Women's Basketball Release 2.9.16 

CENTER VALLEY, Pa. -- Army West Point and Bucknell remain tied atop of the standings, sporting a 10-1 record in Patriot League action. Lehigh hosts the Bison on Wednesday in hopes of picking up a game in the standings, as the Mountain Hawks sit at third on an 8-3 record. Holy Cross and Loyola Maryland round out the top five teams, tied at 6-5. All ten teams will play game 12 of the League schedule on Wednesday at 7 p.m.

Patriot League Twitter Notebook - @PL_WBB
* All ten teams return to action on Wednesday at 7 p.m., with each of the five games being streamed on the Patriot League Network.
* Army’s Kelsey Minato was named one of 10 candidates for the Nancy Lieberman Award on Monday.
* Holy Cross’ Lisa Mifsud became the 32nd player in program history and 95th in League history to score 1,000 career points.
* Lehigh secured its first victory over American since Feb. 2013, with a 61-52 win at Bender Arena on Saturday.
* Navy’s 62-58 victory over Colgate on Saturday marked head coach Stefanie Pemper’s 75th Patriot League win.
* Bucknell held off a late rally from Holy Cross on Saturday to win 74-64 and stay tied atop of the League standings.
* Lafayette junior Ashley Lutz scored 21 of her career-high 23 points in the second half and tallied a game-high 11 boards for her second straight double-double in the Leopards 71-64 win at Boston University on Saturday.
* Navy senior Peri Curtis posted a career-high 17 points at Colgate.
* Kate Walker becomes the third rookie from Bucknell to earn a weekly honor.

Patriot League Notebook

Army’s Kelsey Minato Named a Candidate for Nancy Lieberman Award
As announced by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on Monday, Army West Point senior captain Kelsey Minato was named as one of 10 candidates for the 2016 Nancy Lieberman Award. Now in its 16th year, the award recognizes the top point guard in women’s NCAA Division I college basketball. Candidates exhibit the floor leadership, play-making and ball-handling skills of Hall of Famer Nancy Lieberman. The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame became the host of the Nancy Lieberman Award two years ago after the Rotary Club of Detroit managed it for several years.
Minato has started in all 21 of Army’s games this season and currently leads the Patriot League, and ranks sixth nationally, with 23.5 points per game. She is also among the nation’s top 10 players in three-point percentage, ranking fifth with a percentage of 46.3.
The Selection Committee for the Nancy Lieberman Award is composed of top women’s college basketball personnel including media members, head coaches, sports information directors and Hall of Famers. The list will be narrowed down to five finalists in early March. The Lieberman Award winner will be announced during the WBCA Award Show in Indianapolis, Indiana at the Women’s Final Four.

Game 12 of the Patriot League Schedule on Wednesday
Just seven more games remain in the Patriot League regular season with game 12 being played by all ten teams on Wednesday at 7 p.m. Each of the five contests will be broadcast on the Patriot League Network. Army West Point pays Colgate a visit, looking to extend its current four-game win streak over the Raiders. Boston University will head to D.C. in search of its first sweep of the season when the Terriers take on American, while Holy Cross will play at Lafayette also in search of a season sweep. Lehigh will welcome Bucknell in hopes of picking up a game in the standings, and Loyola Maryland and Navy will square off, battling for positioning in the middle of the standings.

Patriot League Among NCAA Statistics
There a handful of players and teams that rank among the nation’s top in NCAA Division I. Lehigh’s Lexi Martins ranks in nation’s top 25 in five different categories and holds the top spot in two of them: defensive rebounds per game (10) and rebounds (319). The junior is No. 2 in rebounds per game (14.5), No. 3 with 17 double-doubles, and is tied for 14th with four offensive rebounds per game.
Colgate senior Josie Stockill set an NCAA individual game-high of 13 blocks and also set a new Patriot League record during the opening game of the Patriot League season at Lafayette. Currently, she is third in the nation with 3.76 blocked shots per game and is fourth with 79 blocks this season. Stockill’s 13 blocks also helped the Raiders to an NCAA team game-high of 18 blocks.
Army’s Kelsey Minato, Holy Cross’ Moully Hourigan, Bucknell’s Jacquie Klotz, and Lafayette’s Jamie O’Hare also appear in the national individual stats, while Boston University’s Sarah Hope and Colgate’s Paige Kriftcher are ranked in the individual game highs.
Army West Point, Bucknell, Colgate, and Lehigh also appear in several team stats among DI programs.

