March 12, 2015

Patriot League Women's Basketball Championship Preview 

CENTER VALLEY, Pa. - The 2015 Patriot League Women's Basketball Championship game will be played at 6 p.m. on Saturday, March 14. Lehigh, the No. 6 seed, will take on host and top seed American at Bender Arena in Washington, D.C.

The winner of Saturday night's contest will receive the League's automatic bid for the NCAA tournament. Tickets for the matchup are available at aueagles.com/tickets. For those who cannot make it to Bender Arena, the game will be broadcast live on CBS Sports Network with Jason Knapp handling play-by-play and Leah Secondo serving as game analyst.

Patriot League Twitter Notebook - @PL_WBB

*American and Lehigh will meet for the 2015 Patriot League Championship at 6 p.m. on Sat., March 14 at Bender Arena.
*The game will be shown on CBS Sports Network w/ Jason Knapp handling play-by-play and Leah Secondo serving as analyst.
*American has won 10 straight games and will look to set a single-season mark with a 24th win on Saturday.
*After entering the field as a #6 seed, Lehigh has posted a pair of double-digit wins in the postseason to reach the title game.
*American is the top seed for the third time (2008, 2012) but has never won the PL crown in four previous trips to the final.
*Each team has reached the Patriot League Championship game four times. Lehigh is 3-1 and American is 0-4.
*American and Lehigh met in the 2010 Patriot League final with the Mountain Hawks prevailing 58-42.
*With a win, Lehigh would become the lowest seed to ever win the title game. Bucknell won as a #5 seed in 2008.
*American swept Lehigh during the regular season 75-73 (OT) in Bethlehem, Pa. and 74-64 in Washington, D.C.
*The #1 seed has won the Patriot League Championship game on 16 occasions, most recently in 2011 (Navy).
*With a win, American will capture its first Patriot League title and earn its first berth in the NCAA postseason tournament.

Patriot League Notebook

Lehigh Knocks off No.2 Army in PL Semifinals
A balanced attack paved the way for its second consecutive double-digit road win of the postseason, as Lehigh advanced to the Patriot League championship game with a 76-57 win over second seeded Army Monday at Christl Arena. Four different Lehigh players reached double-figures and the visitors used a push late in the first half to take a 37-25 lead after 20 minutes. The Black Knights closed to within five points midway through the first half but Lehigh responded to push the advantage back to double digits. The Mountain Hawks converted all eight of their free throws over the final two minutes to pull away for the 19-point victory.

American Stretches Win Streak to Ten with Semifinal Win over Navy
The third time was not the charm for Navy on Monday, as American defeated the Mids for the third time this season, 60-53 at Bender Arena in a Patriot League Tournament semifinal contest. The Eagles jumped out to an early lead and withstood multiple charges by the visitors to reach the championship game for the fifth time. Navy erased a 30-25 halftime deficit with back-to-back three-point field goals to start the second half, but it would prove to be the Mids only lead of the game as American responded with a 12-2 run to regain control. Navy cut the deficit to three points with 9:50 remaining but the Eagles once again pushed the lead back to double digits.

Patriot League Championship Game Set for Saturday
The 2015 Patriot League Women's Basketball Championship game will be played at 6 p.m. on Saturday, March 14. Lehigh, the No. 6 seed, will take on host and top seed American at Bender Arena in Washington, D.C. The Eagles swept a pair of meetings with Lehigh during the regular season, winning a 75-73 overtime contest in Bethlehem, Pa. on Jan. 14 and 74-64 in Washington, D.C. on Feb. 11. American leads the all-time series 24-12 and have won four straight meetings, the last Lehigh victory was 71-55 on Feb. 13, 2013. #6 Lehigh will seek to become the lowest ever seed to win the Patriot League Tournament. Bucknell won as a #5 seed in 2008. American is looking to capture its first-ever Patriot League Tournament title and trip to the NCAA postseason. For those who cannot make it to Bender Arena, the game will be broadcast live on CBS Sports Network with Jason Knapp handling play-by-play and Leah Secondo serving as game analyst.

American's Jen Dumiak Named to Academic All-America First Team
In addition to being named the Patriot League's Player of the Year, American University graduate student Jen Dumiak, a point guard for regular season champion Eagles, was named to the 2014-15 Capital One Academic All-America Division I women's basketball first team on Thursday. Dumiak is the 11th American student-athlete to be named to a CoSIDA All-America team since joining the Patriot League in 2001. Currently pursuing a master's degree in mathematics, Dumiak carries a 4.0 grade point average after graduating summa cum laude with a double degree in mathematics and economics in only three years. On the court, she averages nearly 17 points per game while dishing out more than six assists and shooting 91.7 percent from the foul line.

