THE LEAD: The Daemen College women's basketball team closes out the regular-season this weekend with East Coast Conference games at Molloy College (Feb. 26) and Queens College (Feb. 28)…Daemen has won five of its last seven games and remains in contention for a spot in the upcoming ECC Championship tournament.
PLAYOFF PICTURE: Daemen and Molloy are in contention for the sixth and final spot in the ECC Championship tournament…if Molloy wins one of its final two games the Lions will advance and Daemen will be eliminated…if Daemen wins its final two games and Molloy loses it final two games the teams will end up tied for sixth in the final regular-season standings…the Wildcats would earn the post-season bid based on Daemen sweeping the regular-season series...the No. 3 and No. 4 seeds will host tournament quarterfinal games on March 2 and the tournament semifinals and championship will take place March 5 and 6 in Washington, D.C. on the campus of the University of the District of Columbia...ticket information for the tournament semifinals and championship is available HERE.
Friday, Feb. 26, 2016
Daemen at Molloy - 5 p.m.
Quealy Gymnasium, Rockville Centre, N.Y.
DC ROSTER / DC STATS / MC ROSTER / MC STATS / LIVE STATS / VIDEO
Sunday, Feb. 28, 2016
Daemen at Queens - 1:30 p.m.
Fitzgerald Gymnasium, Flushing, N.Y.
DC ROSTER / DC STATS / QC ROSTER / QC STATS / LIVE STATS / VIDEO
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 467-266 (.637) 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 (9-15; 7-11 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…the Wildcats were voted eighth in the 2015-16 ECC preseason poll…senior Raeann Stilwell and juniors Natalie Galus and Leah McDonell have been constants in the starting lineup the past two years…sophomore Sarah Saba is coming off an impressive rookie season in which she was a six-time ECC Rookie of the Week selection and averaged 14.2 points and 7.2 rebounds…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 have provided quality depth…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…she averaged 11.3 points, 8.0 rebounds and a team-high 7.0 assists for the Thunderwolves last year…the Wildcats are 5-2 over their last seven games…Daemen defeated LIU Post (57-53) and lost to ECC regular-season champion New York Tech (75-58) last weekend…Saba has scored in double figures in 20 games this season and is averaging a team-high 16.4 points…she also leads the team in rebounding (6.3 rpg), steals (34) and blocks (43)…she scored a career-high 26 points in a recent 76-68 win over LIU Post and has registered a double-double in her last two games…McDonell has scored in double figures in seven of the last 10 games and is contributing 9.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game…she scored a season-high 19 points in a 79-73 OT win at St. Thomas Aquinas…Stilwell scored a team-high 16 points in a loss to Roberts Wesleyan last week and is averaging 8.5 points and 4.6 rebounds…she leads the team in three-pointers (34) and assists (93)…Galus equaled her season-high for points (19) in a recent win over Bridgeport and is averaging 8.2 points and 5.8 rebounds with 33 three-pointers…additional production has come from Colon (7.5 ppg, 5.9 rpg) and Heinold (4.7 ppg, 19 3pt fgs)…Miles posted back-to-back 13-point efforts in the recent wins over Bridgeport and St. Thomas Aquinas and is averaging 5.5 points and 5.6 rebounds off the bench.
ECC HONORS FOR SABA: Sophomore Sarah Saba was recently named ECC Player of the Week after averaging 23.0 points, 7.5 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per game during the wins over Dowling and Bridgeport.
THE LIONS (10-16; 9-9 ECC): Molloy returns six players and two starters from last year's team that finished 11-16 overall and 7-13 in the ECC…Molloy was voted seventh in the 2015-16 ECC preseason poll… the Lions have won two-straight and four of their last five games…Molloy upset ECC regular-season champion New York Tech (66-59) two weeks ago and posted wins over Bridgeport (67-52) and Dowling (67-64) last week…seniors Ally Leftridge, Kimani Jackson and Alexia O'Connor have paced the Lions…Leftridge has scored in double figures 22 times and is averaging a team-high 14.8 points with 36 three-pointers…she scored 17 points in the win over Dowling last week…Jackson scored 24 points in the win over Bridgeport last week and is averaging 14.1 points and 5.0 rebounds…O'Connor is shooting 42.5-percent (51-120) from three-point land and is averaging 9.6 points…additional production has come from junior Allyah McDonald (7.4 ppg, 2.9 apg) and freshman Ihnacinse Grady (4.9 ppg, 50 stls).
THE SERIES vs. MOLLOY: Friday's game will mark the sixth all-time meeting between Daemen and Molloy…the Wildcats have prevailed in four of the previous five meetings…Daemen rolled to an 87-68 win over the Lions last month at Lumsden Gym…five players scored in double figures, led by Sarah Saba (19 pts) and Natalie Galus (13 pts, 13 rebs)…Ally Leftridge paced the Lions with 23 points…the teams split the season series last winter…Daemen posted a 72-60 victory at Lumsden Gym…Shy Britton led the way with 21 points, 15 rebounds and six blocks…Leftridge led the Lions with 20 points and 12 boards…the Lions answered with an 83-81 win at Molloy…Aliyah McDonald scored 22 points and also grabbed nine rebounds for Molloy, while Britton totaled 21 points, eight redounds and four blocks.
