Dec. 1, 2014

Patriot League Women's Basketball Release - 12.1.14 

CENTER VALLEY, Pa. - Patriot League teams went 10-4 over the Holiday weekend including wins against Pac 12 and Big East opponents.

Patriot League Twitter Notebook - @PL_WBB

*Lehigh (5-0) trailed 41-33 at halftime before erupting for 52 second half points in a 85-77 win at Sacred Heart.
*Army (5-1) picked up a pair of wins on the west coast against UCSB and Pepperdine in a homecoming for Kelsey Minato.
*Bucknell (3-2) used a 16-2 run midway through the second half to win its home opener against Cornell 59-51.
*Boston University (3-3) bounced back from an opening-round loss in the UNM Tournament to beat S.F. Austin 62-57.
*American (2-3) beat Gonzaga, the 2nd ranked team in the Mid-Major poll, in the first round of the South Point Shootout.
*Holy Cross (1-6) led almost wire-to-wire to defeat Georgetown for its first win ofn the 2014-15 season.
*Lafayette (3-2) hosts Penn on Tuesday before entering the exam break with a pair of road contests this weekend.
*Navy (4-3) has won eight of its last nine games in the Navy Classic following wins over UNC Greensboro and Grand Canyon.
*Colgate (0-5) will play its fourth road game in ten days when they take on St. Bonaventure on Tuesday night.
*Loyola (0-5) will play its first game in Reitz Arena against Towson on Thursday after spending all of November on the road.

Lids Team Sport Patriot League Women's Basketball Weekly Awards (Nov. 24-30)

Army junior guard Kelsey Minato and Lehigh freshman guard Quinci Mann were named the Lids Sports Patriot League Women's Basketball weekly award winners for their performances in games from Nov. 24-30.

Minato averaged 24.6 points per game and shot nearly 55% from the field in the Black Knights 3-0 week. This is the first weekly award of the season for Minato and eighth all-time for the two-time Patriot League Player of the Year.

Mann averaged 12.5 points per game and shot a sizzling 64.3% from the floor in helping Lehigh remain unbeaten on the season. This is the second weekly award of the season for the San Francisco, Calif. native.

Honorable mention status for the week ending Nov. 30 goes to American senior Jen Dumiak, Bucknell sophomore Claire DeBoer, Holy Cross junior Raquel Scott and Lehigh sophomore Lexi Martins.

LIDS TEAM SPORTS PLAYER OF THE WEEK
KELSEY MINATO, ARMYJr., G, 5-8; Huntington Beach, Calif.
Minato helped the Black Knights win their fifth straight game by posting games of 25, 26 and 23 points in wins over Air Force, UC-Santa Barbara and Pepperdine last week. The Huntington Beach, Calif. native also grabbed three rebounds per game and dished out 3.6 assists per contest while shooting a perfect 7-for-7 from the free throw line. Minato had nearly identical stat lines in the wins over Air Force and UCSB, going 10-for-14 from the field and 5-for-8 from the three-point line in each contest.

LIDS TEAM SPORTS ROOKIE OF THE WEEK
QUINCI MANN, LEHIGH Fr., G, 5-10; San Francisco, Calif.
Mann scored 14 points and snatched a career-high five rebounds in Lehigh's 70-58 win at St. Peter's on Tuesday. The San Francisco, Calif. native then followed that effort with an 11-point performance in the Mountain Hawks come-from-behind victory over previously unbeaten Sacred Heart on Sunday. Mann was 4-for-5 from the field in the win over the Pioneers and made all three of her three-point field goal attempts.

HONORABLE MENTION

RAQUEL SCOTT, HOLY CROSS Jr., F, 6-0; Ridgewood, N.J.
Scott averaged a double-double with 20.7 points per game and 10 rebounds per game in the Crusaders 1-2 week.

JEN DUMIAK, AMERICAN Sr., G, 5-10; Carlsbad, Calif.
Dumiak scored a career-high 22 points in Eagles win over Oregon and came within one rebound of a triple- double, finishing with 10 assists and nine rebounds.

LEXI MARTINS, LEHIGH So., F, 6-0; Irvington, N.Y.
Martins netted a career-high 22 points in a win at St. Peter's and scored 16 of her 19 points in the second half as Lehigh rallied to beat Sacred Heart on the road.

