IOWA INTERCOLLEGIATE ATHLETIC CONFERENCE

IIAC SPORTS
Fall
  •  Cross Country (M)
  •  Cross Country (W)
  •  Football
  •  Golf (W)
  •  Soccer (M)
  •  Soccer (W)
  •  Tennis (W)
  •  Volleyball

Winter
  •  Basketball (M)
  •  Basketball (W)
  •  Wrestling

Spring
  •  Baseball
  •  Golf (M)
  •  Softball
  •  Tennis (M)
  •  Track & Field (M)
  •  Track & Field (W)
 

February 18, 2002

UPPER IOWA’S HELLER AND LUTHER’S SOUTH NAMED IIAC ATHLETES OF THE WEEK
FOUR OTHERS RECOGNIZED FOR THEIR ATHLETIC ACHIEVEMENTS

MOUNT VERNON, IA . . .  The Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) announced today its Male and Female Athletes of the Week for the period ending Sunday, February 17, 2002.  Upper Iowa University basketball player Tara Heller (Fayette, IA/North Fayette HS) was selected IIAC Female Athlete of the Week and Luther College wrestler Garrett South (Cumberland, IA/Cumberland HS) was selected IIAC Male Athlete of the Week.

Heller, a senior guard, averaged 25.0 points, 3.5 assists, and 2.0 steals per game in two contests during the week.  In an overtime victory against Buena Vista University, she scored 30 points, had two assists, three steals and two blocked shots.  Her three-point basket with 14 seconds remaining in regulation tied the game and forced overtime.  In overtime, she scored on a lay-up following a steal that gave Upper Iowa an 84-82 advantage.  Upper Iowa won 85-82.  In the regular season finale against Wartburg, Heller became the eighth player in Upper Iowa history to score 1,000 career points.  She scored 20 points, grabbed three rebounds and handed out five assists in the victory.

South, a 165-pound freshman, was named “Outstanding Wrestler” at the Iowa Conference Championships on Thursday.  As the fourth seed, South won the 165-pound weight class and qualified for the NCAA Championships.  In the quarterfinal round, he pinned Simpson College’s Justin Song (fifth seed) at 4:46.  South then upset nationally top ranked Jorge Borgen of Upper Iowa with a 4-3 decision in the semifinals.  In the finals, South earned a 9-5 decision over the third seed Kevin Powell of Wartburg College.

The IIAC also announced on Monday the Players of the Week for the Conference’s six sports in competition during the week.  Heller and South earned the honor for their respective sports and the following individuals were recognized for their athletic achievements.

Men’s Basketball:  Loras College junior swingman Travis Williams (Port Sulphur, LA/Port Sulphur HS) averaged 22.0 points, 9.5 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game in two contests during the week.  In the regular season finale against Simpson, he scored a career-high 30 points in 25 minutes of play, also contributing nine rebounds and two assists.  The previous evening against Central, Williams scored 14 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and handed out four assists.

Men’s Tennis:  Simpson College sophomore Sam Skalland (Kansas City, MO/St. Pius X HS) posted 2-1 records at both number one singles and number one doubles.  After opening the season with a loss to Hamline University in both singles (6-7, 1-6) and doubles (3-8), Skalland posted singles victories over University of Minnesota-Morris’ Andrew Christianson (6-2, 6-7, 10-6) and Buena Vista’s Nate Stuck (6-2, 6-4).  He paired with partner Andrew Merrill to post 8-3 doubles victories over Minnesota Morris and Buena Vista.

Men’s Track and Field:  Wartburg College sophomore Brent Showalter (Wellman, IA/Mid-Prairie HS) was a member of the 4x400 relay team that provisionally qualified for the NCAA Championships with a run of 3:19.35 at the UNI-Dome Open.  Showalter also finished eighth (second among Division III runners) in the 400-meters (50.09).

Women’s Track and Field:  Wartburg College freshman Missy Buttry (Shenandoah, IA/Shenandoah, HS) won the mile run at the UNI-Dome Open in an NCAA automatic qualifying time of 4:54.49.  She won the race by over five seconds as the second place finisher ran in a time of 4:59.8.

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