Women's Mid-Major Poll Includes American, Army
The American University women's basketball team hold steady at No. 22 in the latest collegeinsider.com Women's Basketball Mind Major Top 25 poll released on Tuesday. The Eagles have won 10 straight games following Monday's 60-53 win over Navy in the Patriot League Tournament semifinals. American has played three teams in the top 10 of the rankings, losing to No. 1 Princeton and No. 4 James Madison and owning a victory over No. 9 Gonzaga earlier this season in the South Point Thanksgiving Shootout. Army (23-7), who had debuted at No. 24 in the previous poll dropped just outside of the top 25 following Monday's loss to Lehigh.

Army's Kelsey Minato Sets Pair of Patriot League Tournament Records in Loss
Army junior guard Kelsey Minato set a pair of Patriot League Tournament records during the Black Knights semifinal loss to Lehigh on Monday. Minato connected on eight three-point field goals (in 12 attempts) to break the mark of seven set by Navy's Maile Shimoda set in 2003 against Bucknell. Also, the 33 pounts scored against the Mountain Hawks was the best ever single-game individual performance in the semifinal round. Navy's Kim Jackson scored 28 against Holy Cross in 1994. The top all-time individual scoring standard is the 36 points scored in 2003 by Bucknell's Molly Creamer against Navy.

Lehigh's Lexi Martins Among Nation's Top Rebounders
Lehigh sophomore forward Lexi Martins recorded her 18th double-double of the season with 16 points and 11 rebounds Monday in a semifinal win over Army. That figure is 13th nationally among Division I players and her 11.0 rebounds per game led the Patriot League and also is in the top 20 in the country. American senior guard Jen Dumiak had a rare miss from the free throw line against Navy but still ranks fourth at 91.7 percent. Army's Kelsey Minato made all seven of her shots from the charity stripe and finished her junior season in the top 10 at 90.3 percent. A complete list of players and teams who rank nationally in statistical categories can be found on page seven of this release.

Patriot League Championship on CBS Sports Network
The Patriot League Men's Womens Basketball Championship will be televised on CBS Sports Network again this season on Saturday, March 14 at 6 p.m. The Patriot League enters into its 12th straight year in partnership with CBS Sports Network. CBS Sports Network (CBSSN) is the 24-hour cable home of CBS Sports. It is available across the country through local cable, video and telco providers on Verizon FiOS Channel 94 and AT&T U-Verse Channel 643 (1643 in HD) and via satellite on DIRECTV Channel 221 and Dish Network Channel 158.

Follow the Action on Patriot League Network
Once again, the Patriot League has partnered 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. The eight games of the Patriot League Tournament leading up to the Championship game were streamed free and are available as archived events on the Patriot League Network.

2015 Patriot League Tournament
The 2015 Patriot League Tournament, featuring all 10 schools, begins with the first round on Wednesday, March 4 followed by the quarterfinals two days later. The semifinals will be played on Monday, March 9, with the Patriot League Championship held on Saturday, March 14 at 6 p.m. The first round, quarterfinal and semifinal games will be shown on Patriot League Network, with the championship on CBS Sports Network. All Patriot League Tournament games will be played at the site of the higher seed.

2015 Patriot League Women's Basketball Tournament

Championship ~ Saturday, March 14 ~ Bender Arena / Washington, D.C.

No. 6 Lehigh Mountain Hawks (19-11, 9-9 PL) at No. 1 American Eagles (23-8, 16-2 PL), 6 p.m.
2015: American 75, Lehigh 73-OT (Bethlehem, Pa., 1.14.15); American 74, Lehigh 64 (Washington, D.C., 2.11.15)

Like it did against seven other Patriot League opponents, American swept two games against Lehigh during the regular season. The first win took some late-game heroics from Shaquilla Curtis as the senior guard hit a three-point field goal with less than a second remaining in regulation to force overtime and added another basket in the extra session as the Eagles escaped Stabler Arena with a 75-73 win. In the second meeting, Jen Dumiak netted 21 points and added nine assists and eight rebounds in a 74-64 American win.

Lehigh The Mountain Hawks started the season with an 8-2 non-League record with the only losses coming against Arizona State (RPI #16) and Duquesne (RPI #48) The Patriot League regular season was a bit more of an adventure as Lehigh finished with a 9-9 mark and a six seed for the postseason. In knocking off No. 3 seed Holy Cross and No. 2 seed Army on the road, coach Sue Troyan's squad has regained the form that made them the Patriot League's highest scoring team in posting double-digit wins.

Senior Katie O'Reilly and sophomore forward Lexi Martins were named to the All-Patriot League second team and junior forward Kerry Kinek was a third-team selection. Freshman point guard Quinci Mann was a member of the five-player All-Rookie squad.

Probable starters: So. F. Lexi Martins (14.2 ppg, 11.0 rpg), Jr. F Kerry Kinek (11.5 ppg, 7.6 rpg), Sr. G/F Katie O'Reilly (11.4 ppg, 4.2 rpg), Fr. G Quinci Mann (8.2 ppg), Sr. G Sarah Williams (7.1 ppg, 2.2 apg).