CLAIRE DEBOER, BUCKNELL So., F, 6-1; Grosse Pointe, Mich.
DeBoer matched a career-high with 15 rebounds in each game of Bucknell's 1-1 week. The sophomore had eight points and 15 boards in a loss at Youngstown State and 15 points and 15 caroms in win over Cornell.

Patriot League Notebook

Patriot League Teams Enjoy a Fruitful Thanksgiving Weekend
Patriot League teams feasted on the competition over the Thanksgiving weekend, posting a 10-4 record which included wins over mid-major stalwart Gonzaga and against teams from the Pac-12 and Big East. American slayed two of the giants, knocking off the Bulldogs 59-56 in the opening round of the South Point Shootout Friday in Las Vegas, Nev. The Eagles followed that up with a 71-64 win over Oregon the following day. Holy Cross got in on the act on Sunday, racing to a 17-7 lead against Georgetown in the Crusaders final game of the Hall of Fame Challenge and holding on for a 73-69 victory at the Mohegan Sun Arena. Navy swept UNC Greensboro and Grand Canyon in their own holiday event and Army defeated UC-Santa Barbara and Pepperdine in a trip to the west coast. Boston University, Bucknell and Lehigh also posted wins over the weekend.

Home Cooking This Week for Many Squads
Seven of the next ten games for Patriot League teams will be played on home campuses after many spent much of November on the road. Loyola Maryland will finally play its home opener on Thursday when they welcome nearby Towson to Reitz Arena. Lehigh will play only its second home contest of the year when Hampton comes to Stabler Arena Tuesday for an Education Day matinee with an 11 o'clock tipoff. Being on the road hasn't hurt the undefeated Mountain Hawks who are a perfect 4-0 away from home. Bucknell will also play its second game of the season at Sojka Arena Wednesday when Morgan State comes to Lewisburg, Pa. Also home this week are Lafayette vs. Penn and Navy vs. Towson on Tuesday as well as New Hampshire at Boston U. and UMBC at American on Wednesday. Colgate will play its fourth straight on the road Tuesday at St. Bonaventure, Holy Cross is at Bryant on Wednesday and Lehigh is at Saint Joseph's on Thursday.

Follow the Action on 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.

Patriot League Coaches Reaching Milestones
After Lehigh head coach Sue Troyan reached the 300-win milestone in the Mountain Hawks season-opening win at Monmouth on Nov. 15, Dave Magarity earned his 150th at Army when the Black Knights defeated UC-Santa Barbara on Friday. Bucknell coach Aaron Roussell is closing in on 200 wins in his 11-year coaching career at University of Chicago and Bucknell. Roussell has 195 victories heading into Wednesday's game with Morgan State.

Army's Minato Named Patriot League Preseason Player of the Year
Army junior guard Kelsey Minato, the tw-time Patriot League Player of the Year, was selected as the Patriot League Preseason Player of the Year. She was joined on the Preseason All-Patriot League Team by American senior guard Jen Dumiak, Bucknell senior forward Audrey Dotson, Holy Cross junior forward Raquel Scott and Lafayette senior forward Emily Homan. In addition to the preseason All-Patriot League members, American senior forward Arron Zimmerman, Loyola Maryland senior guard Nai Brown and Lehigh junior forward Kerry Kinek return after earning All-Patriot League honors last season.

Returning Statistical Leaders
Preseason Player of the Year Kelsey Minato is back after leading the Patriot League in several statistical categories in 2013-14. As a sophomore, Minato led the League in scoring (22.0 ppg), free throw percentage (92.4%) and three-point field goal percentage (44.3%). Two other players who led the PL a year ago also return in American's Michelle Holmes who led in field goal percentage (64.3%) and Holy Cross forward Raquel Scott who led the League in rebounding (9.8 rpg).

Defending Champion Army Picked to Repeat in Patriot League
Army wasn't picked to win the 2014 Patriot League Tournament title, but when the dust settled it was the Black Knights who were advancing to the NCAA Tournament. If Coach Dave Magarity's squad is going to make a return engagement, they will have to do so as the frontrunner because Army was tabbed as the favorite in the preseason poll of League coaches and SIDs who are not eligible to rank their own team. The Black Knights totaled 159 points to come in front of second-place American, which totaled 132 points and one first-place vote. Bucknell and Holy Cross were tied for the third spot at 123 points, with the Bison receiving two first place votes. They are followed by Lehigh (88), Navy (85), Lafayette (70), Colgate (47), Boston University (39) and Loyola Maryland (34). The Mids, who finished as the regular season champion last season, received the remaining first place vote.

