Women’s Basketball (25-2, 15-1 IIAC)

W 93-67 IIAC Tournament Semifinals vs. Dubuque, Feb. 28: The Storm, seeded No.1, forced 26 turnovers and stole the ball 13 times from the opposing No. 5 seed. Senior forward Katelyn Whiton led all scorers with 25 points. Senior center Ashley Katch claimed 14 points, five rebounds, five blocks and four assists.

W 94-80 IIAC Tournament Finals vs. Coe, March 1: The Storm claimed their 23rd consecutive victory over Coe, the No. 3 seed. The win also broke the school record for wins in a season. Whiton led the Storm again with 24 points, eight rebounds and four steals. Katch nabbed her fifth double-double of the year with 12 points and 11 rebounds, also tallying four blocks. Senior guard Carlie Beals had four three-pointers for a total of 12 points. Junior forward Carrie Larsen added 11 points. The Storm victory gave Simpson the automatic bid into the NCAA Division III Women’s Basketball Tournament.

Men’s Track and Field

IIAC Indoor Championships @ Luther, Feb. 29-March 1: Scoring 62 points, the Storm claimed the school’s highest finish at the meet with fourth place and had six All-Conference performances: sophomore Eric Patten took first in the 800-meter run (1:54.69); sophomore Marty Rounds, first, 55-meter hurdles (7.76); sophomore Wardell Watkins, second, long jump (6.75 meters); sophomore John Wardenburg, second, shot put (15.29m); 4×400-meter relay (Rounds, sophomore Tyler Jordison, sophomore Legrand Bien-Aime, Patten), third, (3:27.95); Watkins, third, triple jump (13.63m). Patten’s time in the 800 provisionally qualified him for nationals, broke Luther’s forum record and broke the IIAC record.

Women’s Track and Field

IIAC Indoor Championships @ Luther, Feb. 29-March 1: With a total of 110.33 points, the Storm placed second in the conference, up three spots from the fifth-place finish last year. Head Coach Dave Cleveland was named 2008 Iowa Conference Women’s Indoor Coach of the Year after leading the Storm to a school record in points and school-best finish at the league meet. The Storm had six All-Conference performances: Freshman Catie Ellingson took first in the mile (5:09.66); sophomore Lauren Bucklin, first, 55-meter hurdles (8.38); sophomore Kellie Whitney, first, triple jump (10.74 meters); 4×800-meter relay (sophomores Sarah Hammel, Kelli Hildreth, senior Emily Salberg, Ellingson), first, (9:36.76); senior Suzi Anderson, second, long jump (5.23m); 4×200 (freshmen Vanessa Evenson, Anderson, Bucklin, Molly Sabers), third (1:47.05). Whitney’s performance in the triple jump earned her the title for the second consecutive year. Bucklin’s hurdle time was a provisionally-qualifying time and broke the school record. The 4×800 team now holds the school record as well as the forum record and the 4×200 quartet broke the school record. The distance medley (Hildreth, sophomore Alyssa Hedrick, Salberg, Hammel) also broke the school record with a time of 12:31.29.