2013 Penn State Greater Allegheny/USCAA Tipoff Classic
Friday, November 8
Wunderley Gymnasium, PSU-Greater Allegheny, McKeesport, Pa.
Daemen vs. Carlow, 2 p.m.
PSU-Greater Allegheny vs. Southern State CC, 6 p.m.
Saturday, November 9
Wunderley Gymnasium, PSU-Greater Allegheny, McKeesport, Pa.
Consolation Game, 11 a.m.
Championship Game, 3 p.m.
THE TOURNAMENT: The Daemen College women's basketball team opens the 2013-14 season by taking part in the Penn State Greater Allegheny/USCAA Tipoff Classic…the tournament will feature four United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) programs…it gets underway with Daemen taking on Carlow University Friday at 2 p.m., followed by PSU-Greater Allegheny hosting Southern State CC at 6 p.m…the tournament consolation game will be played Saturday at 11 a.m. and the championship game is set for Saturday and 3 p.m.
THE COACH: David Skolen is entering his 22nd season as head women's basketball coach at Daemen and has posted a 436-218 (.667) record during his time with the Wildcats…he has guided the Wildcats to 11-straight 20-win seasons (15 overall), six conference championships, nine appearances in the NAIA Division II National Tournament and one appearance in the USCAA National Tournament…last winter Skolen led the Wildcats to a 26-7 record and a USCAA Division I National Championship.
NCAA DIVISION II: Daemen is in Candidacy Year Two of the NCAA Division II membership process...Daemen has been accepted as a member of the East Coast Conference (ECC) and will play full regular-season conference schedules beginning this fall...the College will also maintain its affiliation with the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) for postseason opportunities, as it will not be eligible for the ECC or NCAA postseason during Candidacy Year Two.
THE WILDCATS: Daemen returns just one starter and six players from last year's team that posted a 26-7 record and claimed the USCAA Division I National championship...the Wildcats were voted 10th in the ECC preseason poll…Daemen won seven of its final eight regular-season games last year and was the top seed in the USCAA Tournament…the Wildcats claimed the title following wins over eighth-seeded Maine-Fort Kent (98-36), fourth-seeded Rochester College (76-57) and third-seeded Lindenwood-Belleville (73-62)...the Wildcats went 3-0 against NCAA Division II opponents last year...Daemen averaged 75.7 points a game and allowed just 56.6 points per game (+19.1 scoring margin)…graduation took its toll in the form of 66-percent of the offense from last year…key losses include USCAA All-Americans Monica Kosior (13.8 ppg, 8.6 rpg, 59 blks), Chelsea Andorka (12.4 ppg, 7.2 rpg, 4.2 apg) and Ellie Allen (12.8 ppg, 6.6 rpg, 3.3 apg)…senior guard Lindsay Stoddard (Limestone, N.Y./Allegany-Limestone) is the only returning starter on a roster that includes six freshmen and four sophomores…Stoddard averaged a team-high 5.4 assists per game and also ranked fourth in scoring (9.7 ppg) and second in three-pointers (42)…she was named to the all-tournament team following the USCAA Championships after averaging 15.3 points and 5.0 assists during Daemen's three wins…sophomore Raeann Stilwell (Cheektowaga, N.Y./St. Mary's of Lancaster) also returns after averaging 9.3 points with a team-high 60 three-pointers as a redshirt freshman last year…Daemen's freshman class includes local standouts Rachel Pawlak (North Tonawanda, N.Y./Niagara-Wheatfield), Kayla Brown (Buffalo, N.Y./Cardinal O'Hara), Taylor Heinold (Hamburg, N.Y./Immaculata), Leah McDonell (North Tonawanda, N.Y./Cardinal O'Hara) and Natalie Galus (Hamburg, N.Y./Frontier)…McDonell, Heinold, Galus and Pawlak were all named to the 2013 All-WNY team by The Buffalo News.
ROAD WARRIORS: Daemen will play 12 of its first 13 games on the road…the Wildcats played 21 of their 32 games away from the friendly confines of Lumsden Gymnasium last year and posted a 15-6 record in those games…Daemen has won its last six road games and has prevailed in 67-percent (37-18) of its road games over the past three seasons.
