MACOMB, Ill.- The Western Illinois women's basketball team returns to Summit League action when it plays host to IPFW and Oakland this weekend.

The Fighting Leathernecks will face IPFWe at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday before facing Oakland at 7 p.m. on Monday. The Golden Grizzlies will play at IUPUI on Saturday before traveling to Macomb.

Saturday's men's/women's doubleheader will feature several promotions for fans in attendance. The first 125 fans to each game will receive a free Western Illinois "Rally Towel" courtesy of Waste Management. The games also feature registration for the First Tee program, where youth can receive golf instruction from the Western Illinois Men's and Women's Golf Teams between games. Those who register for the program will recieve free admission.

The women's game will also serve as the National Girls and Women in Sports night where all Leatherneck women's teams will be recognized at halftime. All area youth girls are encouraged to attend the event.

Monday's game against Oakland features a special deal on general admission tickets. Fans can purchase two tickets for $7 as part of the 2/7 promotion. It is also the annual NCAA Women's Basketball Pack the House Challenge and all students, faculty, staff and community members are encouraged to attend and cheer on the Leathernecks.

The Matchups
Who: Western Illinois (7-13, 5-5) vs. IPFW (14-6, 8-3)
When: Saturday, Feb. 5 at 4:30 p.m.
Location: Macomb, Ill.
Arena: Waste Management Court at Western Hall (5,139)

Who: Western Illinois vs. Oakland (14-8, 8-3)
When: Monday, Feb. 7 at 7 p.m.
Location: Macomb, Ill.
Arena: Waste Management Court at Western Hall (5,139)

Coverage
Radio • WIUS (88.3 FM, Macomb) Flagship station
WQMZ (104.1 FM, Macomb)
WRMS (94.3 FM, Beardstown)
Live WIUS radio broadcast (Free)

Streaming Video • Rocky Vision (subscription)

Television • wiutv3 (channel 3, Macomb)

Live Stats • GoLeathernecks.com (Free)
 

Previously vs IUPUI: Western Illinois railed by two points (20-18) at the half, but rallied for a 48-43 win over IUPUI on Jan. 29 at Western Hall... Sadie Webb led all scorers with 21 points... it was Webb's fourth 20 point game in the team's past six outings... Brittany Demery pulled down a career-high 10 rebounds and just missed on her first double-double with eight points... Valencia Kelly grabbed a career-high five steals... the Jaguars were paced by 14 points from Janna Eichelberger... the Leathernecks held IUPUI leading-scorer Kerah Nelson to no points... it was the first time that the sophomore has been held scoreless in her career.

Last Time Out Against IPFW: The Leathernecks led just two times in an 86-74 loss at IPFW on Jan. 10... Western Illinois shot a respectable 46.7 percent from the floor but the Mastodons shot a blistering 53.2 percent... Webb led the Leathernecks with 23 points while Kelly had 19... Michele Salvatori also chipped in with 13 points... Stephanie Rosado led IPFW with a game-high 24 points... Jordan Zuppe (16), Anne Boese (13) and Amanda Hyde (11) each hit double-figures.

Scouting The Mastodons: IPFW enters the weekend after splitting games with Oral Roberts and Centenary last week... the Mastodons fell 76-64 to the league-leading Golden Eagles before downing Centenary 89-43... five IPFW players scored in double figures in the win, led by Chelsey Jackson's 23 points... the Mastodons shot 57.4 percent from the floor including 92.3 percent (24-for-26) from the charity stripe... the Mastodons rank 30th in the nation in team free throw percentage (74.7) and are 22nd in scoring offense (75.4)... Zuppe ranks sixth nationally in free-throw percentage (90.6) while Boese ranks seventh nationally in three-point field goals per game (3.1)... Rosado is averaging a team-high 17.0 ppg and is also the team's leading rebounder (7.7 rpg)... she ranks fourth in the league in points per game and leads the league in field goal percentage (.556).

Last Time Out Against Oakland: Western Illinois was never really in the last contest against Oakland as the Golden Grizzlies won 64-38 on Jan. 8 in Rochester... the Leathernecks did not have a player score in double-figures for just the second time this season... Bethany Watterworth led Oakland with 22 points while Brittany Carnago had 12... Zakiya Ninifee pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds... the Leathernecks shot just 28.8 percent from the floor while Oakland shot 46.9 percent.