Moving on Up in the Patriot League Record Book
Lehigh senior Kerry Kinek reached exactly 900 career rebounds with three boards in the Mountain Hawks’ 76-68 win over Loyola Maryland on Wednesday, Feb. 3. After hauling in seven during Lehigh’s 61-52 at American on Saturday, the forward moved past Bucknell’s Vicki Quimby (1998-02) and Hope Foster (2004-08), who had 902 and 904 career rebounds respectively, to crack the League’s top ten. She ranks ninth in the history book and is 16 boards from matching Navy’s Becky Dowling (1994-98) with 923 in eighth.

Looking to Join 1,000 Point Club
The Patriot League welcomed Holy Cross senior Lisa Mifsud to the 1,000 point club when she tallied exactly 1,000 career points with a trey at the 4:07 mark in the fourth quarter against Bucknell. Mifsud is the second player this season to reach the milestone, as Lafayette senior Jamie O’Hare reached the mark on January 9, when the Leopards defeated Boston University 71-56 at the Kirby Sports Center. With seven more games left in the Patriot League regular season, three other players are inching closer towards the mark and will look to reach it over the course of the remaining games. Bucknell junior Claire DeBoer looks to be the next player to accomplish the feat with 984 career points, just 16 shy. Colgate senior Josie Stockill is also closing in milestone and is 54 points away. Lehigh junior Lexi Martins, who is 21 away from reaching 800 career boards, is also approaching the 1,000 career-point mark with 903. DeBoer, Stockill, and Martins will become the 96th, 97th, and 98th Patriot League women’s basketball players, respectively, to join the 1,000 point club if they reach the mark this season.

Army’s Kelsey Minato on Pace to Set Patriot League Scoring Record
Army West Point’s senior All-America candidate Kelsey Minato already passed the Academy’s scoring record and became the first women’s basketball player at West Point to reach 2,000 career points. 11 games into the Patriot League slate before the tournament, Minato is well on her way to break the Patriot League scoring record before tournament play even begins. As it stands now, the senior guard has 2,307 career points and is 155 points away from tying the League record of 2,462 points held by Bucknell’s Molly Creamer (1999-03). Currently, Minato is averaging 23.5 points per game and is on pace to break Creamer’s mark by 9.5 points. Mathematically, she would accumulate 164.5 points over the course of the next seven games (if she were get score 23.5 points each game), bringing her career total to 2,471.5 points. And again, that’s projected to happen before the Patriot League tournament.

Follow the Action on the Patriot League Network
Once again, the Patriot League will partner with Campus Insiders on the Patriot League Network, a streaming platform that will enable fans to watch League regular season and postseason events for free. With the exception of the contests on CBS Sports Network, all home games both in non-League and Patriot League play will feature free live streaming on PLN.

2016 Patriot League Tournament
The 2016 Patriot League Tournament, featuring all 10 teams playing at campus sites, begins with the first round on Saturday, March 5 (#10 seed plays at the #7 seed and the #9 seed visits the #8 seed) followed by the quarterfinals two days later (#1 overall seed hosting the 9/8 winner and the #5 seed playing at the #4 seed on one half of the bracket and the #2 seed at home against the 10/7 winner with the #6 seed at the #3 seed on the other side). The four remaining squads then move to on the semifinals and championship, which will be hosted by the highest-seeded semifinal team on Friday, March 11 and Saturday, March 12. The first round and quarterfinal games will be shown on Patriot League Network as will the semifinals, while the championship game will be aired on CBS Sports Network. All Patriot League Tournament games will be played at the site of the higher seed.
More information can be found on the women’s basketball championship page, here.