THE CELTICS: Carlow is located in Pittsburgh, Pa. and is a member of the NAIA Division II Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (KIAC)…the Celtics are a USCAA Division I program…Carlow and Daemen are both former members of the now defunct American Mideast Conference (AMC)…Daemen owns a commanding 33-6 advantage in the all-time series including a 73-49 victory at Carlow last year…the Celtics return nine players and two starters from last year's team that finished 14-15 (5-10 KIAC)…Carlow was voted seventh in the KIAC preseason poll…senior guards Chanel Berry and Jessalyn Timko and sophomore guard Lynzi Mueller top the list of returning players…Berry averaged a team-high 12.0 points last year, while Timko contributed 10.1 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.0 assists per outing…Mueller enjoyed a solid rookie season and averaged 10.2 points with a team-high 41 three-pointers…junior guard Erin DeSanti (7.0 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 3.3 apg) also returns in the backcourt.
THE PATRIOTS: Southern State is located in Hillsboro, Ohio…the Patriots were a USCAA Division I program last year, but have moved to USCAA Division II this year…the Patriots return one player from last year's team that finished 4-15…SSCC opened the 2013-14 season with losses to Ivy Tech (77-65) and St. Mary-of-the-Woods (118-50) last weekend…junior guard Jordan Beasley, who started 12 games averaged 4.7 last year, is only returning player…newcomers Cheyenne Ramey and Kelsey Jullerat are expected to make immediate contributions…Ramey had 29 points and 17 rebounds in the loss to Ivy Tech, while Jullerat registered 21 points and 10 rebounds in the loss to St. Mary-of-the-Woods…if Daemen and SSCC meet in the second round it will mark the first-ever meeting between the two programs.
THE LADY LIONS: Penn State Greater Allegheny is located in McKeesport, Pa…the Lady Lions are a USCAA Division II program and a member of the Penn State University Athletic Conference (PSUAC)…the Lady Lions return four starters from last year's team that finished 15-13 (8-6 PSUAC) and advanced to the championship game of the PSUAC Tournament…PSGA was voted seventh in the PSUAC preseason poll…PSGA opened the year with an 83-45 loss to Madonna University this past Friday…USCAA Division II All-Americans Taylor Fulton and Christina Floyd will once again lead the charge in 2013-14…Fulton, a senior point guard who was also named PSUAC Player of the Year last year, led the team in scoring (19.3 ppg), assists (6.9 apg), steals (115) and three-pointers (41) last year, and also ranked third in rebounding (5.8 rpg)…she totaled an impressive 41 points, six rebounds, seven assists and five steals in a mid-season OT loss to Penn State Fayette…she had 13 points, eight rebounds, eight assists and four steals in the season-opening loss to Madonna…Floyd, a 5-foot-11 power forward, averaged 12.0 points and a team-high 12.3 rebounds last year…junior guard Nakayla Lane also returns after averaging 11.4 points and 5.7 rebounds…freshman forward Aaquila Youngblood and freshman guard Shacobia Horn both started in the season-opener…Youngblood contributed six points and a team-high nine boards…if Daemen and PSGA meet in the second round it will mark the first-ever meeting between the two programs.
DID YOU KNOW?: Daemen was 9-0 against USCAA opponents last year in its first year as a member of the USCAA…Daemen averaged 75.7 points per game last year, which would have ranked ninth among NCAA Division II schools (Daemen was not eligible to be ranked among the Division II statistical leaders)…Glenville State averaged a Division II-best 95.3 points last year...the Wildcats posted a +19.1 scoring margin, which would have ranked third to Ashland (+21.6) and Clayton State (+21.3)…Daemen would have also ranked first in assists per game (20.0), second in blocks per game (6.3), fifth in field goal percentage defense (.326), sixth in field goal percentage (.451) and 15th in rebound margin (+7.1)…Lindsay Stoddard totaled 178 assists last year which ranked second among all USCAA Division I players and also ranked as the seventh most in one season by a Daemen player…Stoddard enters her senior season with 319 career assists and needs just 81 assists to become the seventh player in program history to register 400 career assists…Stoddard also ranked ninth in steals (63) among the USCAA leaders last year.
WHAT'S NEXT: Daemen returns to action Nov. 13 when it travels to Le Moyne College for a non-league game at 7 p.m…the Wildcats will then play at long-time rival Point Park University on Nov. 16, before hosting Holy Family University in their 2013-14 home-opener on Saturday, Nov. 23 at 2 p.m…Holy Family is ranked 13th in the preseason USA TODAY/WBCA Division II Top 25…Daemen's complete 2013-14 schedule can be accessed HERE.
FOLLOW THE WILDCATS: Follow Daemen College athletics on Twitter (@DaemenAthletics) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/daemencollegeathletics to get live game updates and breaking news throughout the year.
