a freshman in 2013 and a runner-up performance as a sophomore in 2014. She was named the Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League championship game most valuable player as a junior.
A 5-9 guard from Teays Valley High School in Ashville, Ohio, Harmon recorded 20.8 points, 7.7 rebounds, 5.2 assists and 4.8 steals a game as a junior en route to earning All-Ohio special mention honors. She has garnered recognition as the 25th-rated guard in the country by Prospects Nation and is ranked 74th nationally by ESPN HoopGurlz. She was selected as the Ohio District 10 Player of the Year in 2015.
A 5-9 guard out of Parkersburg High School in Parkersburg, W.Va., Kurucz posted 18.5 points and 5.8 rebounds as a junior en route to earning third-team All-State and first-team all-conference accolades in 2015.
A 6-2 forward from Westfield, Ind., Reinoehl averaged nearly a double-double as a junior for Westfield High School registering 12.2 points and 9.1 rebounds per contest. An honorable mention All-State and first-team all-county selection in 2015, she is the 46th-rated forward in the country by ESPN HoopGurlz.
A 6-1 forward out of Revere High School in Richfield, Ohio, Vari was named an honorable mention All-Ohio recipient as a junior after averaging 12.5 points and 8.5 rebounds per game. Additionally, she was selected as an all-county honoree in 2015.
King Earns Her Crown
Sina King became only the second Zips' player to be named the Mid-American Conference Women's Basketball Player of the Year with her selection as the league's top player for the 2014-15 campaign.
She led the conference in scoring (20.3), rebounding (9.3) and defensive rebounding (6.8), while ranking third in three-point shooting (.382), sixth in field-goal percentage (.478) and in free-throw percentage (.789).
She scored in double figures in all 31 games en route to posting a league-best 16 double-doubles.
In conference-only affairs, she rated first in scoring (20.7) and three-point percentage (.407), and second in rebounding (9.3), while shooting 47.5 percent from the floor (sixth in the MAC).
King capped her career with 888 rebounds and 1,634 points, the third- and fourth-highest totals in program history, while playing in 124 career games.
Three Zips Earn All-MAC Honors
Led by Sina King, who was tabbed as first-team All-Mid-American Conference women's basketball selection, three Akron student-athletes garnered all-conference accolades during the 2014-15 season.
Anita Brown and Hannah Plybon were tabbed second- and third-team selections, respectively.
A second-team honoree as a sophomore and a third-team selection during her junior campaign, King started all 31 games for the Zips last season, registering team- and conference-best marks in scoring (20.7) and rebounding (9.3).
Assuming a spot in the Zips' starting line-up last season for the first time, Brown stepped into Akron's rotation and responded averaging 18.8 points and 6.7 rebounds per contest. She scored in double figures in 28 games and shot 47.3 percent from the floor.
In league-only affairs, Brown registered 16.9 points and 6.8 rebounds a night, while connecting on 43.1 percent of her shots from the field.
A starter in all 31 games on the campaign, Plybon connected on a school-record 97 three-pointers, while shooting 37.3 percent from beyond the arc. She ranked third on the team in scoring (13.2), fourth in assists (60) and fifth in steals (24) and scored in double figures in 18 games, including five contests recording 20 or more points.
Akron in Close Games
Akron has been involved in 52 games decided by five points or fewer under head coach Jodi Kest.
A breakdown of those matches is as follows; one-point difference (9-8), two-point difference (9-4), three-point difference (1-4), four-point difference (4-5) and five-point difference (2-6).
Zips' Offensive Progress Report
In Akron's seven games this season, this is how the Zips have fared from the field: 50 percent: NA, 40 percent: .476 (UCF), .457 (Rochester College), .426 (Northern Colorado), .423 (Florida Atlantic), .400 (San Diego), 30 percent: .397 (Florida Gulf Coast), .347 (Winthrop), 20 percent: NA.
Akron's Defensive Progress Report
In the Zips' seven games this season, this is how Akron's opponents have fared from the field: 50 percent: .540 (San Diego), 40 percent: .467 (Florida Atlantic), 30 percent: .393 (Northern Colorado), .391 (Florida Gulf Coast), .343 (UCF), .307 (Winthrop), 20 percent: .216 (Rochester College).
Bench Production
Akron is averaging 16.2 points of production from its bench through the Zips' first seven games this season. Lauren Hung and Alli Ball lead the way registering 4.9 and 3.6 points, respectively. Ball paces the reserves in rebounding pulling down 4.3 caroms per tilt.
Preseason Predictions
University of Akron women's basketball senior Anita Brown and junior Hannah Plybon were named to the Preseason All-Mid-American Conference East team in a preseason poll of 12 conference coaches, the league office announced on Oct. 27.
