Purdue Calumet Sports Update, February 11, 2016

PUC-Deno-Nets-27-in-No-13-Purdue-Calumets-77-67-Loss-at-No-5-St-FrancisDeno Nets 27 in #13 Purdue Calumet's 77-67 Loss at #5 St. Francis
Cassidy Deno led the way with another strong offensive performance but it wasn’t enough for the No. 15 Purdue University Calumet women’s basketball team in a tight 77-67 conference loss to No. 5 St. Francis (Ill.) Wednesday in Joliet.

Deno (Otterbein, Ind./Benton Central) led all scorers with 27 points on 6-of-15 shooting from the floor and made 13-of-14 free throws – tying her career-high for makes from the charity stripe. In the last five games, Deno has turned up the offense, averaging 26.4 points per contest.

Sophomore Katie Wampler (Scottsburg, Ind./Scottsburg) was the only other Peregrine in double figures, adding 10 points, while Darien Thompson (Anderson, Ind./Anderson) and Jessica Kiser (Noblesville, Ind./Noblesville) added eight each for Purdue Calumet.

The Peregrines (20-7, 11-6 Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference) led at halftime, 31-30, after outscoring the Fighting Saints (24-3, 14-2) in the second quarter by a 19-15 margin. USF led after the first quarter, 15-12, but a layup by the Peregrines’ Patrice McBee (Culver, Ind./Culver Community) and two free throws by Deno gave the visitor a one-point lead at the 9:05 mark in the second frame.

That lead would change eight more times before the Peregrines held a one-point advantage at the break. USF wasted no time in regaining its lead in the third, as a Angelica Osusky triple at the 9:16 mark made it 33-32 Saints. The game stood tied at 46-all with 3:38 left in the quarter, but the Saints would use a 10-4 run to close out the third – capitalizing off two 3-pointers by Kamari Jordan and Charnelle Reed – to take a 56-50 lead into the fourth.

Purdue Calumet would get no closer than five, 72-67, after two Deno free throws with 1:17 to play before USF closed the game on a 5-0 run to seal it.

The Peregrines shot 38.5 percent (20-of-52) from the field for the game, compared to 47.5 percent (29-of-61) for the Saints, who shot a blistering 54.8 percent in the second half. Per usual, Purdue Calumet capitalized more at the free-throw line, making 25-of-28 (89.3 percent) compared to just 9-of-12 (75.0 percent) shooting for USF.

Entering Wednesday’s game, Purdue Calumet led the CCAC in both free-throw attempts (389) and makes (285).

USF, on the other hand, drained 10-of-22 3-pointers (45.5 percent) compared to just 2-of-8 (25.0 percent) shooting from deep from the Peregrines. The Saints also committed seven less turnovers, totaling 10 giveaways to Purdue Calumet’s 17.

In all, the lead changed 16 times and the game stood tied on six occasions.

Reed led the Saints with 21 points, Jordan had 15 points and Alexis Brown finished with 12 points for the host.

Deno and McBee led the Peregrines effort on the boards with seven each and Kiser added five, as Purdue Calumet outrebounded USF, 38-27. Kiser added three assists and Thompson and Deno each had two steals.

Purdue Calumet, currently in third place in the CCAC’s South Division and sixth overall, returns to action Saturday, Feb. 13, when it hosts Holy Cross College in Hammond for a 1 p.m. CT contest. The Peregrines will conclude its regular season on Wednesday, Feb. 17, with a 5:30 matchup at Trinity Christian.

The top eight overall teams will make the CCAC Tournament, set for Feb. 23-29.

Men's Hoops Falls to No.2 St. Francis (Ill.) Wednesday Night
The Purdue University Calumet men’s basketball team fell to No. 2 ranked St. Francis (Ill.), 76-65, Wednesday night in a Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference matchup.

The Peregrines (10-17, 3-15 CCAC) were led by Darric Obinger (Munster, Ind./Calumet Christian), who notched a season-high 18 points while connecting on 3-of-5 shots from beyond the arc.

Junior guard LaBradford Sebree (Kokomo, Ind./Kokomo) scored 16 points and three steals whileRyan Rader (Lombard, Ill./Willowbrook) added 15 points and five rebounds.