Scouting the Grizzlies: Oakland enters the weekend after falling to Oral Roberts, 80-72, in overtime last Monday... the Golden Grizzlies had won their previous three games... Oakland will play at IUPUI on Saturday before coming to Macomb on Monday... Oakland ranks first in the league and 57th nationally in scoring defense (58.0 ppg)... Carnago ranks 12th nationally in blocks per game (3.0)... The Golden Grizzlies are led in scoring by Watterworth (18.4 ppg)... she also ranks second in the league and 22nd nationally in that category.

Webb Shines at the Line: Sadie Webb can credit much of her recent point production to her performance at the free-throw line... Webb is averaging 19.7 ppg over the past six games... of her 116 points in the last six games, 34 have come from the line... that total equals 28.8 percent of her total scoring over that stretch... she is shooting 87.1 percent (34-for-39) from the line in the last six contests... she has scored 20 or more points four times this season... eclipsing the team's total mark of three 20-point performances last season.

Crane Nears Milestone: Western Illinois head coach Leslie Crane recorded her 191st victory as Leatherneck head coach with Saturday's win over IUPUI... she has now won 308 games during her coaching career... Crane needs just 9 more wins to hit the 200-win mark at Western Illinois... she entered the season as the winningest coach in program history.

Leathernecks Picked Seventh in Summit League: Western Illinois was picked seventh in the 2010-11 Summit League preseason poll... the Leathernecks return six players from last year's squad... Western tied Southern Utah for seventh place with 162 points in the poll... Oral Roberts was picked first with 438 points and 26 first place votes... South Dakota State was selected second with 393 points and four first place votes... Oakland (336 points), IPFW (285) and North Dakota State (274) rounded out the top five... UMKC was picked sixth with 253 votes... IUPUI and Centenary were selected ninth and tenth, respectively.

Webb Keeps Momentum Going: Sadie Webb has been on fire over her past six games averaging 19.7 points and 5.5 rebounds per game... the junior is shooting 54.1 percent (39-for-72) from the floor and 50.0 percent (6-for-12) from beyond the arc... she has also been solid from the free-throw line, shooting 86.2 percent (25-for-29)... Webb has recorded four games of 20 or more points during that stretch including a career-high 26 against Southern Utah... her double-double (12 points, 11 rebounds) at UMKC on Jan. 22 was the first for a Leatherneck since Erica Lewis' double-double against Jacksonville State on Nov. 25, 2009... Webb is averaging 16.0 points per game in league play, the sixth best mark in the Summit League... she also ranks sixth in field goal percentage (.535) and fourth in free-throw percentage (.843).

Defense Makes the Difference: The Western Illinois defense has proven to be a big part of the team's success this season... the Leathernecks rank third in the league in scoring defense (63.3 ppg) and second in the league in three-point field goal percentage defense (.300)... Western also ranks third in steals total steals (187) and steals per game (9.4)

What a Game: Western's 83-35 win over Judson on Dec. 19 was big on several fronts for the Leathernecks... the 83 points scored were the most the team has recorded since an 83-37 win over Centenary on Dec. 31, 2005... the 29 turnovers by the Eagles were the most that the Leathernecks have forced since Illinois-Springfield turned the ball over 30 times on Dec. 12, 2006... Judson's 35 points were the lowest total for a Western Illinois opponent since a 60-32 win over Centenary on Feb. 5, 2007...  the 32 free-throw attempts by the Leathernecks were the most since the team shot 33 against Centenary on Feb. 14, 2009.

Turnover Parade: The Leatherneck defense has caused all kinds of headaches for opponents this season... entering the weekend, Western Illinois has forced 20 or more turnovers in 11 games this season... the Leathernecks forced 20 or more turnovers just 11 times all last season... the team has also recorded six games with ten or more steals.

Barton Doubles Up: Jackie Barton recorded back-to-back games with 10 or more points for the second time when the Leathernecks hosted North Dakota State and South Dakota State two weeks ago... the senior scored a season-high 13 points against SDSU on after scoring 12 points in a win over NDSU... she also led the team in rebounding with eight against NDSU and tied Rebecca Henricson with a team-high five boards against SDSU.

New Look Summit League Coming: The 2010-11 look of the Summit League basketball standings will soon be changing... This season marks the finale for Centenary in the league... Southern Utah announced it is leaving for the Big Sky Conference in July 2012... In return, the University of South Dakota will officially join the Summit League next academic year in all sports.

Up Next: Western Illinois will travel to South Dakota State (Jan. 15) before playing at North Dakota State (Jan. 17).