Oilers to Host Lakers, Bulldogs
The University of Findlay women's basketball team will host a pair of Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) contests this week. The Oilers will host Grand Valley State University on Thursday, Feb. 16 in a 8 pm contest and then face Ferris State University on Saturday, Feb. 18 at 3 pm in Croy Gymnasium.
Special Events
Thursday's contest against the Lakers is scheduled to be a "Blackout". The Oilers Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) decided to take on a challenge and sponsor a child's wish through the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Working through Make-A-Wish, SAAC partnered with a Findlay child, Logan, who is looking for his wish to be granted. Logan's wish is to have a therapy pool and lift put in his home. Being in the water is the one opportunity Logan has to be free from restraints.
To fundraise for this, SAAC will be selling black t-shirts for $5. T-shirts are available for purchase at the game or in the athletic office from 2-5 pm until Wednesday. Donations will also be accepted at the game or can be made by contacting Brandi Laurita at 419-434-4651.
Senior Day
The Oilers will have their annual senior day on Saturday. Come out and support the basketball seniors and applaud their accomplishments on the court.
Sights and Sounds
All Oilers basketball games can be heard on 88.3 FM "WLFC" or on the internet via their website.
You can listen to the broadcast by clicking on the following link:
The University of Findlay will also broadcast all of their home basketball games on America One. The games can be viewed on your computer for a small fee by visiting the American One website at the following address:
UF athletics will also offer live stats for all home games. A link to this process can be retrieved by clicking on the live stats button located on the left side of the Oilers athletic website.
The Series
The Oilers hold a 13-10 advantage in the all-time series against Grand Valley State dating back to the 1997-98 campaign when the Lakers came out on top by a score of 81-76.
Last season, the Lakers claimed a 72-66 win over Findlay in Allendale, Michigan.
The Oilers trailed by one at 28-27 after the first half ended, but were out-scored by a 25-9 margin in the first 10 minutes of the deciding period. The Oilers then made a few short runs, but were unable to overcome the 17-point lead Grand Valley built early in the second half.
Nathan Hyde led the team with 22 points on 7-of-13 shooting. He also made 4-of-9 shots from three point range in the game.
Kyle Caiola also reached double figures with 18 points and four assists while Tyler Sparks came off the bench to add nine points and eight rebounds.
The Oilers hold a 16-5 advantage in the all-time series against Ferris State dating back to the 1962-63 campaign when the Bulldogs were victorious by a score of 79-66.
The Bulldogs won 84-66 in the only meeting between the two programs last season.
Kyle Caiola led the team with 13 points while Aaron Robinson and Nathan Hyde contributed 12 and 11 points, respectively.
As a team, the Oilers shot 38.6 percent (22-of-57) from the floor while the Bulldogs connected on 50.9 percent (29-of-57) from the field.
The University of Findlay
The Oilers claimed an 80-61 win over Ohio Dominican University on Saturday, Feb. 11 in Columbus, Ohio.
The Oilers shot 49.1 percent (247-of-55) from the floor and 42.9 percent (6-of-14) from the three point line.
Findlay also hit 80 percent (20-of-25) of their shots from the charity stripe and recorded 19 assists in the win.
Sophomore forward Greg Kahlig and senior guard Kyle Caiola each scored 15 points to lead the Oilers offense.
Kahlig added eight rebounds while Caiola dished out five assists.
Freshman forward Jake Heagen, making his first career start, scored ten points to go along with four rebounds and three assists.
Sophomore guard Sean Samsel came off the bench to contribute nine points while junior forward Jack Smith and sophomore forward Mark Frilling had eight points apiece.
Frilling also tallied eight rebounds in the game.
For Findlay's 2011-12 season statistics, please click on the following link:
For Findlay's 2011-12 roster, please click on the following link:
Grand Valley State University
The Lakers are 14-9 on the year with a 10-6 record in GLIAC play. James Thomas leads the team with a 15.0 points per game average while Nick Waddell (11.5) and Breland Hogan (10.3) are also averaging in double figures on a nightly basis.
For Grand Valley State's 2011-12 season statistics, please click on the following link:
For Grand Valley State's 2011-12 roster, please click on the following link:
Ferris State University
The Bulldogs sport a 15-7 record on the year with a 12-3 record in conference play. Kenny Brown leads the team with a 16.9 points per game average while Daniel Sutherlin and Jerrell Sanders are scoring 12.4 and 10.3 points per game, respectively.
Sutherlin is also grabbing 8.0 rebounds per contest while Sanders is hauling down 7.5 boards per outing.
For Ferris State's 2011-12 season statistics, please click on the following link:
For Ferris State's 2011-12 roster, please click on the following link:
Lighting Up the Scoreboard
The Oilers are averaging 79.0 points per game on the season, the best mark in the GLIAC.
The Oilers have an opportunity to average over 80.0 points per game this season, which has not been accomplished since the 2001-02 campaign when they scored 86.4 points per contest.
Individually, senior guard Kyle Caiola ranks 12th in the conference with a 13.8 points per game average while sophomore guard Greg Kahlig is ranked 14th at 13.7 points per contest.
Making Shots
As a team, the Oilers are connecting on 48.5 percent of their field goal attempts, which is the second best mark in the league and the 28th highest in the country.
Individually, junior foward Brad Piehl ranks fifth in the GLIAC in field goal shooting percentage, hitting 57.5 percent of his tries.
