DATE: Friday, March 14, 1997                TAG: 9703140843

SECTION: SPORTS                  PAGE: C1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY VICKI L. FRIEDMAN, STAFF WRITER 

DATELINE: NORFOLK                           LENGTH:   80 lines

MONARCHS DON THEIR DANCIN' SHOES LIBERTY MAY NOT HAVE A PRAYER VS. NO. 1 SEED ODU

Faced with the monumental task of playing second-ranked Old Dominion, the top seed in the Mideast Regional, the Liberty women's basketball team went back to the books this week.

Make that one book: the Bible.

``If I could, I'd spend some time in the creek looking for five smooth stones, which is what David used against Goliath,'' said Liberty coach Rick Reeves.

No. 16 seed Liberty (22-7), the Lynchburg school founded by Jerry Falwell in 1971, will make its first NCAA tournament appearance tonight when the Lady Flames meet the Lady Monarchs (29-1) at 8:30 in the ODU field house. That game will be preceded by eighth-seeded Purdue (16-10) against ninth-seeded Maryland (18-9) at 6. The winners play Sunday at 1 p.m. for a spot in the Sweet 16 in West Lafayette, Ind.

ODU hasn't played a close game since beating Tennessee on Jan. 7, and the Lady Monarchs aren't likely to be tested much by Liberty. That's not to say the Lady Flames haven't had an impressive season.

Unless North Carolina wins the national title, Liberty will end the year as the nation's most-improved team. The Lady Flames, 5-22 last season, dethroned Radford, which had a string of seven straight NCAA appearances, as the Big South champion.

``We know we've been truly blessed,'' said senior guard Genie Stinnett. ``I don't think in the last three years we've won as many games as this year. It's been the neatest experience.

``This team is so unified, so dedicated to our purpose, which is to serve God,'' Stinnett added. ``I know we're going up against a great team, but we're a great team, too.''

The Lady Flames have not faced a ranked opponent this season. They start three freshmen, and none has had more impact than Elena Kisseleva, a Russia native who played on that country's junior national team. Kisseleva leads the team in scoring (21.7), rebounds (8.3) and free-throw percentage (73.7). She has nine double-doubles and four 30-point games, and mentally, she said she's prepared for ODU.

``I had good experience back home playing against big teams,'' she said.

But Coach Reeves conceded that the Lady Flames cannot match up against ODU, led by 6-foot-5 Clarisse Machanguana, 6-3 Nyree Roberts, 6-0 Mery Andrade and 5-11 Ticha Penicheiro. Kisseleva is 6-1 and center Flori Willie 6-0, but twin guards Sharon and Sarah Wilkerson are 5-6.

``If there wasn't a shot clock and we got off to a 2-0 lead, you can bet people would be very bored,'' Reeves said. ``We're a run-and-finesse team, we're not a power team. We want to push the ball up the floor.''

Against ODU, ranked first nationally in scoring defense, that won't be so easy. The Lady Monarchs' aggression on defense tends to stymie less-experienced opponents, creating turnovers that lead to giant-sized leads early on. Led by Machanguana (20.1 ppg) and Roberts (17.5 ppg), ODU also ranks first in the NCAA in scoring offense, averaging 87.0 points.

And although it's already been a year of accolades - Wendy Larry was named the District III Coach of the Year for the second straight year on Thursday and Penicheiro became the school's first AP All-American on Tuesday - ODU is hungry.

``Starving,'' says senior guard Stacy Himes. Last year's season ended with a loss in Charlottesville to Virginia in the Sweet 16.

``We call it passion; we have to find it for the next two weeks,'' Larry said. ``We recognize we have accomplished a lot in the first season. Now we're into the second season and we must re-earn some of those acknowledgements.''

In the night's first game, Maryland returns to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1993. The Terps swept Clemson and beat Duke and N.C. State in compiling four wins over ranked opponents. Of their nine losses, seven came to teams in the top 25. Maryland's defense is among the toughest in the nation, holding opponents to 55.6 points.

``We've concentrated on our defense and have worked harder on that than any other aspect of the game,'' coach Chris Weller said. ``We must play a solid defensive game, control the boards and establish a good transition game.''

A win by the Boilermakers moves them a step closer to returning to the regional to be played on their home court next weekend. Purdue has won six of its last eight and came within four points of ODU. Three players average double-figure scoring, led by Jannon Roland's 19.2. The Boilermakers, 0-2 against Maryland, lost to Indiana in the first round of the Big 10 tournament.

``I think Maryland is a good defensive team,'' said Purdue coach Neil Fortner. ``We look a lot alike. It makes you feel you know them a little better.''

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