TOURNAMENT INFORMATION
Saint Rose Holiday Classic
Albany, N.Y. | Daniel P. Nolan Gymnasium

Game #12
Daemen Wildcats (8-3, 2-1 ECC) vs. American International Yellow Jackets (4-7, 1-4 NE-10)
Saturday, Dec. 21 | 3 p.m.
Live Stats
Live Streaming Video (via NE-10 Now)

Game #13
Daemen Wildcats (8-3, 2-1 ECC) vs. Saint Rose Golden Knights (3-6, 0-5 NE-10)
Sunday, Dec. 22 | 2 p.m.
Live Stats
Live Streaming Video (via NE-10 Now)

JUMP BALL
Regionally-ranked Daemen travels to Albany, N.Y, to take part in the Saint Rose Holiday Classic this weekend. The Wildcats will face a pair of Northeast-10 Conference teams during the two-day tournament. Daemen squares off against American International College in the opening round Saturday (Dec. 21), and then takes on the host Golden Knights of The College of Saint Rose during the second round on Sunday (Dec. 22). It will mark the final two non-conference games for the Wildcats this season.

REGIONAL RECOGNITION
Daemen is ranked 10th in this week's Division II Sports Information Directors of America (D2SIDA) East Region media poll. Daemen entered the season ranked ninth in the D2SIDA East Region preseason poll and was once again ranked ninth in the first in-season poll released Nov. 18. The Wildcats moved up to Np. 7 on Nov. 25, and have been ranked 10th in the last three polls. The Wildcats have been ranked in the last eight D2SIDA East Region polls dating back to Feb. 4 of last year.

FAST START
The Wildcats are off to the best start of their NCAA Division II era (2015-present) and their best start overall since opening the 2012-13 season by winning nine of their first 11 games. Daemen has won eight of its last 10 games and split a pair of East Coast Conference games last weekend. The Wildcats ran past Mercy College (68-48) on Dec. 13, before suffering 67-62 loss to nationally-ranked St. Thomas Aquinas College on Dec. 15. The Wildcats have featured a balanced attack thus far, as four starters are averaging over 10 points per game. Redshirt junior Tiara Filbert was recently named ECC Player of the Week after averaging 27.5 points during the Cesar Odio Thanksgiving Classic three weeks ago. She erupted for a career-high 38 points in the loss to Nova Southeastern during the opening round of the tournament. She is averaging 15.1 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game. Junior forward Caroline White scored a career-high 22 points in a win over Barry during the Cesar Odio Thanksgiving Classic and is averaging 14.2 points and 6.4 rebounds. Sophomore forward Katie Titus scored a season-high 21 points in the win over Mercy last weekend and is averaging 13.1 points and a team-high 6.5 rebounds per game. She also leads the team in blocks (15). Senior Jordan Heinold and newcomer Ashli Jeune and have also produced. Heinold equaled her career-high for three-pointers in a game (7) and scored a career-high 25 points in a win over Wilmington and is averaging 10.5 points with a team-high 26 three-pointers. Jeune totaled a season-high 22 points in the loss to STAC and is averaging 8.7 points, 4.6 rebounds and a team-high 3.2 assists. She also leads the team in steals (21). Junior Autumn Buchsenschutz is averaging 23 minutes off the bench and is contributing 4.5 points and 2.5 assists per game. Sophomore Mickayla Ivy has also seen consistent playing time.

ROAD WARRIORS
Daemen will play 11 of its first 13 games away from the friendly confines of Lumsden Gymnasium—where the Wildcats have won 11-straight games dating back to last season. The 11-game home winning streak ranks second among NCAA Division II East Region teams behind Bentley University (12).

BANKER'S BACK
Jenepher Banker enters her fourth season as head women's basketball coach at Daemen. She has led the Wildcats to a 49-45 overall record and a 34-23 mark in the ECC since the start of the 2016-17 season. Last year she led Daemen to an 18-10 overall record, a 15-3 league record and a second-straight appearance in the ECC Championship Tournament. The 18 wins were the most for the Wildcats since the program transitioned to NCAA Division II in 2013-14. She also recorded her 100th victory as a collegiate head coach during the 2018-19 season. 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 seven players from last year when the Wildcats enjoyed their most successful season since transitioning from NAIA to NCAA Division II. Daemen posted an 11-game winning streak, won 14 of its final 15 regular-season games and posted a 15-3 league record last year. Seeded second in the ECC Championships, the Wildcats were upset by New York Tech in the semifinals and closed out the year with an 18-10 overall record. The 18 wins were the most since the 2012-13 season. Daemen entered the 2019-20 season ranked third in the ECC preseason poll and ninth in the Sports Information Directors of America (D2SIDA) East Region preseason poll.