CALL IT A COMEBACK: Both Daemen and Molloy have posted impressive comebacks during the brief history between the two schools…the first-ever meeting between the two schools during the 2013-14 season was a classic, as Daemen rallied for an 88-86 OT win at Molloy…Daemen used a barrage of three-pointers and rallied from a 24-point second-half deficit en route to the win—Daemen's first-ever ECC victory…Daemen set school-records for three-pointers made (16) and attempted (47) in the game…Raeann Stilwell led the charge, as she canned 8-of-20 from downtown and finished with 26 points…she tied the school-record for three-pointers made and attempted in a game…last year the Lions trailed by 22 points (57-35) early in the second half before rallying for an 83-81 victory—Molloy's first-ever victory over Daemen.
THE KNIGHTS (16-8; 13-5 ECC): Queens returns nine players and three starters from last year's team that finished 22-8 overall (15-5 ECC), claimed the ECC Tournament title and advanced to the NCAA Division II Tournament…Queens was voted first in the 2015-16 ECC preseason poll…the Knights host Roberts Wesleyan Friday before taking on Daemen Sunday…the Knights have won 11 of their last 13 games and enter the weekend riding a four-game winning streak…Queens is ranked ninth in the latest NCAA Division II East Region poll…junior G/F Madison Rowland and her senior F/C sister MacKenzie top the list of returning players…Madison collected first-team all-conference and ECC Player of the Year honors last winter after averaging 20.9 points, 9.9 rebounds and 4.3 steals…the 2015-16 ECC Preseason Player of the Year, she scored a season-high 31 points in a win overr Dowling last week and leads the team in scoring (19.6 ppg), assists (3.5 apg) and steals (4.5 spg)…she also ranks second in rebounding (9.5 rpg)…MacKenzie is a two-time All-ECC pick…she totaled 26 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks in a win over Bridgeport last week and is averaging 14.1 points and a team-high 10.8 rebounds and 2.4 blocks…additional production has come from senior guard Kristen Korzevinski (12.2 ppg) and sophomore forward Melissa Fumano (5.0 ppg, 4.6 rpg)…Korzevinski scored 18 points in a 61-56 loss to New York Tech two weeks ago.
THE SERIES vs. QUEENS: Sunday's game will mark the sixth all-time meeting between Daemen and Queens…Queens has prevailed in each of the previous five meetings…the Knights posted an 85-62 win at Lumsden Gym last month…Madison Rowland drilled five three-pointers and totaled 27 points of Queens…Sarah Saba netted 17 points for Daemen…Queens swept the season series last winter…the Knights posted an 82-67 win at Lumsden Gym…Rowland poured in 25 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for the visitors, while Raeann Stilwell (22 pts) and Shy Britton (20 pts, 10 rebs, 4 blks) pace the Wildcats…QC completed the sweep with a 68-61 win at Queens…Rowland totaled 21 points, 15 rebounds, four assists, two blocks and four steals…Natalie Galus scored a career-high 22 points for Daemen.
SHOOTING STAR: Senior Raeann Stilwell entered the 2015-16 season ranked among Daemen's all-time leaders in several categories…she has played in 112 games over her career and currently ranks ninth in career points (1,328), second in career three-pointers made (239) and first in career three-pointers attempted (769)…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).
JUNIOR MINTS: Juniors Natalie Galus and Leah McDonell have been a constants in the starting lineup since their freshman season…Galus has started 78 of a possible 79 games over the past three seasons and has totaled 774 points, 536 rebounds and 155 blocks over her career…she ranks fifth among Daemen's all-time leaders in career blocks…McDonell has started all 79 games over the last three seasons and has racked up 601 points, 355 rebounds and 188 assists…she has established career-highs for points (227) and assists (66) in a season this year.
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)…she has scored in double figures 20 times this season and ranks sixth among the ECC scoring leaders (16.3 ppg)…she has played in 53 career games and has totaled 805 points (15.2 ppg) and 360 rebounds (6.8 rpg).
DID YOU KNOW?: Daemen leads the ECC and ranks fifth among all Division II schools in defensive rebounds per game…the Wildcats are averaging 32.7 defensive rebounds per game and trail only Southwest Oklahoma (35), California Baptist (34), West Liberty (34) and Chestnut Hill (33) in this category nationally…Daemen also leads the ECC and ranks 13th nationally in total rebounds per game (44.96)…the Wildcats also lead the ECC in assists per game (14.3), blocked shots per game (4.8), three-point field goals made per game (6.5) and total three-point field goals attempted (606).
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.