Team Notebook

AMERICAN (5-17, 3-8) The Eagles fell short in their attempts of a late rally of 10 unanswered points and dropped Saturday’s contest to the Mountain Hawks, 61-52, at Bender Arena ... Down by 13 points after Lehigh hit a trey at 8:45 to make the score 50-37, American went on to score 10 consecutive points to come within three with 5:18 to go in the game … However, the Mountain Hawks held the home team to just five more points the rest of the way … Senior Ari Booth, who scored six points during American’s 10-0 run in the fourth period, finished the game with 12 points, while freshman Michaela Nieuwenhuizen came off the bench to contribute a career-high eight points.

ARMY WEST POINT (19-2, 10-1) After a slow start for both teams, the paced picked up in the second half and saw the Black Knights turn in a 52-44 win over the Greyhounds at Reitz Arena on Saturday … Loyola Maryland had a slight advantage over Army going into the break, 22-19, but the Black Knights outscored the Greyhounds 20-10 in the third quarter and were able to maintain the lead the rest of the way … Senior Kelsey Minato was held to just two points in the first half but netted 13 in the second half to reach 15 points to lead the Black Knights … She also added six rebounds, two assists, and two steals … Classmate Aimee Oertner pitched in 12 points, four boards, and four blocks, while freshman Madison Hovren finished with 10 points – on a 5-of-7 effort from the field – and four rebounds.

BOSTON UNIVERSITY (2-20, 2-9) Tied at 50-50 heading into the fourth quarter, the Terriers could not overcome an offensive surge by the Leopards and fell to the visitors 71-64 at Case Gym on Saturday ... Just five seconds out of a media timeout, Boston University junior Sarah Hope – who hit the buzzer-beater shot against Navy on Thursday – converted a basket from downtown at 4:41 to tie the game for the 11th time, 61-61 … However, a trey by Lafayette with 1:55 on the clock made it a three-possession game … The game featured 11 tied scores -- for a total of 8:22 -- and nine different lead changes, with the Terriers leading for 18:09 and the Leopards holding the advantage for 13:22 … BU took its largest lead of seven in the third at 4:20, while Lafayette grabbed theirs of eight points with 33 seconds left in the game … Junior Meghan Green led to team’s efforts with 18 points while Hope finished with 14 points and was 4-of-8 from beyond the arc … Sophomore Corrine Williams also reach double figures in scoring with 10 points, going 5-of-6 from the line.

BUCKNELL (16-6, 10-1) The Bison were able to thwart the Crusaders’ late rally to come within one, 62-61, with 2:21 to play by responding with a layup from sophomore Jacquie Klotz, a trey by junior Sune Swart, and two pairs of free throws from freshman Kyi English to put the game away, 74-64, at Sojka Pavilion on Saturday … The game also featured three tied scores and a total of eight lead changes … Bucknell saw four players reach double digits in scoring and was led by junior Claire DeBoer with 17 … After setting a career-high in points against American on Wednesday, freshman Kate Walker reached a new number with 15 points while also adding a career-high seven rebounds … Klotz followed with her ninth double-double of the season, 12th of her career, with 11 points and 14 rebounds – 12 of which were defensive – while freshman Kaitlyn Slagus posted 10 points.

COLGATE (4-17, 2-9) The Raiders started the fourth quarter with a slight advantage, 48-46, but the Mids came back and closed the contest out on a 14-7 scoring run, giving the home team a 62-58 loss at Cotterell Court on Saturday … Colgate had stretched its fourth-quarter lead to 51-48 on a three-point basket from senior Josie Stockill with 8:52 remaining, but Navy would outscore the home team by seven points to seal the deal … The game itself featured a total of 11 tied scores and 11 lead changes, with the largest lead for either team being seven points … Senior Paige Kriftcher led the way for the Raiders, reaching 15 points in a career-high 37 minutes on the court … junior Katie Curtis pitched in 14 points, while Stockill added 11 … Sophomore Julie Barcello turned in career-highs of six points and a team-leading nine rebounds.