BACK IN THE FOLD
Redshirt junior Tiara Filbert and sophomore Katie Titus top the list of returning players after earning all-conference honors last year. Filbert earned second-team All-ECC recognition after averaging 12.0 points per game with a team-high 76 assists. Titus took the ECC by storm over the second half of her freshman season, averaging 17.4 points and 8.9 rebounds over the final 15 games. For the season, she led the team in scoring (12.1 ppg), rebounding (7.2 rpg), three-pointers (42) and blocked shots (38), and was a first-team All-ECC honoree—as well as the ECC Rookie of the Year. Senior Jordan Heinold (6.3 ppg, 37 3pt FGs) also returns after making 24 starts last year. Junior guards Autumn Buchsenschutz (3.1 ppg, 45 asts) and Caroline White (7.1 ppg, 4.1 rpg) also return after playing major roles last season. Sophomore guard Sydney Barney and sophomore forward Mickayla Ivy round out the list of returning players.

A FIRST FOR TITUS
Katie Titus was voted first team All-ECC and ECC Rookie of the Year last year after leading the team in points per game (12.1), rebounds per game (7.2), three-pointers (32) and blocks (38). She became the first women's basketball player from Daemen to garner a major award from the ECC since the Wildcats joined the conference. She also became the first freshman to earn first-team All-ECC honors since Madison Rowland of Queens College in 2013-14. Titus ranked first among ECC freshmen in points per game and second in rebounds per game. She shot 49-percent (109-for-222) from the field and averaged 17.4 points and 8.9 rebounds over the final 16 games. Her efforts earned her conference recognition in six of the final eight weeks. She was named ECC Player of the Week twice (Jan. 14, Jan. 28) and became the first player in team history to earn multiple ECC Player of the Week honors in the same season. She was also a two-time ECC Defensive Player of the Week selection (Nov. 19, Jan. 22), and a four-time ECC Rookie of the Week pick (Jan. 22, Feb. 4, Feb. 11, Feb. 18). She was only the freshman in the league to be named ECC Player of the Week and also the only ECC player to be named Player of the Week, Defensive Player of the Week and Rookie of the Week

PLENTY OF NEW FACES
The 2019-20 roster features 10 newcomers—one graduate transfer and nine freshmen. Graduate transfer Ashli Jeune (Westhampton, N.J.) and freshman Marina Maerkl (Binghampton, N.Y.) have seen consistent playing time over the first nine games. Jeune previously played at Division I Rutgers University and UNC-Wilmington. She has started all 11 games and scored a season-high 22 points in the loss to nationally-ranked St. Thomas Aquinas on Dec. 15. Maerkl led Seton Catholic to the Final Four of the New York State Public High School Athletic Association Class A Tournament as a junior and senior. She averaged a double-double as a senior and earned fourth-team Class A all-state honors. She has played in 10 games (13 minutes per game) and totaled six points and four rebounds in a win over Bloomfield. Freshmen Abby Lundquist (Rochelle, Ill.) and Tyra O'Meally-Turnbull (Niskayuna, N.Y.) have also contributed. Lundquist closed out her career at Rochelle Township High School with a school-record 1,909 career points. She has played in six games this year and drilled her first career three-pointer in the win over Bloomfield. O'Meally-Turnbull played at Niskayuna High School and was named the team's Outstanding Defensive Player as a junior. She has played in eight games and totaled six points, eight rebounds and two blocks in the win over Bloomfield.

WILDCATS DEBUT IN REGIONAL RANKINGS
Daemen was ranked in both D2SIDA Division II East Region media poll and the NCAA Division II East Region poll during the 2018-19 season. It marked the first time since Daemen transitioned to NCAA Division II that it has been regionally-ranked. The East Region of NCAA Division II is comprised of teams from the East Coast Conference, the Northeast-10 Conference and the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference

PICKING UP WHERE THEY LEFT OFF
Daemen was one of the hottest teams in the NCAA Division II East Region at the end of last year, as the Wildcats won 14 of their final 15 regular-season games. The Wildcats have opened the 2019-20 season by winning eight of their first 11 games and are now 22-5 over their last 27 games dating back to last season.

GETTING DEFENSIVE
Daemen has held seven of its first 11 opponents to 57 points or less. The Wildcats have also forced 210 turnovers and collected 109 steals over the first 11 games. Daemen ranks third among East Coast Conference teams in both points allowed per game (57.5) and steals per game (9.9), and second in turnovers forced per game (19.1).