The Zips under 10th-year head coach Jodi Kest, were picked to finish second as a team in the MAC East Division behind Ohio, who was tabbed to win the conference's regular and postseason championships. Following Akron (53 points) was Bowling Green (51 points), Miami (26 points), Buffalo (25 points) and Kent State (25 points).
In the MAC West, Eastern Michigan (64 points) received four first-place votes and was named the favorite to win the division. Ball State (63 points) captured eight first-place votes, but was selected to finish second. The Cardinals were followed by Western Michigan (45 points), Toledo (42 points), Central Michigan (24 points) and Northern Illinois (14 points).
Also voted on by the coaches was the predicted 2015 MAC Regular Season Champion. Ohio received 10 of the 12 first-place votes, while Ball State and Eastern Michigan each collected one championship vote.
In a tabulation of the MAC Championship winner, Ohio was selected as the favorite earning five first-place tallies. The Bobcats were followed by Ball State and Eastern Michigan with three votes apiece, while Buffalo rounded out the poll with the final tally.
King Garners All-America Accolades
Sina King was named an honorable mention All-American by the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) for the 2014-15 campaign.
King was one of 52 other student-athletes from across all of Division I women's basketball to be honored by the WBCA. Her selection marked the second-straight year that Akron had a player earn honorable mention All-America accolades by the WBCA.
King joined Rachel Tecca (2013-14), Cheryl Bowles (1999-2000) and Pam Arnold (1986-87) as Zips who have been honored as earned honorable mention All-America recipients during their distinguished Akron careers.
Zips' Duo Earns Academic All-MAC Honors
Sina King and Hannah Plybon were named to the 2014-15 Mid-American Conference Women's Basketball Academic All-MAC team. In all, a total of 29 student-athletes were named to the squad for last season. The duo was also named to the MAC Distinguished Scholar-Athlete list in 2014-15.
Newcomer Notes
• Lilli Piper - Fr., Norton, Ohio/Walsh Jesuit: averaged 14.5 points, 9.0 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game as a senior en route to earning all-conference and honorable mention All-Ohio honors. As a junior, she recorded 12.3 points, 8.6 rebounds and 5.9 assists per contest and garnered All-Ohio Special Mention recognition, and was also named first team all-district. A multi-sport athlete, Piper was tabbed the 2014 softball player of the year by Cleveland.com, and maintained a 3.6 GPA.
• Fredniqua Walker - Fr., Cleveland, Ohio/Shaw: averaged a double-double as a senior posting 16 points and 12 rebounds per contest en route to earning all-conference, all-district and third-team All-Ohio accolades and being named as a McDonald's All-American nominee. As a junior, averaged 12 points and 10 rebounds per game. She earned all-district recognition following her junior campaign in 2013-14. Walker boasted a 4.3 GPA and ranked No. 1 in her class.
Zips Live Radio Show
Every Monday throughout the basketball season from 7-8 p.m. ET, Akron head coaches can be heard on the weekly radio program Zips Live, presented by Lee Hyder and Associates. The show airs locally on 1350 AM (WARF) and originates from Johnny J's Pub and Grill in the Valley (1282 Weathervane Lane). A free audio stream is available on SportsRadio1350.com.
What Is a Zip?
• One of the unique nicknames in collegiate athletics belongs to The University of Akron.
• Originally Zippers, athletic director Kenneth "Red" Cochrane officially shortened the nickname to the Zips in 1950. Twenty-five years earlier a campus-wide contest had been conducted to choose a nickname for the University's athletics teams.
• Suggestions submitted by students, faculty, and alumni included Golden Blue Devils, Tip Toppers, Rubbernecks, Hillbillies, Kangaroos, and Cheveliers.
• The winner, freshman Margaret Hamlin, received a prize of $10 for Zippers, a $6 pair of rubber overshoes and a brand name of the BF Goodrich Company.
• The evolution of Zippy, UA's mascot, began 40 years ago when the student council decided the University needed a mascot.
• "Zippy" the kangaroo was officially declared the school's mascot on May 1, 1953. The first known printed reference to the mascot as "Zippy" was a 1965 Zip football press brochure. The Buchtelite's first use of the name "Zippy" came Sept. 24, 1965, in an identification of a photo of the cheerleaders listing "Mascot - 'Zippy' - Charles Huettner."
• In 2007, Zippy was named the Capital One National Mascot of the Year.
Up Next
The Zips travel to Moline, Ill., for a date with Northern Iowa on Sunday, Dec. 13. Game time is slated for 2 p.m. ET.
