Jan. 28, 2010

Center Valley, Pa.--A pair of Patriot League teams at the top of the standings will try to maintain sizable winning streaks this weekend. American, which enters the weekend with a 6-0 Patriot League record, will aim to preserve its seven-game winning streak when it hosts Lafayette. Lehigh, which is one game back of the Eagles, will bring a 28-game home winning streak into its contest with Holy Cross.

Patriot League Women's Basketball Release - 1.28.10

Patriot League Notebook

Eagles, Mountain Hawks March On
American and Lehigh added to their winning streaks on Wednesday, remaining at the top of the Patriot League standings. The Eagles recorded a road victory over Navy to extend their winning streak to seven games. American is now 6-0 in Patriot League play for the first time in school history. The Eagles were the lone road team to win Wednesday. Lehigh remains one game back of American after topping Bucknell. The Mountain Hawks have now won five straight games since dropping their Patriot League opener at American on Jan. 9. Also winning on Wednesday were Army and Holy Cross. Army topped Lafayette, while Holy Cross recorded a victory against Colgate. The Black Knights’ win snapped a three-game losing streak, helping Army avoid its first four-game Patriot League losing streak since 2004. Holy Cross is now 40-3 all-time against Colgate after its 65-56 win over the Raiders. The Crusaders have never lost at home against Colgate.

First Half Winds Down
Saturday’s games will mark the end of the first half of the Patriot League season. American will attempt to remain unbeaten in Patriot League play when it hosts Lafayette. Lehigh, which will also be at home, will try and keep pace with the Eagles. The Mountain Hawks will host Holy Cross. Also on the weekend slate, Army will host Bucknell, while Navy will travel to Colgate.

Patriot League Notebook

Seven Get Six
American’s 6-0 start in Patriot League play marks the seventh time a team has opened League play with six straight wins. Of the six previous teams that started 6-0, four have gone on to claim the top regular season record in Patriot League play, while three won the Patriot League Tournament. Holy Cross, which has started out 6-0 in League play four times, went undefeated in regular-season Patriot League contests in 1990-91 and 1996-97. The only season that the Crusaders started out 6-0 and did not win the Patriot League Championship was in 1996-97. The only other two schools to start 6-0, Bucknell (1999-00) and Lehigh (2004-05), did not win the title. Two teams, Holy Cross and Lehigh, opened Patriot League play with 6-0 records in 2004-05.

Home Cooking
Lehigh’s 28-game home winning streak is the longest overall home winning streak in the history of the Patriot League. Holy Cross’ 22-game home winning streak that started on Dec. 5, 2000 and ended on Mar. 6, 2002 is the second-longest streak in Patriot League history. Lehigh has won 13 consecutive home games against Patriot League foes, including 10 straight in the regular season. Holy Cross is the only team with longer home winning streaks against Patriot League teams. The Crusaders won 61 straight home games against Patriot League opponents starting with a win on Feb. 12, 1994 before a loss to Bucknell in the Patriot League Championship on Mar. 6, 2002 snapped the streak. The Crusaders won 57 straight regular season home Patriot League games starting Feb. 12, 1994 before a home loss to Lehigh on Jan. 31, 2003 ended their run.

Undersized and Overachieving
Six of the top 15 rebounders in Patriot League play stand shorter than 6’0”, including four in the top 10. Leading the way is Navy junior point guard Angela Myers, leads her team with 6.5 rebounds per Patriot League contest. Myers is tied with Lehigh senior guard Tricia Smith for the sixth-best rebounding average in Patriot League contests. Smith stands 5’10”, while at 5’5”, Myers is the shortest player on the list.

Seniority In The Patriot League
There are 20 seniors on Patriot League women’s basketball rosters. Holy Cross has a League-high five seniors, while Lafayette, Lehigh and Navy have four. Army’s 16-person roster includes no seniors. American, Bucknell and Colgate each have just one senior.