LONG RANGE THREATS
Daemen ranks first among ECC teams in three-pointers made per game (8.1) and three-pointers attempted per game (26.6). The Wildcats also rank fourth in three-point field goal percentage (.304). Four of Daemen's five starters have made at least 10 three-pointers on the year. The Wildcats made a season-high 13 three-pointers in an 83-51 win at Wilmington on Nov. 23.

CONFERENCE HONORS FOR WHITE, FILBERT AND TITUS
Junior Caroline White, redshirt junior Tiara Filbert and sophomore Katie Titus have collected honors from the ECC in recent weeks. White was named the ECC Defensive Player of the Week on Nov. 25 after leading Daemen's defensive effort during wins over regionally-ranked Edinboro and Wilmington. She keyed the Daemen defense which surrendered just 108 points (54.0 ppg) in the two games, limiting EU and WU to a combined 35 percent shooting. Against Edinboro, White totaled eight rebounds, including five defensive and added a blocked shot. She grabbed six defensive rebounds and a team-high three steals against Wilmington. She also netted 18 points in each contest, shooting 16-for-29 from the field (55%) for the week. Filbert was named the ECC Player of the Week on Dec. 2 after averaging 27.5 points during the Cesar Odio Thanksgiving Classic. She scored a career-high 38 points in a 77-74 loss to Nova Southeastern and followed up with 17 points, six rebounds, three assists and two steals in a 78-69 win over host Barry. Over the two games she shot 63-percent (20-for-32) from the field and totaled 55 points. Titus was named ECC Defensive Player of the Week on Dec. 9. She headed up a defensive unit that forced 25 turnovers and limited the Roberts Wesleyan to 15 points or less in each of the four quarters during a 70-47 Daemen victory over the Redhawks. Titus recorded seven rebounds (five defensive) and collected a career-high five steals in the game. She also contributed on the offensive end with 14 points.

HEINOLD RECORDS 125TH THREE-POINTER
Senior Jordan Heinold has become the 10th player in program history to reach 125 career three-pointers. She reached the milestone during a win over Barry on Nov. 30 and has now totaled 134 three-pointers in 78 career games.

AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL SCOUTING REPORT
American International is a longtime member of the Northeast-10 Conference. Head coach Kristen Hutchinson—in her 13th season at the helm—returns none letter winners and one starter from her 2018-19 squad that posted a 16-14 record overall (10-10 NE10) and advanced to the quarterfinals of the NE-10 Tournament. AIC was picked fifth in the NE-10 Southwest Division preseason poll. The Yellow Jackets went 1-4 over their first five games, but are 3-3 over their last six. They are coming off a 75-31 loss at New York Tech on Wednesday. Veterans Rashana Siders and Destine Perry and newcomer Kayla Robinson have paced the Yellow Jackets thus far. Siders, a 5-7 senior guard, drilled five three-pointers and totaled 23 points in a 63-57 win at Bridgeport last weekend. She is averaging 13.9 points with a team-high 26 three-pointers. Perry, a 5-8 junior guard, had five three-pointers and scored 23 points off the bench in a recent 65-57 win over Southern Connecticut. She is averaging 11.4 points. Robinson, a 5-4 freshman guard, has started all 10 games and is averaging 11.3 points.

ALL-TIME SERIES: DAEMEN vs. AIC
Series Record: 1-0
Streak: Won 1
Last Meeting: Daemen 70, AIC 61 | Nov. 10, 2017 | Rochester, N.Y

SAINT ROSE SCOUTING REPORT
Saint Rose is a member of the Northeast-10 Conference. The Golden Knights posted an 11-16 overall record and a 4-16 mark in the NE-10 last year. Veteran head coach Karen Haag returns just five players and no starters from last year's team. The Golden Knights are picked seventh in the NE-10 Southwest Division preseason poll. Senior forward Leah Dollard and junior forward Nina Fedullo have paced the Golden Knights thus far. Dollard scored 20 points in a recent loss to Le Moyne and is averaging 11.9 points and 4.2 rebounds. Fedullo had a double-double (16 pts, 18 rebs) in a 60-38 win over Felician and is averaging 10.6 points and 8.6 rebounds. Additional production has come from sophomore guard Becca Townes (8.0 ppg, 14 3pt FGs) and senior guard Takora McIntyre (7.7 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 3.3 apg). McIntyre had 16 points and seven assists in a recent 78-73 OT loss to regionally-ranked Pace.

ALL-TIME SERIES: DAEMEN vs. SAINT ROSE
Series Record: 0-1
Streak: Lost 1
Last Meeting: Saint Rose 69, Daemen 66 | Nov. 9, 2018 | Rochester, N.Y

ON THE HORIZON
The Wildcats are idle until the second weekend of January when they host Queens College (Jan. 10) and the University of Bridgeport (Jan. 12) in East Coast Conference games.