Oshkosh, Wis. - Sydney Kopp led a DePauw 3-point barrage as the Tigers tied a school record with 13 makes from beyond the arc on the way to a 78-54 win over Loras in the first round of the NCAA Division III Championship at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh. DePauw moved to 25-4 and faces the winner of the Wisconsin-Oshkosh/Pomona-Pitzer game in tomorrow's second-round contest at 7 p.m CST. Loras finished its season at 22-6.
The Tigers fell behind 4-0, but Kopp hit trey's on back-to-back possessions to even the score at 6-6. Kopp's three with four seconds left in the first gave DePauw a 21-16 lead as she finished the stanza with 15 points. Kopp made her first two 3-pointers of the second quarter to give the Tigers a 27-16 advantage with 8:21 left in the half. DePauw's lead reached as many as 18 points on two occasions and the Tigers went to the break with a 43-27 lead.
The Duhawks mounted a comeback late in the third, getting as close as 12 at 54-42, but Kopp and Maya Howard each scored buckets and Kopp buried a three to close the quarter and give the Tigers a 61-42 lead. An 8-0 run midway through the fourth put the game out of reach as the Tigers led by as many as 30.
Kopp equaled a career high with 29 points including a school record-tying 24 in the first half. Her eight 3-pointers tied a school record and were one shy of matching the NCAA Division III tournament mark. She also paced the Tigers with seven rebounds. Howard added 14 points, six assists and three steals, while Mya Shannon followed with 13 and nailed all 3 of her 3-point attempts.
Marissa Schroeder led Loras with 23 points, while Kari Fitzpatrick added 11 and Hanna Stokes grabbed eight rebounds.
DePauw shot 45.5 percent from the field and canned 13 of 25 3-pointers. Loras shot 42.2 percent and hit 6 of 15 from beyond the arc. The Tigers held a 35-32 edge on the boards and committed nine turnovers to the Duhawks' 17.