January 3, 2005

CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA . . . The Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) announced today that Wartburg College wrestler Scott Kauffman (Emmetsburg, Iowa/Emmetsburg) and Luther College basketball player Anne Straate (Postville, Iowa/Postville) were named IIAC Male and Female Athletes of the Week for the period of December 20-January 2.

Kauffman, a junior, went 4-0 at the Desert Duals on December 20, two victories over ranked opponents and two pins. He won by decision over Elmhurst’s Matt Sassolino (7-2) and North Central (Ill.)’s Ryan Aldrich (8-5). Sassolino is the #1-ranked wrestler at 184-pounds and Aldrich is ranked sixth. Kauffman pinned McDaniel’s Steve Jennings at 6:04 and, wrestling at 197-pounds, he pinned Menlo’s Mariano Sanchez at 4:14. Kauffman helped the #2-ranked Knights improve their dual meet win streak to 25 with victories over Elmhurst (26-13), North Central (31-13), McDaniel (38-9) and Menlo (35-6).

Straate, a junior forward, was named to the Clarke Holiday Tournament All-Tournament Team after averaging 17.3 points, 6.0 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.3 steals, in three games, leading the Norse to a third-place finish. She shot 68.0 percent from the floor (17-of-25) and 85.7 percent from the free throw line (18-of-21) in victories over Edgewood (78-70, 2ot) and Clarke (73-39) and a loss to Concordia-Nebraska (69-55). In the Tournament opener against Edgewood, Straate scored 20 points and grabbed five rebounds, going 6-for-6 from the field and 8-of-8 from the line. She had 15 points (5-of-9 shooting), four rebounds and four steals in a losing effort against Concordia. In the third-place game against host Clarke, she scored 17 points (6-of-10 shooting), grabbed nine rebounds and had four assists.

The IIAC also announced on Monday that Simpson College sophomore guard Jason Parkinson (Scottsdale, Ariz./Horizon) was named IIAC Men’s Basketball Player of the Week, after he averaged 24.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 1.0 assists and 1.0 blocks in two games at the adidas D-3 Desert Shootout as the Storm finished second in their bracket. He shot 43.8 percent from the floor (14-of-32) including 57.1 percent from behind the three-point arc (8-of-14), and 81.3 percent from the free throw line (13-of-16) in a 62-61 victory over Mount St. Mary and an 82-69 loss to Ripon. Parkinson scored 19 points (6-of-16 shooting), grabbed three rebounds and had a block against Mount St. Mary. He followed that performance with a career-high 30 points (8-of-16 from the field, 5-of-8 on 3-pointers), four rebounds, two assists, a block and a steal in a losing effort against Ripon.

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