Hardin-Simmons hardened by schedule Cowgirls to challenge top-ranked Southern Maine in Div. III Final Four

The prospect of facing the top-ranked team in the NCAA Division III Final Four doesn’t seem to have fazed the Hardin-Simmons University women’s basketball team.

That’s because the Cowgirls have been through an already tough NCAA sectional round in which they took down some of the nation’s top teams. And that’s after some late-season struggles, a first-round loss in their conference tournament, and an at-large bid to the tourney.

Overcoming all of that has only sharpened HSU, coach Shanna Briggs said, as the Cowgirls prepare to face the top-ranked University of Southern Maine this afternoon in the national semifinals in Springfield, Mass.

“They’ve played great competition, their record speaks for itself,” Briggs said of the 31-1 Huskies of Gorham. “But you know, we don’t rely a ton on rankings. Obviously it’s impressive. But we feel fortunate to be here and we think we have a great team going into the tournament.”

Southern Maine, which holds the top spot in both the WBCA and D3Hoops.com polls, will take on Hardin-Simmons at 4 p.m. at Springfield College’s Blake Arena, followed by the second semifinal between Scranton and Hope at 6 p.m.

The winners meet at 3 p.m. Saturday for the national championship.

The losers play in a consolation game at noon. USM beat Scranton 55-53 in the third-place game last year.

Coach Gary Fifield’s Huskies are making their fifth appearance in the Final Four.

A Baptist-affiliated school in Abilene, Texas, Hardin-Simmons is making its first Final Four appearance. The Cowgirls twice have advanced as far as the Elite Eight.

Hardin-Simmons (24-5) advanced to the Final Four with a 72-65 win over Randolph-Macon, a Final Four team last year. The Cowgirls needed overtime to beat regional host Pacific Lutheran of Tacoma, Wash., in the Sweet 16.

Playing tough competition has gone a long way in helping the Cowgirls feel at ease going into the game against the top-ranked Huskies.

“We feel fortunate to still be playing and I feel like our girls are playing well,” Briggs said. “I think at this point our girls have gained some confidence and they’ve played well as a team. They rely on one another and they don’t get too nervous.”

Fifield was impressed with HSU’s tough schedule and conference – American Southwest Conference member Trinity University won the national championship in 2003.

“That [American] Southwest Conference they play in is very good basketball,” Fifield said. “That’s a good conference. They’ve beaten some good teams on their run.”

USM hasn’t lost since a conference defeat at the hands of Salem (Mass.) State on Dec. 17. The Huskies beat in-state rival Bowdoin College of Brunswick 56-53 last Saturday in the Elite Eight.

The Cowgirls have a well-balanced offense with three players averaging in double figures and three more averaging more than five points per game.

Junior guard Lyssa Denard leads HSU with 12.3 ppg and a team-best 2.2 steals per game. The 5-foot-10 Denard also averages 5.7 rebounds per game.

Six-foot center Melissa Henley, averages 11.7 ppg, as does 5-10 center Sonya West.

West, the only senior on the team, averages a team-best 9.7 rpg, while Henley, a junior, chips in with 5.8 rpg. The two have combined for 2.4 blocks per game.

“I know they’re very athletic, they like to run the floor,” Fifield said. “They play very good pressure, man-to-man defense. They’re very balanced with a good inside game and a perimeter game. On the perimeter we’ve got to be concerned with [Denard]. Inside West and Henley are very good.”

Hardin-Simmons also has eight players who shoot at least 71 percent from the free-throw line. The Cowgirls went 22-for-28 at the line in the win over Randolph-Macon.

Southern Maine counters with its own group of players, including D3hoops.com regional all-stars Ashley Marble of Topsfield and Megan Myles of Auburn.

“We’ve had an opportunity to watch them just a little bit on film and we’re just hoping [to] maybe do the best we can,” Briggs said.