WOMEN’S HOOPS SET TO OPEN 2016 POSTSEASON RUN
BOSTON, Mass. – The Emmanuel College women’s basketball team is set to start their 2016 postseason run, opening the Great Northeast Athletic Conference tournament tonight against No. 6 Albertus Magnus College at 7:00 PM in the Jean Yawkey Center. The Saints earned the No. 3 seed in the tournament field after posting a 10-1 mark in GNAC play to share a three-way tie for the top spot in the conference but fell to third due to an overall winning percentage tie-breaker with No.1 Saint Joseph’s (ME) and No. 2 Johnson & Wales.
BOSTON, Mass. – The Emmanuel College women's basketball team is set to start their 2016 postseason run, opening the Great Northeast Athletic Conference tournament tonight against No. 6 Albertus Magnus College at 7:00 PM in the Jean Yawkey Center. The Saints earned the No. 3 seed in the tournament field after posting a 10-1 mark in GNAC play to share a three-way tie for the top spot in the conference but fell to third due to an overall winning percentage tie-breaker with No.1 Saint Joseph's (ME) and No. 2 Johnson & Wales.
Tonight's winner will advance to Thursday's Semifinal round. The winner of the GNAC Tournament will determine the league's automatic qualifier for the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament.
EC and Albertus met just three days ago in New Haven, Conn. with the Saints pulling away in the fourth quarter to earn a 70-60 win and spoil Senior Day for Albertus Magnus. Emmanuel outscored the hosts, 23-15, over the final 10 minutes and shot 43 percent from the field, forcing 24 AMC turnovers in the triumph.
Emmanuel enters the GNAC tourney riding a five-game winning streak while Albertus Magnus enters the post-season in the midst of a four-game skid. The Saints are currently riding a 20-game winning-streak versus Albertus dating back to the 1999 season.
EC will make its 21st consecutive appearance in the GNAC tournament while the Falcons are making their 15th appearance and looking to advance past the Quarterfinals for the first time since the 2012-13 season. Emmanuel is 3-1 all-time against Albertus Magnus in GNAC Tournament history. EC is 51-5 all-time in GNAC tournament action, owning 15 GNAC titles while the Falcons are 10-14 all-time in the GNAC tournament.
Albertus Magnus leads the GNAC in scoring this winter, netting over 72 points per game while Emmanuel ranks just behind them in second averaging 71.6 ppg. The Falcons are also second in the league in rebounding (46.7 boards per game) and three-point shooting (31.5 % from beyond the arc) while the Saints lead the league in forced turnovers, causing just over 24 TO's a game. Emmanuel also has the second ranked team-defensive scoring, holding GNAC opponents to just 53.4 ppg.
The Saints are led by senior guard Sarah Higgins (Groveland, Mass.) who ranks 1st in the GNAC in steals, averaging 3.5 thefts per game to rank 19th in the country among D-III student-athletes. She is averaging 16.0 points per game in GNAC play and leads the conference in scoring average per 40 minutes in GNAC play at 27.5 pp40 minutes. The captain became the 22nd player in EC history to score 1,000 points earlier this season. Next on the scoring depth chart is graduate student Lena Negri (Arlington, Va.). Negri averaged 12.5 ppg in GNAC action and 11.7 ppg on the year, playing in and starting all 25 contests for Emmanuel. Negri posted double-digits in 15 contests and eight games with 10 or more rebounds for five double-doubles. She ranks eighth in the GNAC in scoring per 40 minutes at 23.6 pp40 and is one of only nine players in the GNAC to average at least 11.7 points and 7.6 rebounds per game.
The Falcons see three players average in double figures, led by the scoring tandem of sophomore forward Olivia Bolden (South Windsor, Conn.) and junior guard Liz Falcigno (Wallingford, Conn.). Bolden leads the team in scoring (17. 4 points per game) and rebounding (9.4 boards per contest). She has topped the 20-point plateau eight times this year and has recorded a team-leading 11 double-doubles in 2015-16. In her first season with the team, Falcigno is second in the conference in free-throw shooting, hitting over 81 percent (99-of-121) from the charity stripe. She is also sixth in the league in three-point shooting, knocking down just under 37 percent of her treys. She is averaging just shy of 17 points a game and hitting more than two three-pointers a contest. Senior forward Kelsey Pendagast is the other Falcon averaging in double figures, scoring over 10 points and pulling down over nine rebounds per game.
To tune in live, click the ECTV broadcast link here.
Quarterfinals - Tuesday, February 23
Game 1: #8 Rivier at #1 Saint Joseph's Maine - 7:00 PM
Game 2: #5 Norwich at #4 Suffolk - 7:00 PM
Game 3: #6 Albertus Magnus at #3 Emmanuel - 7:00 PM
Game 4: #7 Lasell at #2 Johnson & Wales - 5:30 PM
Semifinals - Thursday, February 25
Game 5: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner
Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 winner
Championship - Saturday, February 27
Game 7: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner