Women’s Basketball Opens Conference Play This Weekend

Wildcats Host Edinboro Saturday and ECC Power District of Columbia Sunday

THE LEAD: The Daemen College women's basketball team hosts Edinboro University in a non-league game Saturday (Dec. 12) before hosting University of the District of Columbia in its East Coast Conference opener Sunday (Dec. 13).

Saturday, Dec. 12 (at Lumsden Gymnasium, Amherst, N.Y.)
Edinboro at Daemen, 12 p.m.
DC ROSTER / DC STATS / EU ROSTER / EU STATS / LIVE STATS / LIVE VIDEO / GAME PROGRAM

Sunday, Dec. 13 (at Lumsden Gymnasium, Amherst, N.Y.)
District of Columbia at Daemen, 1 p.m.
DC ROSTER / DC STATS / UDC ROSTER / UDC STATS / LIVE STATS / LIVE VIDEO / GAME PROGRAM

DIVISION II DEBUT: Daemen successfully completed a three-year membership process and was approved for active membership status at the NCAA Division II level by the NCAA Membership Committee his past summer…Daemen was accepted as a member of the East Coast Conference (ECC) in July of 2012 and began playing full regular-season conference schedules in the fall of 2013…the 2015-16 academic year will mark the first year Daemen will be eligible for ECC and NCAA post-season play.

HEAD COACH DAVID SKOLEN: David Skolen is in his 24th season as head women's basketball coach at Daemen…he has posted a 460-253 (.645) career record and has guided the Wildcats to fifteen 20-win seasons, six conference championships, nine appearances in the NAIA Division II National Tournament and two appearances in the USCAA National Tournament…Skolen led the Wildcats to the USCAA national championship in 2013 and 2015.

THE WILDCATS (2-2; 0-0 ECC): Daemen returns four starters and 12 players from last year's team that posted a 14-15 overall record and an 8-12 mark in the East Coast Conference…DC was selected to the USCAA Tournament for the second time in three years and claimed its second national title following wins over The Apprentice School (82-72), Concordia-Alabama (63-57) and Berea (78-75)…the Wildcats were voted eighth in the 2015-16 ECC preseason poll…the graduation of forward Shy Britton (13.6 ppg, 7.1 rpg, 94 blks), an honorable mention All-ECC pick last winter, will take its toll down low…senior Raeann Stilwell and juniors Natalie Galus and Leah McDonell have been constants in the starting lineup the past two years…Stilwell has averaged nearly 13 points a game over the past three seasons and contributed 12.7 points last year…she also led the team in assists (80) and steals (44)…Galus averaged 9.9 points and a team-high 7.4 rebounds last year, while McDonell averaged a steady 7.6 points, 4.1 rebounds and 2.2 assists…sophomore Sarah Saba is coming off an impressive rookie season…a six-time ECC Rookie of the Week selection, she led the team in scoring average (14.2 ppg) and ranked second in rebounding (7.2 rpg) and third in blocks (37) last winter…redshirt sophomore guard Taylor Heinold also returns to the fold after missing all but four games due to injury last year…she averaged 9.2 points and 6.7 rebounds as a freshman in 2013-14…seniors Samantha Wozniak and Somara Colon and sophomore Liz Miles will once against provide quality depth…Wozniak averaged 15 minutes a game off the bench last year and ranked fourth in three-pointers (19)…Colon averaged 11 minutes and 3.3 rebounds, while Miles averaged 12 minutes a games as a rookie…newcomer Jesse DeWaters comes onboard after leading Niagara County Community College to a 25-5 record and an appearance in the NJCAA Tournament last year…a 5-foot-10 point guard, she averaged 11.3 points, 8.0 rebounds and a team-high 7.0 assists for the Thunderwolves last year…she also ranked second in three-pointers (37), blocks (54) and steals (71)…additional newcomers include junior guard Jazzae Verse and freshman center Erin Egan…Verse played at Erie Community College in 2012-13 and 2013-14 and averaged 9.2 points her sophomore year…Egan led Williamsville South to a 26-2 record and the NYSPHSAA Class A state title last year…the Wildcats opened the 2015-16 season with a victory over Post University (75-70) and a loss to Nyack College (64-56) during the ECC-CACC Challenge hosted by Roberts Wesleyan College…Daemen improved to 2-1 following a 69-65 win at Lake Erie College, and is playing its first game since suffering a 74-58 loss to Le Moyne…Heinold scored 16 points in the loss to Le Moyne and leads the team in scoring (11.5 ppg) and three-pointers (10)…Saba led the way against Lake Erie with 17 points, eight rebounds, four blocks and three steals…she is averaging 11.0 points, 8.8 rebounds and 2.5 blocks…additional production has come from Stilwell (10.3 ppg, 3.5 apg, 12 stls), Colon (9.5 ppg, 9.5 rpg) and McDonell (9.5 ppg, 5.0 rpg).