Key reserves: So. G/F Kiernan McCloskey, So. G Kayla Burton, Jr. G Amina Affini, Jr. F Elizabeth Sharlow.

How they got here ...

No. 6 Lehigh 76, No. 2 Army 57 (SF) -- Three days after knocking off third-seeded Holy Cross on the road in the Patriot League quarterfinal round, Lehigh played giant-killer once again this time vanquishing second seed and defending champion Army 76-57 in the semifinal round at Christl Arena.

After the Black Knights took a 19-17 lead midway through the first half, the Mountain Hawks (19-11) held the hosts without a field goal for the final 9:16 to take a 37-25 lead at intermission. Army made one last run in the second half, when Kelsey Minato hit another of her tournament-record eight three-point field goals to cut the deficit to five at 45-40 with 11:52 to play.

Lehigh answered with an 8-2 run to push the advantage back to double digits and the Black Knights (23-7) never drew closer than seven points the rest of the way. Senior Sarah Williams scored 17 points to lead the Mountain Hawks, forwards Lexi Martins (16 points, 11 rebounds) and Kerry Kinek (13 points, 11 rebounds) had double-doubles and freshman Quinci Mann netted a career-high 16 points

No. 6 Lehigh 75, No. 3 Holy Cross 62 (QF) -- Five players scored in double figures as sixth-seeded Lehigh defeated Holy Cross for the third time this season, 75-62 at the Hart Center. The Mountain Hawks were all over the hosts from the outset building a 24-point lead in the first half. Holy Cross drew as close as seven points in the final minutes but could not overcome Lehigh's hot start.

Kerry Kinek led the way with 17 points and eight rebounds as Lehigh (18-11) snapped a four-game losing streak and had its largest scoring output in a month. Sarah Williams finished with 13 points and six boards, Quinci Mann 12 points, Lexi Martins with 11 points and seven rebounds and Katie O'Reilly 10 points and four assists.

American American started the season with a difficult non-League schedule that included games against mid-major powers George Washington, James Madison and Princeton as well as a win over Gonzaga that prepared them well for the Patriot League regular season. Losses to Army and Holy Cross, the second and third seeds in the tournament, are the only blemishes during the League slate.

Any conversation about the Eagles starts with senior guard Jen Dumiak, the 2015 Patriot League Player of the Year. The Carlsbad, Calif., native in second in the League in scoring at 16.7 ppg and also averages 6.2 assists and 5.6 rebounds. Unfortunately for opponents, the conversation doesn't end with Dumiak, as forwards Holmes and Zimmerman, a pair of All-Patriot League third team choices, provide a nice complement. Senior guard Shaquilla Curtis was named the Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year.

Probable starters: Sr. G Jen Dumiak (16.6 ppg, 6.2 apg), Jr. F Michelle Holmes (11.1 ppg, 6.6 rpg), Sr. F Arron Zimmerman (9.9 ppg, 4.5 rpg), Sr. G Shaquilla Curtis (7.5 ppg), Fr. G Emily Kinneston (3.0 ppg).

Key reserves: So. F Lauren Crisler, Jr. G Ari Booth, So. G Jordan Light.

How they got here ...

No. 1 American 60, No. 5 Navy 53 (SF) -- In a game of runs, it was top-seeded American that had the final one to outlast No. 5 Navy 60-53 in a Patriot League Tournament semifinal contest at Bender Arena.

The Eagles got out of the gate looking intent to put the game out of reach early with a 16-4 run over the first five minutes. American (23-8) still led 20-9 with 11 minutes left in the first half before the Mids (17-14) began to chip away and eventually closed to within 26-25 on a Ashanti Kennedy jump shot with 2:30 left. A Jen Dumiak drive gave the hosts a 30-25 lead at halftime but Sarita Condie hit back-to-back three-point field goals to start the second half to give the Mids a 31-30 lead.

That would prove to be Navy's only lead of the game, however, as American answered with a 12-2 run highlighted by consecutive three-point field goals by Dumiak and fellow senior Arron Zimmerman. Dumiak led a balanced American attack with 16 points and five assists. Holmes added 12 points and eight rebounds and Zimmerman chipped in with 11 points..

No. 1 American 79, No. 8 Lafayette 56 (QF) -- American broke open a close game with a 20-2 run to start the second half to pull away from eighth-seeded Lafayette for a 79-56 victory in the quarterfinal round of the Patriot League Women's Basketball Tournament.

Senior forward Arron Zimmerman fueled the burst with nine of her team-high 17 points in a nearly seven-minute stretch at the outset of the second half. All 11 players who saw game action scored for the Eagles (22-8) as they extended the lead to as many as 30 points late in the seond half.

Michelle Holmes supported Zimmerman with 14 points and Shaquilla Curtis added 10. Patriot League Player of the Year Jen Dumiak played the role of facilitator, finishing with nine assists.