Sophomore forward Greg Kahlig is also ranked high amongst the league leaders and checks in ninth with a 55.6 percent shooting clip.
Grand Theft
The Oilers lead the conference in steals per game and rank 28th in the nation with 8.6 per contest.
Individually, senior guard Kyle Caiola ranks tenth in the league with 1.5 steals per game.
Automatic from the Line
Senior guard Kyle Caiola is hitting 91.3 percent of his free throw attempts on the year, the second best mark in the league and the fifth best in the nation.
In addition, junior forward Brad Piehl is hitting 81.2 percent of his attempts from the free throw line to rank 12th in the conference.
As a team, the Oilers are shooting 75.5 percent from the line, the second best mark in the GLIAC and the 17th best in the nation.
Swatting Shots
The Oilers are averaging 3.6 blocks per game on the season, the third best mark in the league.
Individually, sophomore forward Mark Frilling ranks tenth in the GLIAC with 1.0 blocked shots per game.
Spreading the Wealth
The Oilers rank third in the GLIAC with 14.4 assists per game.
Individually, senior guard Kyle Caiola is ranked seventh in the GLIAC in assists per game with 3.6 per contest.
Pounding the Boards
The Oilers are ranked seventh in the GLIAC with 35.0 rebounds per game.
Stroking 3's
Sophomore forward Greg Kahlig leads the team and ranks fifth in the GLIAC with a 44.4 percent shooting clip from three point range.
Senior guard Kyle Caiola checks in 16th with a 40.3 percent shooting clip from long range.
As a team, the Oilers are hitting 37.8 percent of their three pointers, which is the third best mark in the GLIAC.
They are also making 7.3 three pointers per contest, the third best total in the conference.
Winning Big
The Oilers are second in the GLIAC in point differential as they are out-scoring their opponents by 11.0 points per game.
The scoring margin is the 21st best in the nation.
Taking Care of the Rock
Senior guard Kyle Caiola ranks eighth in the GLIAC in assist to turnover ratio at 1.6 on the year.
Simply the Best
The Oilers have the best winning percentage in NCAA Division II competition since the year 2000, having won 303 games and lost only 63 for a percentage of .828.
A Tough Place to Play
The Oilers are 526-110 (.826) in Croy Gymnasium since they starting playing home games there during the 1969-70 season.
In the past nine years, the Oilers are a staggering 150-3 at home for a winning percentage of .980.
Dominating GLIAC Home Games
The Oilers have won 74 straight GLIAC games at home during the regular season.
Their last loss at home in conference play came in 70-68 fashion against Gannon University on February 12, 2004.
Handling Non-Conference Foes
The Oilers have posted a 78-4 record (.951) against non-conference opponents in games played at Croy Gymnasium during the past ten years.
Putting the Ball in the Hole
Senior guard Kyle Caiola has been a tremendous scorer during his career and has racked up 1,752 points during his tenure at the University of Massachusetts-Lowell and The University of Findlay.
Playing his first two seasons at Massachusetts-Lowell, Caiola scored 1,043 points. He has since scored 719 with the Oilers after transferring in last season.
Conference Championships
The Oilers have won ten GLIAC South Division titles in their 14-year affiliation with the conference and have also won five conference tournaments, capturing titles in 2004, 2005, 2007, 2009 and 2010.
In the last ten years, the Oilers have won nine GLIAC South Division titles.
GLIAC Tournament Success
The Oilers currently sport a 22-6 record in the GLIAC Tournament, winning titles in 2004, 2005, 2007, 2009 and 2010.
Findlay has appeared in the championship game of the event seven times in the past nine years. They reached the finals in 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010.
National Elite
The Oilers have appeared in nine of the last ten NCAA Division II National Tournaments with a 15-8 record, reaching the Elite Eight during the 2004-05 campaign and the Final Four in the 2008-09 season when they captured their first NCAA Division II National Championship.
They also reached the Sweet 16 during the 2007-08 campaign.
Passing Their Way into the Record Book
The Oilers dished out a school record 30 assists in their lopsided 98-57 win over Notre Dame (Ohio) on December 3.
The previous record of 28 was established twice before in a 94-45 win over Rio Grande (12/22/2007) and a 99-67 win against Lake Erie (11/27/2006).
Breaking Board Records
The Oilers broke a school record in their first game of the season after snatching 63 rebounds in their 92-62 win at home over Ohio Valley on November 12.
The previous record of 56 rebounds came in a 102-54 win against Tiffin on December 18, 2001.
Preseason GLIAC Poll
The Oilers received a league-best 170 points and 20 first place votes in the 2011-12 Preseason GLIAC Poll, which was released on November 2.
They have won nine GLIAC South Division titles in the past ten years.
Preseason All-GLIAC
Senior guard Kyle Caiola was tabbed a first team all-conference pick while junior guard Aaron Robinson earned second team all-league honors during the preseason.
Caiola, who was a first team all-league pick last year, averaged 14.0 points per game last season.
Robinson, an all-defensive team selection last year, averaged 10.2 points and 4.4 rebounds per game in 2010-11.
Preseason All-American
Senior guard Kyle Caiola was tabbed an honorable mention All-American by the Sporting News.
Caiola, a first team all-conference selection last year, averaged 14.0 points per game during his junior season.
Helpful Links
For more information on the GLIAC, please click on the following link:
For more information on NCAA Division II Men's Basketball, please click on the following links: