Lake Forest Drops a Pair of Games at Forester Tip-Off Tournament
Wheaton claims tournament title

LAKE FOREST, IL - Wheaton College (IL) won the highly competitive 2000 Forester Tip-Off Tournament title with a 73-55 win over Hope College during Saturday's (November 18th) championship game. The Thunder knocked off tournament host Lake Forest, 69-57, on Friday to advance to the title contest. 

Bowdoin, who fell to Hope, 61-43, in the semifinals, defeated Lake Forest in the consolation game by a final of 69-57. 

The four competing institutions have combined for a 289-113 record over the past two seasons, including three conference titles and six NCAA Tournament appearances between them.

Amie Karkainen tallied game-highs for points (24) and rebounds (8) to lead Wheaton on Saturday. The Thunder outscored Hope, ranked 14th in the Division III Basketball Online pre-season poll, 48-34 in the second half. Rachel Horgen added 20 points for Wheaton, and Amanda Kerkstra led Hope with 22 points on 10-of-15 shooting.

During Saturday's consolation game, Bowdoin jumped out to early leads on Lake Forest to start both halves. The Polar Bears started the game with a 10-2 run and lead 37-28 at the halfway point. Bowdoin stretched their lead to 19 points by starting the second half on a 12-2 run. A Karla Gribble (Mineral Point, WI/Mineral Point) three-pointer with 29 seconds left pulled the Foresters to within four points at 73-69, but Bowdoin would make four-of-four free throws to close the game.

Katie McCants (Menasha, WI/Menasha) led Lake Forest with a career-high 24 points on 10-of-20 shooting. She added a team-high nine rebounds, but was limited to 26 minutes because of foul trouble. Alison Grubbs (Cullom, IL/Tri-Point) had 13 points on 13-of-16 free throw shooting and Gribble scored 10 points. 

Lora Trenkle poured in 26 points to lead Bowdoin. 

On Friday, Wheaton scored 30 points off 24 LF turnovers and outscored the Foresters 22-5 in second chance points on their way to a 69-57 win. 

Grubbs paced the Foresters with 21 points, including four three-point field goals. She added six rebounds, four steals, and three assists - all tops on the team. McCants chipped in 13 points.

Karkainen had 11 points and 16 rebounds for the Thunder. Horgen (19 points), Stacie Clark (15 points), and Becky Moo (10 points) also scored in double figures.

In Friday's first semfinal, Hope out-rebounded Bowdoin, 54-34, to help them knock off the Polar Bears. Kerkstra had 11 points and nine rebounds for Hope.

The 2000 Forester Tip-Off Tournament All-Tournament team consisted of Lake Forest's Grubbs, Bowdoin's Trenkle, Hope's Kerkstra, and Wheaton's Karkainen and Horgan.

Lake Forest will participate in the Washington University Tournament in St. Louis, MO over Thanksgiving weekend. The Foresters will play Cornell College (IA) in the first round, with Washington University (MO), the three-time defending NCAA Division III champions, and Rhodes College facing off in the other semifinal. 

Cornell is former member of the Midwest Conference. The Rams defected to the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference in the spring of 1997. 

Bowdoin-Hope Box Score
Lake Forest-Wheaton Box Score
Lake Forest-Bowdoin Box Score
Wheaton-Hope Box Score