The Fighting Saints jumped out to an early 17-4 lead in the first seven minutes of the contest, and continued to take control for the remainder of the half.

Landus Anderson led the way for USF in the first period, recording 11 points thanks to a trio of trifectas, to extend their lead over the Black and Gold to 15 points, 33-18.

Obinger would score 6 of his 12 points of the second half in the final few minutes to cut their deficit to 11, 39-28, to close out the half.

The Fighting Saints would extend their lead in the second half, after a Jens Kennedy three-point field goal made it 60-41 with 9:51 remaining in the game.

Purdue Calumet would fight back, chipping away at the Fighting Saints lead, after a 20-7 run thanks to a balance scoring effort from the Peregrine squad.

Sebree would connect from downtown with 2:42 left in the final half, with the Peregrines trailing USF 67-61.

Some clutch free throws by the Fighting Saints and a trifecta from Anderson sealed the game for USF, which came away with a 76-65 win over the Peregrines.

USF was led by Ilya Ilyayev, who recorded a game-high 22 points on 8-of-14 shooting, while Jens Kennedy scored 15 points on a perfect 3-of-3 from beyond the arc.

The Peregrines return to action on Saturday, Feb. 13, when they host CCAC opponent Holy Cross at 3:00 p.m. (CT)​

River Forest's Chris Ramos to Run at Purdue Calumet
River Forest High School standout Chris Ramos recently committed to continue his running career for Purdue University Calumet next fall.

Ramos, of Hobart, Ind., a four-year year letterwinner for the cross country and track teams at River Forest, is the fourth recruit for Purdue Calumet Head Coach Stephanie Beck.

“Chris has done great things for River Forrest and I expect him to do the same at Purdue Calumet,” Beck said of Ramos.

“His combination of excelling in the classroom, on the course and in the community will really boost our men’s program.”

Ramos was named Most Valuable Runner all four years and made it to IHSAA Semi-State two years in a row. He was also named team captain and broke the 5-kilometer record at River Forest.

The son of Joel and Claudia Ramos, Chris plans to major in Biology next fall.

Ramos joins a rising Peregrines squad that placed seventh in the 2015 Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference Championships, led by junior Alex Cordova's Top 20 finish and first-ever qualification to the NAIA Cross Country National Championships.

Ramos marks the fourth 2016-17 commit for Purdue Calumet men's cross country, joining Lowell High's Robert Corning and Hunter VanSchouwen and Franklin Central's Brett Richardson.

Purdue Calumet's Cassidy Deno Named to CoSIDA Academic All-District Team
Purdue University Calumet women's basketball junior Cassidy Deno has been selected to the College of Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Academic All-District team for her performance on both the court and the classroom.

Deno (Otterbein, Ind./Benton Central) advances to the CoSIDA Academic All-American national ballot, with the Academic All-American team scheduled for release Feb. 29. She was one of five players selected in District 2, of a ballot of 42 players. She joined two other CCAC winners from District 2, St. Xavier’s Kara Krolicki and Roosevelt’s Becky Williford.

The junior guard currently leads the No. 15 Peregrines with 18.3 points per contest, adding 6.7 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 1.5 steals. Deno has been electric from the field as of late, as she's shooting 42.4 percent from the field and 41.3 percent from 3-point land, where she's made 71 treys.

Recently, Deno poured in a career-high effort of 39 points in a setback against No. 6 Olivet Nazarene Feb. 3. The 39-point effort was the second-largest, single-game offensive performance by a Peregrine since single-game records were kept in 2010.

Deno earned Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference Player of the Week honors back in November (her second career weekly honor) and joined the 1,000-point club in the same month. Her current point total of 1,458 stands seventh in program history. The 2013-14 CCAC Freshman of the Year, Deno was also the conference's nominee for the NAIA's Emil S. Liston Award and serves on the Commitee on Intercollegiate Athletics.

In the classroom, Deno has also excelled, as the junior carries a 3.78 grade point average, majoring in Hospitality and Tourism Management wiht a concentration in Fitness Management.

The 2016 CoSIDA Academic All-District Men's and Women's Basketball Teams are selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America and recognize the nation’s top student athletes for their combined performances athletically and in the classroom.

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