HOLY CROSS (9-13, 6-5) Down by 13 early in the fourth quarter, the Crusaders made a late rally to come within one, 62-61, after a three-pointer by sophomore Tricia Byrne with 2:21 to play … However, the Bison responded and put the game away, 74-64, at Sojka Pavilion on Saturday … The game also featured three tied scores and a total of eight lead changes … Holy Cross saw senior Lisa Mifsud notch her 1,000th point of her career when she hit a trey at the 4:07 mark in the fourth quarter … Mifsud finished the game with 11 points … Another milestone was reached by one of the Crusaders as sophomore Infiniti Thomas-Waheed recorded her first career double-double with team-highs of 17 points and a personal best 11 rebounds … She also collected three steals … Bryne tied a career-high of 14 points, on a 6-of-11 shooting clip, and also had four assists, while senior Molly Hourigan grabbed 10 rebounds.

LAFAYETTE (5-16, 3-8) Tied at 50-50 heading into the fourth quarter, an offensive surge by the Leopards and a key 7-0 run in the latter half of the period helped lift them to a 71-64 victory over the Terriers at Case Gym on Saturday … Lafayette junior Maia Hood converted a layup to break the knotted score, 61-61, with 4:03 left in the contest and then added another layup a minute later … Sophomore Anna Ptasinski later drained one from long range with 1:55 on the clock to make it a three-possession game … The game featured 11 tied scores -- for a total of 8:22 -- and nine different lead changes, with the Terriers leading for 18:09 and the Leopards holding the advantage for 13:22 … Lafayette took its largest lead of eight points with 33 seconds left in the game … Junior Ashley Lutz scored 21 of her career-high 23 points in the second half and also tallied a game-high 11 boards for the Leopards … Lutz and Hood (15 points and 10 rebounds) each notched double-doubles for a second-consecutive game … Senior Jamie O’Hare added a career-best 10 assists.

LEHIGH (15-7, 8-3) The Mountain Hawks were able to hold off a late rally by the Eagles to secure a 61-52 win Saturday afternoon at Bender Arena … Down by 13 points after sophomore Bernadette Devaney hit a trey at 8:45 to make the score 50-37, American went on to score 10 unanswered points to come within three with 5:18 to go in the game … However, Lehigh held the home team to just five more points the rest of the way and secured its first victory over AU since Feb. 2013 … Sophomore Quinci Mann led the Mountain Hawks with 16 points … Senior Kerry Kinek followed with 12 points and seven rebounds, while Devaney chipped in 11 points … Junior Lexi Martins was held to just five points but grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds.

LOYOLA MARYLAND (9-13, 6-5) Despite holding a 22-19 advantage going into the break, the Greyhounds were unable to outscore the Black Knights in the second half and fell 52-44 to the League leader at Reitz Arena on Saturday … Of the 22 points scored in the first half, 12 were scored by senior Jeneh Perry, who was 4-of-7 from the field and 4-of-6 from the charity stripe … Perry led Loyola with a game-high 18 points, tying a career-high she set earlier in the season against Boston University … She also pulled down a game-best nine rebounds … Senior Colleen Marshall chipped in 13 points and four assists, while junior Lisa Mararchi tied a career-high four steals.

NAVY (11-11, 5-6) After trailing the Raiders 48-46 at the start of the fourth quarter, the Mids came back and closed the contest out on a seven-point scoring run that lifted them to a 62-58 victory at Cotterell Court on Saturday … Colgate had stretched its fourth-quarter lead to 51-48, but Navy would outscore the home team 14-7 the rest of the way … During that frame, juniors Sarita Condie and Ashanti Kennedy combined to net the final eight points … The game itself featured a total of 11 tied scores and 11 lead changes, with the largest lead for either team being seven points … The Mids were led by senior Peri Curtis, who posted a career-high 17 points and also hauled in nine rebounds … She was 8-of-13 from the field … Following was Condie with 16 points and four assists, while Kennedy totaled nine points and 10 boards … Additionally, junior Justice Swett collected four steals.