THE FIGHTING SCOTS (8-2; 4-2 PSAC): Edinboro is a member of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference and was voted second in the 2015-16 PSAC West preseason poll…EU is one of the more successful NCAA Division II programs in recent years, having won 125 games and made four NCAA Tournament appearances over the past five seasons…the Fighting Scots won the NCAA Tournament Atlantic Regional two years ago…veteran head coach Stan Swank returns seven players and three starters from last year's team that finished 20-8 overall and 16-6 in the PSAC…6-foot-3 senior forward Aignee Freeland and senior guard Lauren Hippo top the list of returning players…Freeland she led the team in scoring (13.9 ppg) and rebounding (6.9 rpg) last year and has earned All-PSAC honors the past two seasons…Hippo averaged 13.4 points and drilled a team-high 71 three-pointers last year…was the Fighting Scots are tied for fifth in the latest D2SIDA Atlantic Region poll…EU had a four-game winning streak snapped following an 80-68 loss at West Chester this past weekend…four starters are averaging in double figures…Freeland totaled 20 points and 12 rebounds in a recent 64-42 win over Mercyhurst and is averaging 16.2 points and 9.2 rebounds…junior Katie Fischer, a transfer from Mercyhurst, netted 26 points in the loss to West Chester and is averaging 15.4 points and 6.8 assists…Michelle Jahn is a three-time PSAC Freshman of the Week selection and is averaging 13.6 points…she has made a team-high 29 three-pointers and is shooting 52% (29-56) from downtown…Hippo is averaging 11.7 points with 22 triples.

THE SERIES VS. EDINBORO: Saturday's game will mark the eighth all-time meeting between Daemen and Edinboro…the Fighting Scots have prevailed in six of the previous seven meetings…the teams last met during the 2009-10 season and EU posted a 102-73 win at Edinboro.

THE FIREBIRDS (4-3; 0-0 ECC): District of Columbia returns nine players and three starters from last year's team that finished 25-5 (18-2 ECC) and advanced to the NCAA Division II Tournament for the second-straight year…all-conference selections Telisha Turner and Denikka Brent were lost to graduation and head coach Lester Butler, the 2014-15 ECC Coach of the Year, left to become the men's basketball coach at Virginia Union…De Wayne Burroughs, who served as an assistant at UDC the past four years, takes over as head coach…UDC was voted third in the 2015-16 ECC preseason poll…senior guard Taj Baldwin-Kollore returns after averaging 11.4 points and collecting honorable mention All-ECC honors last year…the Firebirds dropped three of their first five games, but are coming off back-to-back wins over Tampa (52-46) and Lincoln (68-61)…UDC plays at Roberts Wesleyan Friday (Dec. 11) before playing at Daemen Sunday…Baldwin-Kollore and senior forward Iman Scott have paced the Firebirds thus far…Baldwin-Kollore poured in 30 points in the win over Lincoln and is averaging 16.9 points…Scott scored 19 points in a 62-48 win over Goldey-Beacom and is averaging 13.3 points and 4.9 rebounds…additional production has come from senior forwards Tatyana Calhoun (8.1 ppg, 9.3 rpg) and Tiara Goode (8.8 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 12 3pt fgs).

