Nov. 20, 2009

Center Valley, Pa.--A meeting between Holy Cross and top-ranked Connecticut highlights the weekend schedule in Patriot League women's basketball. The Crusaders will host the defending national champion Huskies on Friday at 7 p.m.

Patriot League Women's Basketball Release 11.20.09

Patriot League Notebook

Colgate And Navy Leading The Pack
Patriot League teams have gone 8-4 during the week. Two teams, Colgate and Holy Cross, each have two wins this week. Colgate is off to its first 3-0 start since 2003-04, matching the best season-opening stretch in program history. The Raiders topped Rider and Alabama State in home contests this week. Holy Cross claimed road wins over Central Connecticut State and Bryant to improve to 2-1. Also 2-1 are American and Lehigh. American lost to Princeton but defeated Brown, while Lehigh won its home opener against Fairleigh Dickinson. Army dropped its only game of the week, falling at Yale. The Black Knights are tied with Lafayette at 1-2. The Leopards defeated Monmouth but fell at Fairfield. Bucknell lost its home opener against Penn State, dropping the Bison to 0-3. Navy, which shares the Patriot League's top record with Colgate, has not played since its Monday win at Ohio.

Top-Ranked Huskies Highlight Weekend Foes
A full slate of weekend games is on the schedule, starting with Holy Cross' Friday meeting with top-ranked and defending national champion Connecticut. The Crusaders and the Huskies will meet at the DCU Center in Worcester at 7 p.m. Also on Friday, Navy will play its first of two games in the Navy Classic. The Mids will open the tournament against Loyola (Md.). Lehigh will host 2009 Northeast Conference Tournament finalist St. Francis (Pa.). On Saturday, Navy will continue competition at its own tournament against either Liberty or Tulane. Also on Saturday, Colgate will attempt to move to 4-0 for the first time in program history with a home bout aginst Wagner. Other Saturday contests include Delaware State at Army and Lafayette at Bryant. Just one Sunday game is on the schedule, as American will host East Carolina.

Leaps and Bounds
Last season, Navy improved its record by nine wins, which was tied for the 13th best turnaround in the country. The Mids have carried that momentum into this season, as Navy has opened the season with three straight wins. The Mids won two games at the Elon Tournament last weekend before claiming a road win over Ohio on Monday. Trying to equal Navy's turnaround success is Colgate, which is off to a 3-0 start for the second time in program history. The Raiders will be chasing their first-ever 4-0 start when they host Wagner on Friday.

Road Warriors
Seventeen of the 25 games played by League teams have been played away from Patriot League home courts. Patriot League teams have 14 wins this season, with only six coming on League squads' home floors. American, Holy Cross and Navy have multiple wins as vistitors, but none as the home team. All three have yet to play a home game.

Do You Know The Way To Worcester?
Holy Cross will spend its first eight games away from the Hart Center. The Crusaders will play seven road games in their first eight contests. The first home game for Holy Cross will be Friday against No. 1 Connecticut, a game that will be played at the DCU Center in Worcester. The Crusaders will not play in their designated home arena until a Dec. 5 meeting with Northeastern.

Try To Top 27
In the early portion of the season, 27 points has been the individual scoring benchmark for Patriot League student-athletes. Three different players -Erin Anthony, Michelle Kirk and Erica Prosser - have notched the season's current single-game League-high mark. All three are juniors.

Keep Track Of The Patriot League Through Social Media
In addition to visiting www.patriotleague.org, League fans and followers have plenty of new ways to stay updated and involved during the 2009 Patriot League Tournament. The Patriot League has accounts on Facebook and Twitter, and has now started a blog to give more information on the action on the field. All three accounts are accessible through the multimedia link at the right-hand sidebar on the front page of www.patriotleague.org.

Team Notebooks

American 
The Eagles split a pair of road games against Ivy League foes this week, moving their overall record to 2-1. American was dealt a 77-45 loss at Princeton on Monday. American then rebounded for a 64-54 comeback win at Brown. Juniors Michelle Kirk and Liz Leer combined to score 46 points, including a game-high 27 by Kirk. American will be at home in Bender Arena for the first time this season when it hosts East Carolina on Sunday.

Army
Army has lost back-to-back road games to fall to 1-2 on the season. The Black Knights dropped their only game of the week, a 55-42 setback at Yale. Army opened the half on a 15-3 run, but it was not enough to erase a 22-point halftime deficit. Junior forward Erin Anthony leads the Patriot League in scoring (18.7 ppg) and rebounding (9.3 rpg). Army will play five of its next seven games at home, including a Saturday match-up against Delaware State.

Bucknell
The Bison dropped their home opener, a 77-62 loss to Penn State. Four freshmen notched career-highs, including a game-high 11 points by Rachel Voss. Cosima Higham became the sixth Patriot Legue player to notch a double-double this season, tallying 11 points and 11 rebounds against the Nittany Lions. The 0-3 Bison will remain at home for a Saturday showdown against former Patriot League foe Fordham.

Colgate 
Colgate is off to a 3-0 start for the first time since 2003-04. The Raiders will pursue their first 4-0 start in program history when they host Wagner on Saturday. Colgate has won its three games by a League-best margin of 10.7 points per game. The Raiders have won all three of their games in the friendly confines of Cotterell Court in Hamilton, N.Y.

Holy Cross 
The Crusaders will play a home game for the first time this season when they host No. 1 Connecticut on Friday. Holy Cross will meet the defending national champions in the DCU Center. The Crusaders are limiting their foes to 32.7 percent shooting from the field this season. Holy Cross also holds a +8.0 advantage in turnover margin per game.

Lafayette 
The Leopards shot just 18 percent in Wednesday's 52-29 loss at Fairfield. The loss came on the heels of Lafayette's 58-55 win at Monmouth. Junior guard Lauren Jackson leads the Leopards with 11.3 points per game. She has made four three-pointers, while the rest of her team has made three. The Leopards will play at Bryant on Saturday.

Lehigh 
The Mountain Hawks won their home opener against Fairleigh Dickinson on Wednesday. Lehigh started the second half on a 22-2 run that sealed the game for the Brown and White. Sophomore Emily Gratch had a career day, recording her first career double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds. Lehigh will host St. Francis (Pa.) on Friday.

Navy 
The Mids are 3-0 for the first time since 1997-98, a season in which Navy opened the year with five straight wins. On Friday, the Mids will be at home for the first time this season. The Mids will open the Navy Classic with a Friday bout against Loyola (Md.) before meeting either Liberty or Tulane on Saturday.