BOSTON SHOWDOWN: #2 SAINTS TO HOST #3 RAMS IN GNAC SEMIFINALS

BOSTON, Mass. – The Emmanuel College women's basketball team is set to host Suffolk University in the 2017 Great Northeast Athletic Conference Semifinals on Thursday, February 22 at 7:00 PM on the Andy Yosinoff Court. The Saints bring a 20-6 overall record to the contest after posting a 15-1 mark in the GNAC to earn the No. 2 seed in the GNAC. The Rams also stand at 20-6 overall and posted 12-4 mark in the GNAC to secure the No. 3 seed.

HISTORY
Emmanuel and Suffolk are both no stranger to the GNAC tournament making as both programs make their 23^rd consecutive appearance in the field. The Saints own a 56-7 all-time GNAC tournament record and head to head in the tournament, Emmanuel is 6-0 all-time against SU. The Saints have downed the Rams three times in the GNAC Championship game while also posting three wins in the GNAC Semifinals in 2005, 2011 and 2015.

EMMANUEL SCOUTING REPORT

• Sophomore Yuleska Ramirez-Tejeda (South Boston, Mass.) powers the Emmanuel offense with 15.2 points per game, good for 10th in the GNAC. Ramirez-Tejeda also pulls down a team-high 9.7 rebounds per game, the sixth-highest total in the conference. 
• Junior Madison McLaughlin (Westerly, R.I.) dishes out 4.3 assists per game, good for fourth in the conference.
• The Saints possess an absolutely dominant offensive attack, as they sit first in the GNAC in points, points per game, field goals a game, and assists per game. They're shooting 43.6% from the field as a team while averaging 76.7 points per game over 26 contests this year.
• In his 41st season as head coach, Andy Yosinoff notched his 800th career victory on the way to a 20-6 overall record and an astounding 15-1 record in the GNAC.

SUFFOLK SCOUTING REPORT

• Suffolk put together its third 20-win season in the program's history and first since 2012-13 (23-4) as the Rams take a 20-6 overall record across town Thursday. 
• The trifecta of Jenni-Rose DiCecco, Georgia Bourikas and Alexis Hackett have been crucial in Suffolk's success this season. The three combines for nearly 40 points per game, while the teams average 68.7 ppg.
• DiCecco leads the way with 14.2 ppg with Bourikas chipping in 13.8 ppg and Hackett's 11.3 ppg rounds of the threesome. 
• Hackett has a monster game on the glass on Tuesday night in the GNAC Quarterfinals. The sophomore grabbed 19 rebounds, which marks the most boards by a Ram according to the blue-and-gold's game-by-game record book, which dates through the 2008-09 season. 

TICKETS
Adult admission is $5.00 and children 12 and under is $2.00. Any student from either institution will receive free admission with their student-ID.

COVERAGE
Tuesday's GNAC Semifinal game will be streamed live on the web with LiveStat coverage as well. To tune into the live action, click on one of the links below:

LIVE VIDEO
LIVE STATS

OF NOTE

• Today marks the seventh meeting between Suffolk and Emmanuel in the GNAC playoffs.
• In their six previous GNAC tournament meetings against each other, three have come in the GNAC Semifinals with Emmanuel averaging 74.0 ppg in those wins.
• The Saints have won the last 16 meetings against the Rams and boast a 30-1 overall record against their crosstown rivals.
• When the two squads met earlier this season, the Rams led after the first quarter of play (23-21) but the Saints coasted to an 81-55 win with a big second half.

GNAC TOURNEY SCHEDULE
Tuesday, February 20 - Quarterfinals
Game 1: #1 Saint Joseph's (Maine) defeated #8 Mount Ida, 83-54
Game 2: #5 Albertus Magnus defeated #4 Regis, 51-49
Game 3: #3 Suffolk defeated #6 Johnson & Wales, 68-46
Game 4: #2 Emmanuel defeated #7 Norwich, 79-52

Thursday, February 22 - Semifinals
Game 5: #5 Albertus Magnus at #1 Saint Joseph's (Maine) – 7:00 PM
Game 6: #3 Suffolk at #2 Emmanuel – 7:00 PM

Saturday, February 24 - Final
Game 7: Highest remaining seed