HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. - After watching her team dispatch Missouri-St. Louis by a 75-31 score Saturday afternoon, Norse head coach Nancy Winstel was asked about reaching the 600-win plateau.
"I just think we're 13-0 right now, and that's a wonderful thing for our kids. I'm happy for our players. It is about the program and the success of the program," Winstel said after becoming just the fifth coach in NCAA Division II history to win 600 career games. "Coaches are only as successful as their players. I think you have to be effective and successful in your own way. I am very fortunate to do what I do and to have the players that I have."
Winstel is now 600-225 in 29 years as a head coach. The Norse mentor has won 561 games at NKU, and she collected another 39 victories as the head coach at Midway (Ky.) College.
"I sometimes go back to my Midway mentality, because I was there for three years and when I think about it, it was probably three of the best years of my life because all I did was eat, drink, and sleep basketball," she said. "Socially, I had no life, which is kind of sad to say, but it was an opportunity for me to really learn and grow. I spent a lot of time down there really learning the game of basketball and reading the game of basketball. I would come home from practice and study and work. It was virtually 24-7 of basketball at Midway."
NKU (13-0 overall, 5-0 Great Lakes Valley Conference) put Missouri-St. Louis away in the first half with a 25-4 run that extended a 13-12 lead into a 38-16 advantage. Freshman
Whitney Levering sparked the run with a pair of free throws and a 3-pointer en route to scoring a career-high 11 points.
"The two things that I have to do out there are play defense and rebound, so when I do execute on those things, coach is really happy," Levering said. "In the first half I didn't have any rebounds, so in the second half she wanted me to come out, work hard and get some rebounds."
Levering grabbed three boards in the second half as NKU won the rebounding battle by a 47-28 count.
NKU held the Tritons to 21.1 percent shooting from the field. In fact, the Norse allowed just four field goals the entire second half.
Karen Brackman led NKU with 13 points, while
Jessie Slack and
Rachel Lantry each added 12 points.
Brandi Rayburn scored six points and grabbed 10 rebounds.
NKU, which is ranked No. 1 nationally in the NCAA Division II poll, extended its winning streak to 19 dating back to last season. Defense and rebounding have been a constant in the 13-0 start.
"As a coach, you have to demand consistency. I think good teams are consistent in defense, rebounding, and taking care of the ball," Winstel said. "You can't always shoot the ball well, but you can be consistent in those areas."
