TOURNAMENT INFORMATION
Daemen Wildcats (2-1, 0-0 ECC) vs. Eckerd Tritons (2-0, 0-0 SSC)
Friday, Nov. 23 |  3 p.m.
St. Petersburg, Fla. |  McArthur Center

Daemen Wildcats (2-1, 0-0 ECC) vs. #11 Florida Southern Moccasins (3-0, 0-0 SSC)
Saturday, Nov. 24 |  1 p.m.
St. Petersburg, Fla. |  McArthur Center

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Game Day

JUMP BALL
The Daemen College women's basketball team heads to The Sunshine State to take part in the Eckerd College Thanksgiving Classic. The tournament will feature teams from the East Coast Conference (ECC), the Northeast-10 Conference (NE-10) and the Sunshine State Conference (SSC). The Wildcats will face host Eckerd in the opening round Friday and Florida Southern College in the second round Saturday. It will mark Daemen's first trip to Florida since the 2014-15 season when the Wildcats took part in the Trip Sports Cruzin Classic hosted by Barry University in Miami Shores. Daemen suffered a 74-64 loss to Barry and defeated Goucher (65-53) during that trip.

TOUGH TEST
Daemen will face two teams that posted 20 wins and advanced to the NCAA Division II Tournament last year. Eckerd went 22-8 last year and suffered a 57-54 loss to Embry-Riddle in the opening round of the NCAAs. Florida Southern went 25-5 last year, claimed the SSC Tournament title and was eliminated by Valdosta State (63-60) in the opening round of the NCAAs. The Mocs have made three-straight trips to the NCAA Tournament and claimed the South Region title three years ago.

BANKER'S BACK
Jenepher Banker enters her third season as head women's basketball coach at Daemen. Over the past two seasons she has led the Wildcats to a 23-32 overall record and a 17-19 mark in the ECC. Last year she led Daemen to its first-ever appearance in the ECC Championship Tournament. Banker arrived at Daemen with nearly 30 years of coaching experience at various levels, ranging from Division I to high school. Her first collegiate experience came as an assistant coach at Iowa State University (1986-88) and later as an assistant at Canisius College (1993-95)…between assistant coaching stops, Banker served as the head coach at Penn State-Behrend where she led the NCAA Division III program to a 67-61 overall record. Her 1991-92 team went 23-4, winning the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) South Region championship. That team garnered Penn State-Behrend's first-ever national ranking in any sport. She was inducted into Penn State-Behrend's Athletic Hall of Fame in 1994. Banker ultimately settled at the high school level, coaching the varsity team at Grand Island High School from 1998-2013, building the Lady Vikings into a regional contender with seven Section VI championships, four appearances in the Far West Regional, and one appearance at the New York State final four.

DAEMEN QUICK FACTS
Daemen returns three starters and eight players from last year's team that posted an 12-17 overall record and a 9-9 mark in the East Coast Conference. The Wildcats earned a bid to the ECC Championship Tournament for the first time since joining the league in 2013-14. Daemen suffered a 76-64 loss to Roberts Wesleyan in the ECC Tournament quarterfinals. The Wildcats are ranked eighth in the ECC preseason poll. The Wildcats opened the 2018-19 season by splitting two games during the Redhawks Classic hosted by Roberts Wesleyan College. Daemen suffered a 69-66 loss to St. Rose in the opening round, before rebounding with a 73-48 win over Assumption in round two. The Wildcats will be playing their first games since posting a 74-67 win over Mercyhurst on Nov. 15.

HISTORIC WIN
The Wildcats trailed Mercyhurst by 10 points (59-49) late in the third quarter, before outscoring the Lakers 25-8 the rest of the way to secure their first win over a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) team since the 2004-05 season when the Wildcats posted a 90-82 win over Gannon.