Patriot League Championship, Army-Bucknell 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. Also, the Feb. 15 regular season contest pitting defending Patriot League Champion Army against Bucknell will also be carried live by CBS Sports Network at 2 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. For more information on how to get CBS Sports Network, visit CBSSportsNetwork.com.

American Sports Network to Carry Pair of Regular Season Games
The American Sports Network (ASN) will televise a pair Patriot League regular season women's basketball games in January. The Lafayette at Lehigh meeting at 1 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 25 and the Navy at American matchup at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 27 will be carried on Sinclair Broadcast Group's affiliates in select regions of the country. ASN launched in July and has entered into comprehensive sports rights agreements with a number of NCAA Division I conferences, including the Patriot League.

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.

AMERICAN After starting the season with tough home games against George Washington out of the A-10 and two teams ranked in the top five of the Women's Mid-Major poll (James Madison and Princeton), the Eagles took to the road and got on track with impressive wins against Gonzaga (No. 2 in mid-major poll) and Oregon (Pac 12) in the South Point Thanksgiving Classic in Las Vegas, Nev. ... Junior forward Michelle Holmes finished with 15 points and eight rebounds to lead the way in the win over Gonzaga and senior guard Jen Dumiak nearly went for a triple-double (career high 22 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds) against the Ducks ... After hitting just 61.1 percent of its free throws against Gonzaga, American was an impressive 14-of-15 (.933) from the line versus Oregon.

ARMY The Black Knights won their fifth straight after going 2-0 in Southern California, posting wins over UC Santa Barbara and Pepperdine. The games were a homecoming, of sorts, for juniors Kelsey Minato and Brianna Johnson. Minato hails from Huntington Beach, Calif. and Johnson calls Fontana, Calif. home ... Minato set a new season high with 26 points in the win over UCSB, going 6-of-7 from the field in the first half, including 4-of-5 from three-point range ... The win over the Gauchos marked head coach Dave Magarity's 150th win at Army. Magarity also has more than 300 wins as a Div. 1 men's coach ... Senior forward Olivia Schretzman and junior forward Aimee Oertner each recorded double-doubles in the win over Pepperdine with 11 points and 10 rebounds and 13 points and 10 boards, respectively.

BOSTON UNIVERSITY The Terriers split a pair of games in the University of New Mexico Thanksgiving tournament over the weekend, losing to the host Lobos in the opener before bouncing back to beat Stephen F. Austin in the consolation game ... Sophomore guard Sarah Hope was named to the UNM All-Tournament team after averaging 17 points and five rebounds over the weekend. Hope tied a career-high with 19 points in the loss to New Mexico ... Senior forward Mollie McKendrick scored a career-high 21 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in the win over Stephen F. Austin. The Mildura, Australia native shot 9-of-13 from the field in the victory ... Boston University will host New Hampshire at Case Gym on Wednesday before hitting the road for three games heading before the Terriers begin their exam period.

BUCKNELL Reigning Patriot League Rookie of the Year Claire DeBoer snared 15 rebounds in each of Bucknell's games in a 1-1 week. The sophomore went for eight points and 15 boards in a loss at Youngstown State before following that up with 15 points and 15 rebounds as the Bison won their home opener Saturday against Cornell ... Senior forward Audrey Dotson moved into seventh on the program's career list with 95 blocks and is just three back of Joyce Novacek (2007-11) for sixth ... Bucknell is 19-5 all-time against Cornell, including a perfect 13-0 at home ... Bucknell is first in the Patriot League and 10th nationally with a 77.9 free throw percentage. The Bison were 11-for-13 in the win over Cornell, including 7-for-7 from DeBoer.

COLGATE The Raiders celebrated Thanksgiving by bookending the holiday with a pair of games against nationally-ranked opponents. Colgate lost at No. 19 Georgia on Wednesday and No. 18 Rutgers on Friday ... Carole Harris' streak of double-figure scoring games came to an end as the taller Scarlet Knights held her to just six points. But the senior forward posted an impressive 10 rebounds for a season high ... Junior forward Josie Stockill moved into a tie for eighth on the Colgate chart with her 75th career blocked shot against Rutgers. ... Friday's game marked the first of two this month for Garden State natives Missy Repoli and Tori Pozsonyi. Colgate plays at Monmouth on Dec. 13. The Repoli family hosted a Thanksgiving team dinner in nearby Marlboro, N.J. on Thursday night.

