Hawkeyes tip off WNIT Thursday vs. Ball State

IOWA CITY — No, it's not the NCAA tournament.

But it's still a ball date. With Ball State.

After eight consecutive NCAA appearances, the Iowa Hawkeyes tip off the WNIT at 7 p.m. Thursday at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

'Our approach is to make the best of it,' Whitney Jennings said. 'We want to go on a deep run. I think we're capable of winning it.'

Iowa (19-13) is making its first WNIT appearance since 2005, when it reached the semifinals. If attendance is strong, there's a good possibility the Hawkeyes will host for much of the tournament. There would be a conflict — NCAA gymnastics — on the date of the WNIT championship April 2.

But that's down the road. This isn't the NCAA, but it's not a parade of cupcakes, either. Six Big Ten teams are in the field.

'We can experience a lot of growth if we attack and get after this,' Ally Disterhoft said. 'We can get a lot out of this experience. There are a lot of good teams in this tournament.'

Ball State (21-9) will be a quality opponent. The Cardinals finished second in the MAC West Division.

'The similarities between us are eerie,' Iowa Coach Lisa Bluder said. 'We both have freshman point guards, big posts, tall power forwards. It will be a good matchup.'

The teams have never met.

Four Cardinals average in double figures, led by Nathalie Fontaine, a 6-foot-2 senior from Sweden. Fontaine averages 20.7 points and 10.2 rebounds per game.

Iowa counters with Disterhoft (17.1 ppg), a junior who needs 19 points to set a school record for scoring in a season by a non-senior (Michelle Edwards scored 564 as a junior in 1986-87).

And with 1,523 points, she's right on pace to break Cindy Haugejorde's school mark for points in a career — 2,059 from 1976 to 1980. A long tournament run could make Haugejorde's record very accessible next year.

More importantly, it could set the table for a strong 2016-17.

'UCLA won (the WNIT last year), and now they're a (No. 3) seed (in the NCAA) this year,' Bluder said. 'Hopefully we can go on a run and build some confidence.'

Iowa and Ball State have one common opponent. The Hawkeyes split two games with Purdue while Ball State lost a 10-point decision to the Boilermakers at West Lafayette.

For Jennings, Thursday's game will be a reunion with former Logansport (Ind.) teammate Nakeya Penny, a freshman reserve for the Cardinals.

Thursday's winner will face Saint Louis or Arkansas-Little Rock in the second round.

Missouri Valley Conference regular-season champion Northern Iowa (22-10) is at Nebraska (18-12) on Thursday; Drake (22-9) hosts Northeast Conference regular-season champ Sacred Heart (20-12). Those winners meet in Round 2.

l Comments: (319) 368-8857; jeff.linder@thegazette.com