Patriot League Games

Bucknell (6-13, 2-4) at Army (9-11, 3-3), Saturday, 1 p.m.
Christl Arena, West Point, N.Y.
PL Series: Bucknell, 27-15  Streak: Bucknell, Five Wins  Last Meeting: Bucknell, 56-50 (2.28.10)

Bucknell The Bison’s two-game winning streak came to a close with their 69-47 loss at Lehigh on Wednesday. Lehigh forced Bucknell into 26 turnovers, leading directly to 27 points for the Mountain Hawks. Sophomore guard Trisha Krewson scored 13 points to lead the Bison. Bucknell will attempt to record its sixth straight win over Army when the two schools meet on Saturday in West Point. The Bison enter Saturday’s game with two of the top five rebounders in Patriot League play. Cosima Higham ranks second with 8.2 rebounds per game, while Joyce Novacek has hauled in 7.0 boards per outing, which ranks her fifth in Patriot League competition. As a team, the Bison are outrebounding their foes by 4.9 rebounds per game, which leads the Patriot League.

Army The Black Knights snapped a three-game losing streak with a 52-38 home win over Lafayette on Wednesday. With the win, Army avoided its first four-game Patriot League losing streak since 2004. After Lafayette scored the game’s first three points, Army responded with a decisive 23-0 run, giving the Black Knights a lead they would never relinquish. Army held the Leopards without a point for a stretch of 11:29 during the Black Knights’ run. Erin Anthony notched her ninth double-double of the season with 22 points and 11 rebounds. For the season, Anthony ranks second among Patriot League players in scoring and leads the League in rebounding. She is averaging 16.7 points and 10.0 rebounds per outing. On Saturday, Army will be aiming for its first win over Bucknell since recording a 61-57 victory in West Point in the 2006-07 regular season finale. The Black Knights enter the game with an 8-2 home mark and a 1-9 record on the road.

Lafayette (4-16, 2-4) at American (13-7, 6-0), Saturday, 2 p.m.
Bender Arena, Washington, D.C.
PL Series: American, 13-4  Streak: Lafayette, One Win  Last Meeting: Lafayette, 58-56 (3.7.09)

Lafayette The Leopards will attempt to snap a three-game losing streak when they travel to American on Saturday. Lafayette will seek to re-capture the magic from last season that propelled the Leopards to a first-round Patriot League Tournament upset over the Eagles. In the first round of the tournament, seventh-seeded Lafayette scored a 58-56 win over second-seeded American, starting the Leopards’ run to the title game. In Lafayette’s two regular-season meetings with American last season, the Leopards were outscored by an average of 16 points. Prior to last season’s tournament victory, the Leopards had dropped five straight meetings against the Eagles. Lafayette is coming off a 52-38 loss at Army on Wednesday. The Leopards scored the game’s first three points, but the Black Knights answered with a 23-0 run that put Lafayette away. The Leopards’ 38 points were the fewest scored by Lafayette against a Patriot League opponent this season. After committing 14 turnovers in the first half, Lafayette turned the ball over just three times in the second frame. Junior forward Elizabeth Virgin tallied 12 points and five rebounds for the Leopards.

American The Eagles are 6-0 in Patriot League play for the first time in school history after tallying a 62-47 road victory over Navy. In a first half that featured five ties and five lead-changes, the Eagles began to pull away with an 13-4 run to close the half, turning a one-point deficit into a 31-23 halftime lead. American never trailed again building leads as large as 19 points. Liz Leer helped the Eagles outscore the Mids in the paint by a 32-18 margin. The junior forward finished with a game-high 17 points, six rebounds and six blocks. Michelle Kirk added 17 points, while Lisa Strack contributed 15 points. The Eagles enter Saturday’s game having won four straight home games. American is 7-2 in Bender Arena this season. The Eagles are averaging a League-best 67.0 points per game, led by Michelle Kirk’s 21.7 points per outing.

