Geoff Schneider

Wildcats Compete at Redhawks Tip-Off Classic this Weekend

11/12/2026 1:30:00 PM

By: CONTACT: Connor Griffin, Assistant Director of Athletics Communications | cgriffin@daemen.edu

REDHAWKS TIP-OFF CLASSIC
The Daemen women's basketball team continues its first week of action with two neutral site games at the Redhawks Tip-Off Classic at Roberts Wesleyan University. The Wildcats battle Felician in a rematch of the 2026 NCAA East Region Quarterfinals Friday, then take on Saint Anselm Saturday.

LAST TIME OUT
Daemen opened its season with a 61-53 win at Saginaw Valley State on Monday. The Wildcats outscored the Cardinals 21-13 in the third quarter to help secure the victory. Cecilia Lapertosa (Whitesboro, N.Y.) scored 17 points and posted six rebounds and four steals. Sophie Auer (Lewiston, N.Y.) finished with 13 points, making three 3-pointers. She also logged four rebounds and two steals. Julia Fontanillo Aparicio (Valladolid, Spain) tallied seven points, three steals, and two assists. Isabella Karabetsos (Brampton, Ontario) recorded three assists, four rebounds, and five points. Daemen turned 25 Saginaw Valley turnovers into 23 points and finished with 14 steals. The points in the paint finished in the Wildcats favor at 30-24.

2025-26 RECAP
The Wildcats finished 26-4 overall last season, its best in the program's Division II era, including a 15-1 ECC mark. The team won its seventh straight ECC regular season title and hosted the conference tournament. Daemen defeated #5 seed Staten Island 75-61 in the ECC semifinals, then earned a 73-68 win over #2 seed Mercy to claim the program's fifth consecutive and sixth overall ECC Championship. Earning the #3 seed in the NCAA East Region, the Wildcats beat #6 seed Felician, 75-62, in the regional quarterfinals and #2 seed Bentley, 58-55, in the semifinals. Daemen's season ended with a 78-62 loss to #5 seed Holy Family in the regional finals.

PRESEASON POLLS
Daemen enters the season picked #1 in the ECC Preseason Poll. The Wildcats received 79 points and seven first-place votes to top the poll. The Wildcats were also ranked tied for 15th in the WBCA NCAA Division II Women's Basketball Preseason Poll.

RETURNING TALENT
The Wildcats return fifth-year forward Lapertosa after she missed much of last season with an injury. Lapertosa averaged 13.7 points, 7.0 rebounds, 1.3 assists, and 1.7 blocks per game. She shot 48.5% from the field in 14 games played. Auer earned Third Team All-ECC last season after playing in all 30 contests and averaging 9.1 PPG on 47.4% shooting (second-best on the team). The senior also averaged 2.0 assists, 1.4 steals, and 4.2 rebounds per game. Fontanillo Aparicio finished second on the team and tied for 12th in the ECC in assists per game (2.4). The guard was also tied for fourth on the team and tied for 10th in the ECC in steals per game (1.7). Guard Kyleigh Chapman (Canandaigua, N.Y.) played in all 30 games and started 17. She ranked fourth on the squad in rebounds per game (4.7). The junior also averaged 2.2 assists per game and recorded 21 blocks. Brianna Caliri (Staten Island, N.Y.) averaged 10.3 minutes, 3.5 points, and 3.0 rebounds per game as a freshman last year. Mackenzie Owens (Colden, N.Y.) will be suiting up this season after joining the program midway through last year.

THE NEWCOMERS
Daemen also welcomed 12 new players to this year's squad, with five freshmen and seven transfers. The new players bring talent from successful high school and junior college careers to playing at the Division I level.

SCHEDULE OUTLOOK
Following this weekend, Daemen plays at Gannon next Wednesday (Nov. 18). The Wildcats then play an exhibition at Division I Binghamton (Nov. 21), and at Shippensburg (Nov. 29). ECC play begins on the road at Mercy (Dec. 3) and Molloy (Dec. 5). The Wildcats welcome Adelphi for their home opener (Dec. 12), then host AIC (Dec. 16). Daemen travels to Florida for the Lynn Holiday Classic, taking on Palm Beach Atlantic (Dec. 19) and Lynn (Dec. 20). The non-conference portion wraps up at Saint Michael's on New Year's Eve. Highlighting the remainder of the ECC slate includes home tilts against Molloy (Jan. 14), St. Thomas Aquinas (Jan. 16), Roberts Wesleyan (Jan. 21), Staten Island (Jan. 30), Queens (Feb. 6), UDC (Feb. 11), D'Youville (Feb. 18), and Mercy (Feb. 20).

SCOUTING FELICIAN (0-0)
This is the first game of the season for the Golden Falcons. Felician finished the 2025-26 campaign 24-8 including a 15-5 CACC mark, winning the conference tournament before falling to the Wildcats in the East Region Quarterfinals. The Golden Falcons return their top scorer in Stephanie Formby who averaged 18.9 PPG on 47.% shooting while posting 8.7 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game. Lilla Szilvassy logged 6.8 points, 6.3 rebounds, 1.2 assists, and 1.2 steals per game last season. Deviney Jackson led the squad in steals (2.7 SPG) while averaging 6.3 points per game.

SERIES HISTORY
The Wildcats are 6-1 against the Golden Falcons, with six of those meetings at the Redhawk Tip-off Classic. Last year Daemen defeated Felician 75-62 in the NCAA East Region Quarterfinals in New Haven, Conn. Before that, the teams met in November 2024, when Daemen fell 59-55. The Wildcats won 74-57 in 2023, 72-60 in 2022, 72-50 in 2021, and 65-54 in 2016, all in Rochester.

SCOUTING SAINT ANSELM (0-0)
The Hawks will be opening their season this weekend. Saint A's went 12-11 in 2025-26, including a 7-11 mark in Northeast 10 play. The Hawks finished seventh in the conference standings. Elise MacNair is the Hawks top returning scorer (13.0 PPG) and averaged 7.1 rebounds, 5.1 assists, and 1.4 steals per game. Meghan Trapper averaged 7.8 points and 2.4 rebounds per game in 23 contests. Amarilis Shubick logged 4.2 points and 1.0 rebounds per game while Bella Vaz posted 4.0 points and 2.7 rebounds per contest.

SERIES HISTORY
The Wildcats are 1-5 all-time against the Hawks. Daemen earned its first win over Saint A's during the last meeting on Nov. 24, 2024 at Lumsden Gymnasium.

UP NEXT
Daemen is back on the road next Wednesday, playing #12 Gannon at 6 p.m.

Daemen University features the premier NCAA Division II athletics program in the Buffalo-Niagara region, sponsoring 17 intercollegiate teams. For the latest information on Daemen Athletics, follow the Wildcats via social media on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram, or sign up to receive customizable news alerts, e-mail newsletters and weekly schedule alerts.

Follow the Daemen women's basketball program on Twitter and Instagram at @DaemenWBB

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