A NEW ERA
A familiar face will be missing from the Daemen lineup following the graduation of Sarah Saba. A four-year starter for the Wildcats, she played in all 110 games over her career and totaled 1,774 points (16.1 ppg), 770 rebounds (7.0 rpg), 157 blocks and 157 steals. She scored in double figures in 96 of her 110 career games and ranks fifth in career points among Daemen's all-time leaders. She also ranks seventh in career rebounds and sixth in career blocks. She became the first-ever women's basketball player from Daemen to earn first-team All-ECC honors as a sophomore, and repeated the honor as a junior and senior. She averaged an ECC-best 17.7 points last year and became the first women's basketball player from Daemen to lead the league in scoring average.

SENSATIONAL SOPHOMORES
Sophomores Tiara Filbert and Caroline White are both coming off solid rookie seasons. Filbert, who sat out the 2016-17 season due to injury, played in all 29 games last year and started 20 of the final 21 games. She ranked second on the team in total points (252), scoring average (8.7) and defensive rebounds (115). A one-time ECC Rookie of the Week selection, she scored in double figures 12 times, including 10 of her final 19 games. Filbert scored a career-high 21 points in the win over Mercyhurst and is averaging a team-high 18.3 points. She also leads the team in field goal percentage (.606), three-pointers made (8) and three-point field goal percentage (.571) and assists (10). White played in all 29 games and started 22 games last year. She ranked third on the team in total points (249), scoring average (8.6), minutes per game (29.9), total rebounds (149) and rebounds per game (5.1). A three-time ECC Rookie of the Week selection, she ranked second in three-pointers made (36) and scored in double figures 11 times. White scored 15 points in the win over Assumption during the Redhawks Classic. Fellow sophomore Autumn Buchsenschutz is playing a much larger role this year after seeing limited playing time as a freshman. She has started all three games this season and is averaging 24 minutes a game. She handed out five assists in the season-opening loss to St. Rose and scored seven points in the win over Assumption.

SUPER SUB TO SENIOR STARTER
Senior Erin Egan played in 27 of 29 games last year and averaged 17 minutes a game off the bench. She averaged 5.4 points and 4.6 rebounds and ranked second on the team in blocks (34) and steals (26). She has started the first three games of 2018-19 (her first career starts) and ranks second on the team in scoring average (13.0) and rebounds per game (5.7). She has also totaled a team-high eight blocks and registered 14 points and nine rebounds in the season-opening loss to St. Rose.

BACK FROM INJURY
Junior Jordan Heinold and senior Erin Sinnott both had their 2017-18 seasons cut short by injury. Heinold played in the first 13 games (7 starts) before missing the remainder of the regular-season due to injury. She averaged 7.4 points and 4.1 rebounds and ranked fourth on the team in three-pointers made (27) despite missing 15 games. She has canned 71 three-pointers and has averaged 8.4 points over her career. She scored 14 points in the season-opening loss to St. Rose. Sinnott started the first eight games last year before missing the remainder of the season. A transfer from Division I Evansville, she was averaging 7.0 points and 4.4 rebounds prior to the injury.

IMMEDIATE IMPACT
Junior Sarah Young made an immediate impact with the team after transferring from Division I St. Bonaventure last year. She started 28 games, averaged 6.3 points and led the team in offensive rebounds (80) and field goal percentage (.500). She also ranked second in rebounds per game (5.9) and third in blocked shots (22).

TALENTED NEWCOMERS
The 2018-19 roster features six newcomers—one junior college transfer and five freshmen. Junior guard Ranaveya Richards joins the Wildcats after playing the last two seasons at Finger Lakes CC. She earned NJCAA Division III all-America honors last year after averaging 21.1 points, 8.8 rebounds and 7.2 assists. Freshman guard Sydney Barney was a four-year starter at Beaver Area (Pa.) High School and earned all-district honors as a senior. Freshman forward Mickayla Ivy led East Grand Rapids (Mich.) to a 20-4 record and its first Class A District championship since 2009 last year. Freshman guard Vivian Ladd is a product of Johnson City (N.Y.) High School and collected first-team all-region and fifth-team all-state (Class A) as a junior. Freshman guard Katie Price led Fredonia (N.Y.) High School to back-to-back Section VI Class B titles as a junior and senior. Freshman forward Katie Titus enjoyed an outstanding career at regional power Our Lady of Mercy High School in Rochester, N.Y. A two-time first-team All-Greater Rochester selection, she led the Monarchs to 63 wins, two Section V titles and two NYSPHSAA Class AA "Final Four" appearances.