Navy (11-10, 3-3) at Colgate (6-14, 1-5), Saturday, 2 p.m.
Cotterell Court, Hamilton, N.Y.
PL Series: Navy, 24-15  Streak: Navy, Five Wins  Last Meeting: Navy, 65-35 (2.28.09)

Navy The Mids fell to 3-3 in Patriot League play with a 62-47 loss to American on Wednesday. In a first half that featured five ties and five lead-changes, American took the lead for good with an 11-0 run to close the first half. The 45 points scored by the Mids were the second-fewest tallied by Navy this season (43). Navy's 17 field goals made and its 51 attempts were both the second-lowest totals of the Patriot League season for the Mids, while its shooting percentage of 33.3 percent was the lowest for Navy since the start of League play. Additionally, Navy's three three-point field goals made and 13 three-point field goal attempts were both season lows for the Mids. Navy enters Saturday’s game aiming for its sixth straight win over Colgate. The Mids have won four straight road games against the Raiders, last losing at Cotterell Court on Jan. 28, 2005.

Colgate The Raiders dropped their fourth straight game on Wednesday, falling by a 65-56 margin to Holy Cross, thanks in large part to a 21-4 run by the Crusaders midway through the game. Colgate has won just three times in 43 games against Holy Cross. The Raiders have never beaten the Crusasders in Worcester. Tricia Oakes led Colgate with 15 points in the loss. On Saturday, Colgate will be chasing its first win over Navy since a 55-44 triumph in Annapolis on Jan. 27, 2007. The Raiders will be seeking their first home Patriot League win since topping American on Feb. 10, 2007. Jhazmine Lynch enters the game averaging a team-best 10.7 points in Patriot League contests. She is currently the only freshman averaging double figures in Patriot League play.

Holy Cross (6-15, 2-4) at Lehigh (18-3, 5-1), Saturday, 3:30 p.m.
Stabler Arena, Bethlehem, Pa.
PL Series: Holy Cross, 37-6  Streak: Lehigh, Two Wins  Last Meeting: Lehigh, 71-60 (2.28.09)

Holy Cross The Crusaders closed the first half on an 11-2 run, then opened the second frame on a 10-2 run in a 65-56 win over Colgate on Wednesday. The Crusaders avoided falling to 1-5 in Patriot League play for just the second time in program history. Holy Cross has never lost at home in 20 meetings against the Raiders. The Crusaders are 40-3 all-time against Colgate. Whitney Fremeau scored a team-high 18 points to pace Holy Cross in the victory. The Crusaders’ 26 three-point attempts were the second-most by a single team in Patriot League play this season. Holy Cross, which owns the longest home winning streak in Patriot League play (61 games) will look to snap Lehigh’s 13-game Patriot League home winning streak when they meet on Saturday. Prior to Lehigh’s season sweep last season, the Crusaders had won three straight meetings against Lehigh. 

Lehigh The Mountain Hawks claimed their 28th straight home win with a 69-47 triumph over Bucknell on Wednesday. Lehigh has now won five consecutive games after opening Patriot League play with an overtime loss at American. The Mountain Hawks forced Bucknell into 26 turnovers, leading directly to 27 points for Lehigh. Seven different Mountain hawks notched a steal, led by Erica Prosser’s four thefts. Sophomore center Emily Gratch scored 22 points off the bench to lead Lehigh offensively. Gratch made 11-of-13 field goals to record a new career high. Lehigh got a season-high 43 points from its bench in the win. Lehigh’s overall home winning streak is the longest in the Patriot League. Its 13-game Patriot League home winning streak is the second-longest in the history of the League. The Mountain Hawks will enter Saturday’s game seeking their third straight win over the Crusaders. Last season’s series sweep was the first time Lehigh had beaten Holy Cross twice in the same season. It also marked the first time Lehigh had won back-to-back games against the Crusaders.