December 16, 2008

CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA . . . The Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) announced today that Cornell College basketball players Kristin Paczosa (Arlington Heights, Ill./Buffalo Grove) and Griffin LaDew (Pewaukee, Wis./Waukesha Catholic Memorial) have been named the IIAC Female and Male Athletes of the Week for the period ending Sunday, December 14. The Conference also announced the Performers of the Week for the Conference’s five sports in competition during the week.

Women’s Basketball – Kristin Paczosa, Cornell College, Arlington Heights, Ill./Buffalo Grove
Paczosa, a junior forward, grabbed a career-high 18 rebounds, which tied Cornell’s fourth-best single-game total, in a loss to sixth-ranked Wisconsin-Whitewater. She followed that up by tying her career high in scoring with 19 points against Grinnell. During the week, the averaged 14.0 points, 13.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 2.5 steals, and 1.5 blocks per game. She also shot 84.2 percent (16-for-19) from the free throw line. (IIAC Female Athlete of the Week)

Men’s Basketball – Griffin LaDew, Cornell College, Pewaukee, Wis./Waukesha Catholic Memorial
LaDew, a senior guard, moved into fifth place on Cornell’s career scoring chart with 1,288 points. He tossed in a season-high 26 points against Webster on the strength of a perfect 11-for-11 at the charity stripe. In three games, he averaged 18.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, 3.3 steals, and 1.7 assists per game while shooting 45.5 percent (15-33) from the field, 36.8 percent (7-19) from behind the arc, and 94.7 percent (18-19) at the line. (IIAC Male Athlete of the Week)

Wrestling – Aaron Cook, Buena Vista University, Waconia, Minn./Waconia
Cook, a junior 157-pounder, won his weight class at the Jim Fox Open Saturday. He posted a 3-0 record and defeated Upper Iowa’s Travis Eggers, the top-ranked wrestler in Division II at 157 pounds, for the title with a 14-5 major decision in the championship match.

Women’s Swimming & Diving – Alex Proctor, Loras College, Tipton, Iowa/Tipton
Proctor, a freshman, contributed to three winning events in Loras’ 127-98 dual win at Augustana (Ill.) Dec. 12. She won the 50 freestyle (:26.15) and 100 butterfly (1:03.25), and swam on the winning 200 medley relay (1:59.03).

Men’s Swimming & Diving – Zach Gries, Loras College, Byron, Ill./Byron
Gries, a junior, participated in three winning events during the Duhawks’ 123-99 dual win at Augustana (Ill.) Dec. 12. Gries won the 100 (:51.16) and 200 (1:53.51) freestyle races and swam on the winning 200 medley relay (1:45.39).

Other Outstanding Weekly Performers
The IIAC also recognized the following outstanding athletic performances from the past week.

• Women’s Swimming & Diving – Simpson College freshman Catherine Mayes (Muscatine, Iowa/Muscatine) contributed to four winning events in the Storm’s 152-5 win over Iowa Central. Mayes won the 100 backstroke (1:21.36) and 200 IM (2:53.26) and swam on Simpson’s winning 200 medley (2:27.69) and 400 freestyle (5:04.69) relays.

• Wrestling – Cornell College senior 174-pounder Kyle Kehrli (Winthrop, Iowa/East Buchanan) captured the title at the Dick Walker Invitational, yielding only four points in five matches. Kehrli also posted a technical fall in a dual win over William Penn. He improved his season mark to 18-2 and entered the week on a 14-match winning streak.

• Men’s Basketball – Coe College senior guard Kevin Dux (Boulder, Colo./Fairview) scored a career-high 16 points in a win over Webster powered by 4-of-6 shooting from 3-point range. He also hit all four of his free throw attempts, all of which came in the final 23 seconds of the game. He also had a team-high 11 points in a loss to Maryville (Mo.).

• Men’s Basketball – Central College junior guard Miguel Ley (San Antonio, Texas/Judson) averaged 16.7 points, 2.3 steals, 2.0 rebounds, and 2.0 assists per game as the Dutch went 2-1 during the week. He shot 52.5 percent (21-40) from the field and made seven steals.

• Men’s Basketball – Simpson College sophomore guard Dave Johnson (West Des Moines, Iowa/Valley) scored 25 points on 9-of-16 shooting in a home win over Nebraska Wesleyan.

• Women’s Basketball – Buena Vista University senior guard Katie Ebel (Cherokee, Iowa/Washington) scored in double-figures during both of BVU’s victories over the weekend and has now scored at least 14 points in three straight games. She also hauled in seven rebounds in each contest. With her four combined three-pointers, she increased her team-leading total to 17 and also moved into 10th place on the program’s all-time list with 83.

• Women’s Basketball – Simpson College sophomore guard Amy Hamilton (Ames, Iowa/Ames) scored 24 points and reset the school record for most made three-pointers in a game (8) in a win against William Penn.

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