THE SERIES vs. UDC: Sunday's game will mark the fifth all-time meeting between Daemen and UDC…the Firebirds have swept the season series the past two years…the UDC posted an 86-62 win over the Wildcats last year at Lumsden Gymnasium…Denikka Brent led the way with 18 points, six rebounds, five assists, two steals and two blocks…Natalie Galus drilled three three-pointers and totaled 17 points and eight rebounds for Daemen…the Firebirds also posted a 72-60 victory over the upset-minded Wildcats earlier in the year at UDC…Telisha Turner led the way with 25 points…Sarah Saba totaled 16 points, 12 rebounds, four assists and three blocks for Daemen.

SHOOTING STAR: Senior Raeann Stilwell entered the 2015-16 season ranked among Daemen's all-time leaders in several categories…she currently ranks 13th in career points (1,164), 10th in career points per game (12.7), second in career three-pointers made (213), second in career three-pointers attempted (649) and 10th in career three-point field goal percentage (.328)…she set the school-record for three-pointers made (77) and attempted (252) in a season as a sophomore and has become the first player in program history to record 60 or more three-pointers in three-straight seasons…Jessica Ruddell (2001-05) owns the school-record for career three-pointers made (242) and career three-point field goals attempted (721).

SUDDEN IMPACT: Sophomore Sarah Saba is coming off an impressive rookie season in which she scored in double figures 24 times and was a six-time ECC Rookie of the Week selection…she led the team and ranked first among ECC freshman in scoring (14.2 ppg) and also ranked second on the team and led all ECC freshmen in rebounding (7.2 rpg).

SOLID START: Senior Somara Colon is off to a solid start to the season…she opened the year with back-to-back doubles against Post (12 pts, 10 rebs) and Nyack (12 pts, career-high 16 rebs) and totaled 10 points and eight boards against Lake Erie…it marked the first time in her four-year career she scored in double figures in three-straight games…she is averaging 9.5 points and ranks first on the team in field goal percentage (.486) and rebounding (9.5 rpg).

WHAT'S NEXT: The Wildcats return to action next weekend when they travel to Dowling College (Dec. 18) and the University of Bridgeport (Dec. 20) for ECC games…click HERE for the complete 2015-16 schedule.

FOLLOW THE WILDCATS: Follow Daemen College women's basketball on Twitter (@DaemenAthletics and@DaemenWBB) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/daemencollegeathletics) to get live game updates and breaking news throughout the year.

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Players Mentioned

#34 Shy Britton: F; 5' 10"; Senior

#32 Somara Colon: F; 6' 0"; Senior

#33 Natalie Galus: F; 5' 11"; Junior

#23 Taylor Heinold: G; 5' 10"; Sophomore

#25 Leah McDonell: G; 5' 6"; Junior

#44 Liz Miles: F/C; 5' 11"; Sophomore

#11 Sarah Saba: G; 6' 0"; Sophomore

#13 Raeann Stilwell: G; 5' 3"; Senior

#15 Samantha Wozniak: G; 5' 6"; Senior

#24 Jesse DeWaters: G; 5' 10"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#34 Shy Britton
: 5' 10"; Senior
: F

#32 Somara Colon
: 6' 0"; Senior
: F

#33 Natalie Galus
: 5' 11"; Junior
: F

#23 Taylor Heinold
: 5' 10"; Sophomore
: G

#25 Leah McDonell
: 5' 6"; Junior
: G

#44 Liz Miles
: 5' 11"; Sophomore
: F/C

#11 Sarah Saba
: 6' 0"; Sophomore
: G

#13 Raeann Stilwell
: 5' 3"; Senior
: G

#15 Samantha Wozniak
: 5' 6"; Senior
: G

#24 Jesse DeWaters
: 5' 10"; Junior
: G