TITUS COLLECTS CONFERENCE HONOR
Freshman forward Katie Titus was named ECC Defensive Player of the Week after totaling 12 defensive rebounds, three blocks and two steals in the win over Mercyhurst. For the game, she totaled 14 points, 15 rebounds, three blocks and two steals in 22 minutes off the bench. It marked her first career double-double.

ECKERD SCOUTING REPORT
Eckerd is a member of the Sunshine State Conference. The Tritons posted a 22-8 overall record (15-5 SSC) last year and suffered a 57-54 loss to Embry-Riddle in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament. Head coach Paul Honsinger is entering his 13th season at Eckerd. He has led the Tritons to the NCAA Division II Tournament three of the last four seasons. Eckerd returns seven players (3 starters) from last year and is picked to finish second in the 2018-19 SSC preseason poll. Eckerd is ranked fourth in the latest D2SIDA Division II South Region poll. The Tritons will be playing their first game since opening the 2018-19 season with wins over West Alabama (78-63) and Clark Atlanta (73-29) two weeks ago. Senior guard Chelsea Johnson returns after averaging 10.7 points with 35 three-pointers last year. She totaled four three-pointers and 23 points in the season-opening win over West Alabama. Senior G/F Yarden Danan and junior center Zoe Richards also return after being named to the SSC All-Newcomer Team last year. Yarden, a transfer from Division I Weber State, averaged 9.9 points and drilled 57 three-pointers last year. She scored 18 points in just 21 minutes in the win over Clark Atlanta. Richards averaged 10.4 points and 4.2 rebounds last year after transferring from Gillette (Wyo.) College where she earned NJCAA All-Region honors.

ALL-TIME SERIES
First Meeting

FLORIDA SOUTHERN SCOUTING REPORT
Florida Southern is a member of the Sunshine State Conference. Last year, the Moccasins posted a 25-5 overall record (17-3 SSC), claimed the SSC Tournament title and and suffered a 63-60 loss to Valdosta State in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament. Head coach Betsy Harris is entering her fifth season at FSC. A two-time SSC Coach of the Year selection, she has led the Tritons to the NCAA Division II Tournament the last three seasons—including a berth in the "Elite Eight" in 2015-16. The Mocs return nine players (4 starters) from last year and were voted first in the 2018-19 SSC preseason poll. FSC is ranked No. 11 in the latest D2SIDA Division II national poll. The Mocs opened the year with wins over Lee (70-64) and Shorter (81-45) two weeks ago and improved to 3-0 following a 116-48 win over Puerto Rico-Mayaguez this past Monday. Senior forward Anja Fuchs-Robetin and senior guard Camille Giardina top the list of returning players. Fuchs-Robetin averaged 18.6 points and 9.4 rebounds last year and was named SSC Player of the Year. She recorded a double-double (13 pts, 10 rebs) in the win over Lee. Giardina is a two-time All-SSC selection and the 2015-16 SSC Freshman of the Year. She led the team in scoring average (19.9 ppg), three-pointers (72) and steals (59) last year. She scored 18 points in the win over Lee and is averaging a team-high 16.3 points. Senior Mercedes Claybrone (14.3 ppg, 7.0 rpg) has scored in double figures in all three games this season, while freshman Mackenzie Steele has made a team-high 10 three-pointers and is averaging 11.7 points.

ALL-TIME SERIES
Daemen vs. Florida Southern: 0-1
Streak: Lost 1
Last Meeting: FSC 92, Daemen 58 | Jan. 2, 2001 | Lakeland, Fla.

ON THE HORIZON
The Wildcats return to action Wednesday (Nov. 28) when they travel to Erie, Pa. to face Gannon University of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference. The Golden Knights are off to a 3-1 start this year and are ranked 10th in the latest D2SIDA Atlantic Region poll. Gannon posted a 68-64 victory over Daemen last year at Lumsden Gymnasium.