Rock Valley College Athletics

Game Preview: Women's Basketball Hosts Illinois Central College to Finish Fall Semester

12/19/2016 9:27:00 AM

Related Links

Rockford, IL - RVC Women's Basketball puts their 10-game winning streak to the test against perennial NJCAA powerhouse, Illinois Central College. Game time is set for 5:30 PM.

Probable Starters

#3 NJCAA DIII Rock Valley College (10-2) 
PG- Chrisseesha Clark, 5'5, So., Rockford, IL; 8.9 ppg, 4.0 apg
SG- Jaycee Cleaver, 5'8, So., Davis, IL; 15.3 ppg, 4.2 apg
G- Emily Cox, 5'9, Fr., Erie, IL; 8.1 ppg, 2.1 rpg
PF- Sydney Miller, 5'8, Fr., Rockford, IL; 3.2 ppg, 3.5  rpg
C- Tierra McGowan, 6'4, So., Chicago, IL; 18.5 ppg, 12.8 rpg
 
Illinois Central College (8-4)
G- Brandi Fier, 5'4, So., South Beliot, IL; 10.6 ppg, 4.0 apg
G- Bailey Larsen, 5'7, Fr., Bloomington, IL; 8.5 ppg, 4.4 rpg
F-  Brianna Henson, 5'9, So., Dunlap, IL; 9.4 ppg, 4.5 rpg
F- Jasmine Elliott, 5'9., Fr, Bradley, IL; 4.5 ppg, 5.2 rpg
F- Summer Burgard, 5'11, Fr., Table Grove, IL; 9.7 ppg, 5.3 rpg

Game Notes
Rock Valley is an NJCAA Division III member of the North Central Community College Conference (N4C)… In the second NJCAA DIII Poll released on December 13th, the Golden Eagles checked in at #3 nationally moving up one spot from the first poll… The Golden Eagles are on a 10-game winning streak entering Monday's game with Illinois Central... The last RVC victory was Thursday, December 15 against NJCAA DII Waubonsee Community College... The Golden Eagles were led by Chriseesha Clark's 23 points... Tierra McGowan contributed yet another double-double, scoring 20 points and ripping down 12 rebounds... Jaycee Cleaver rounded out RVC players in double-figure scoring with 15.

Illinois Central College Notes
Illinois Central is coming into the game 8-4... The cougars are led by Head Coach Karrie Redeker... Redeker enters her 4th season as the head coach for the Cougars, posting a 90-13 record in three seasons at ICC... In 2015-16, the Cougars had their best season in ten years, winning the Region XXIV title and advancing all the way to the national championship game at the the NJCAA Division II Nationals, where they lost to Kansas City Kansas CC...  Redeker was named Region XXIV Coach of the Year, District M Coach of the Year, and IBCA Junior College Coach of the Year, the fourth time she has received these honors.



Misty Opat is in her 8th year as the Head Women's Basketball Coach at Rock Valley College. Opat has established her program as one of the best in the history of the NJCAA. Her program has won three NJCAA DIII National Championships (2012, 2013, 2015) in the past four seasons and finished in National Runner-Up in 2014. Entering this season, Opat has compiled an overall record of 184-56 (.763). She was named Spalding NJCAA DIII National Coach of the Year in 2015, has been named the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association Coach of the Year four times, the Region IV Coach of the Year four times, the District 2 Coach of the Year four times, and the Coach of the NJCAA DIII National Tournament three times. Prior to RVC, Opat accumulated seven years of NCAA Division I coaching experience. From 1999-2002 she served as an assistant coach at the University of Illinois at Chicago where she also served as the Recruiting Coordinator. In 2000 her UIC recruiting class was ranked 19th in the country for NCAA Division I. Opat also held assistant coaching positions at Fresno State University (1998-99) and the University of Kansas (1995-1998) where in both cases she was also heavily involved in recruiting and scouting. Opat earned an Associate of Science degree from Garden City Community College in Garden City, Kansas, where she was a two-year team captain in basketball and was named to the all-conference and all-region teams in both seasons. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from Bethany College in Lindsborg, Kansas, where she earned NAIA All-American honors as a player. Opat then went on to obtain a Master of Science in Sports Administration from Fort Hays State University in Hays, Kansas.