HOLY CROSS The Crusaders improved to 2-0 all-time versus Georgetown and 14-17 all-time in games versus teams currently in the BIG EAST conference with a 73-69 win over the Hoyas for their first win of the 2014-15 campaign ... Junior forward Raquel Scott recorded her 21st career double-double with 15 points and a season-high 12 rebounds and was named the Hall of Fame Challenge game MVP in the win over Georgetown. Scott now has 708 points and 507 rebounds in her three-year career ... Junior center Molly Hourigan grabbed a career-high 10 rebounds and blocked a season-high four shots against the Hoyas. Hourigan now has 120 blocks in her career ... Junior guard Lisa Mifsud recorded a team-high 18 points to go along with six rebounds and three assists and freshman guard Katie Doherty scored a career-best 13 points and canned two three-pointers.

LAFAYETTE Maddie Peabody's career night led the Leopards to a 66-48 win at Rider Tuesday as the senior netted a personal best 16 points while canning a career-best four three-pointers. Lafayette improved to 22-10 all-time against Rider and are 33-32 against current members of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference ... Louisville ended the Leopards modest two-game winning streak with a 102-61 win in Louisville. A pair of 14-point first half runs by the No. 11 Cardinals were too much for Lafayette to overcome ... Junior guard Jamie O'Hare scored a season-high 20 points for the Leopards, shooting 7-for-12 from the field -- including 4-for-8 from behind the arc. The total ties for the most points scored by a Louisville opponent this season ... Senior forward Emily Homan (17.6 ppg) and O'Hare (15 ppg) are currently third and fourth among Patriot League scorers this season.

LEHIGH The Mountain Hawks trailed at halftime for the first time this season at Sacred Heart, but rallied for an 85-77 victory in a battle between unbeaten teams. Lehigh improved to 4-0 on the road this season and is off to its best start since the 1984-85 campaign ... Sophomore forward Lexi Martins has recorded double-doubles in all five of Lehigh's games this season. Martins tallied a career-high 22 points at Saint Peter's Tuesday on an 8-for-11 showing from the field and 6-for-9 effort from the free throw line and then led the comeback against Sacred Heart by scoring 16 of her 19 points in the second half ... The Mountain Hawks will welcome over 3,000 students from local elementary and middle schools when they host Hampton in an Education Day matinee on Tuesday. Youngsters will enjoy an opportunity to enjoy an interactive educational experience during the 11 a.m. tipoff.

LOYOLA MARYLAND The Greyhounds held nationally ranked Maryland to its lowest scoring output of the season in a 65-43 loss Monday to the Terps. Maryland entered the game averaging more than 91 points per contest ... Sophomore guard Lisa Mirarchi played well against both the B1G opponent and the ACC's Pittsburgh. Mirarchi shot 5-for-7 from the field against the Terps including 3-for-3 from behind the arc. Led the Greyhounds eith four assists in the loss at Pittsburgh. Made 80% (4-for-5) of her three-point field goals last week ... Loyola Maryland will be looking forward to finally playing a game at Reitz Arena when Towson makes the short trip in on Thursday. The Greyhounds spent the entire November portion of their schedule on the road with three games against teams from power conferences.

NAVY The Mids won their eighth Navy Classic game in the last nine under head coach Stefanie Pemper as they swept UNC Greensboro and Grand Canyon over the weekend. Navy has posted an overall record of 32-12 when playing host to a tournament ... Freshman guard Taylor Dunham was named to the Navy Classic All-Tournament team despite playing a total of only 39 minutes in the two victories. Dunham recorded 11 points, 5 assists and 3 steals in 14 second-half minutes in the win over UNC- Greensboro and then led Navy in scoring again on Saturday with 13 points in only 16 minutes of action in the win over Grand Canyon ... Navy will wrap up a six-game homestand Tuesday night when the Mids play host to Towson and then embark on two games in the Pacific Northwest against Portland State and Oregon over the weekend.