SHU Travels to the Mount to Open NEC Play
12/2/2004 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Dec. 2, 2004
Complete Sacred Heart vs. Mount St. Mary's Game Notes in PDF Format
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GAME 4 Sacred Heart University (2-1, 0-0 NEC) vs. Mount St. Mary's University (1-3, 0-0 NEC)Saturday, December 4, 2004 5:00 pm EST Knott Arena (3,121) Emmitsburg, MD
The Storyline... The Sacred Heart women's basketball team will hit the road to open the Northeast Conference schedule Saturday afternoon, taking on Mount St. Mary's. The Pioneers are 4-1 in NEC openers in their five years in the league, winning four-straight before last season's loss to Wagner. SHU also comes in owning a five-game winning streak over the Mount as they look to get the conference schedule started on a winning note. In both wins this season, the Pioneers have used a balanced offensive attack, putting four players in double figures in both games. SHU is coming off a 71-57 win over Rider last time out that saw sophomore Amanda Pape get her offensive game on track with a game-high 18 points. Fellow sophomore Kerri Burke poured in a career-high 15 of her own, coming on five three-point makes. The combination of Colleen Duggan and Jasmine Walker at the center position has worked well in the early going with the duo combining to average 17.6 points and 10.6 rebounds per game.
Series... Sacred Heart leads the all-time series, 6-3, and has won five-straight against the Mount after two wins last season. SHU posted a 64-58 win in Emmitsburg, MD and a 81-71 win at home in the final regular season game of the year. The Pioneers took the only match-up between the two teams in 2002-03 and both meetings in 2001-02 on this current win streak. The last Mount win in the series came in the 2000-01 NEC Tournament, knocking the Pioneers out with a 50-45 semifinal win. They also won the only regulars season meeting that season. The two schools met for the first time during SHU's inaugural season in the NEC, splitting both meetings.
Last Meeting with the Mount... The Pioneers and Mountaineers clashed in the final game of the 2003-04 regular season with both teams looking for a final tune-up before the pending NEC Tournament. SHU senior Ashley Kohl came up with six three's for the third-straight game to help lead the Pioneers to a perfect 14-0 season at home with an 81-71 win. Kohl tied her career high with 24 points on Senior Night to lead SHU to their 18th-straight victory in the Pitt Center. The win also gave Sacred Heart 20 wins, tying the school record for most wins in a season, set in 1995-96. Also in double figures was Amanda Pape with 16, Jasmine Walker with 14 and Nicolle Rubino with 14. Mount's Adrienne Harris had 33 points in the loss.
Scouting the Mountaineers... The Mount St. Mary's women's basketball team is out to a 1-3 start to the season and they open up the home portion of their schedule this afternoon. Sophomore guard Dita Krumberga has paced the Mount in the early going, averaging 13.3 points and 8.0 rebounds per game. Freshman Dominique Mazzuchi, last week's NEC Rookie of the Week, averages 8.8 points and 5.5 points per game. The Moutaineers leading rebounder is LaToya Butler who is grabbing 10.8 boards per contest. The Mount welcomed seven new players to their team this season, coming off a 9-19 campaign a year ago. They were picked to finish seventh in the NEC Preseason Coaches Poll.
The Coaches... Ed Swanson (SHU '89) enters his 15th season as head coach at his alma matar. Swanson posts a 214-177 record in his career at Sacred Heart. His teams have a 87-58 record since joining the Division I ranks in 1999-00. Swanson is the program's longest tenured coach and is the all-time leader in coaching wins, (214) and winning percentage (.547). He also earned his first ever NEC Brenda Reilly Coach of the Year award after guiding SHU to a school record 21 wins last season. Vanessa Blair Treadwell (Mt. St. Mary's `92) is in her eighth season at the helm of the Mountaineer women's basketball program. She has compiled a 88-86 record in her eight years at Mount St. Mary's.
Sacred Heart in the Northeast Conference... Sacred Heart became a member of the Northeast Conference during the 1999-00 season and since that time posted an 87-58 overall and 61-29 conference record. The Pioneers have qualified for the NEC Tournament each of their five seasons in the league and have never finished lower than third in the final league standings. SHU is coming off their most successful year in the conference, where they finished with 14 wins and the second seed in the tournament.
No Place Like the Pitt... The Pioneers will look to continue their winning ways in the friendly confines of the Pitt Center this season. How friendly you ask? The Pioneers finished a perfect 14-0 at home last year and are currently riding a 19-game regular season winning streak at home that dates back to 2002-03. Their last regular season loss was to St. Francis (PA) in February of 2003 (66-63 OT). SHU dropped an NEC Tournament game to Long Island at the Pitt Center as the tournament's host during that year. The Pioneers are 54-12 at home since joining the NEC and 74-14 since the building opened in 1997. The Pitt Center currently ranks 11th in the nation as the toughest arena for opponents to earn a win.
On the Road Again... SHU plays four of their first five games on the road this season. After today's affair, the Pioneers will travel to Columbia before returning home for games with Hofstra and Iona. For the fourth time in SHU's six years in Division I the Pioneers started a season on the road when the traveled to Yale on Nov. 19th. The Pioneers posted a 66-53 win and in the process snapped an 0-5 skid in their last five road games that started a season. The Pioneers last got a win on the road to start a season in 1996-97 when they beat Quinnipiac 62-60 on November 16th. SHU is 8-9 all-time in season openers away from home.
Nothing beats a fast start... Sacred Heart has enjoyed strong starts to their seasons the past two years, jumping out at 5-1 last year and 4-1 in 2002-03. In their six years at the Division I level, the Pioneers have a 3-3 record in season opening games. SHU is 16-15 all-time in season openers.
SHU in Home Openers... After a 71-57 win over the Rider Broncs Tuesday night, the Pioneers are 5-1 in home openers during the last five seasons. All-time, SHU is 18-13 in their 30 year history in home opening games.
BIG Wins... Just three games into this season and the Pioneers look to be continuing their trend of winning games by a double digit margin. 18 of SHU's 21 wins came by 10 or more points last season and the Pioneers two wins this season have been by 13 (Yale) and 14 (Rider). In fact, SHU's margin of victory over the past two plus seasons have been so great that the Pioneers have won just 10 games by less than 10 points since the start of 2002-03.
Rubino...Quick out of the Gates... Junior Nicolle Rubino has been the Pioneers main offensive weapon in the first three games this season. Rubino is averaging 14.0 points early on and has been a steady force at the free throw line hitting 11-of-13. For the third consecutive season, Rubino was the Pioneers leading scorer in the opening game of the season after hitting for 18 against Yale. Her freshman year she scored 14 in a loss at UMass and then tallied another 14 in last season opener at home against the Minutewomen.
Burke's Career Night... Sophomore point guard Kerri Burke had a career offensive night last time out to lead SHU to a win over Rider. Burke buried five from three-point range to finish with 15 points, both personal-best marks in her young career. She also played a career-high 37 minutes in the win and passed out four assists.
Duggan's Block Party... Senior Colleen Duggan reached a career-milestone in Tuesday's win over Rider. Duggan picked up her 100th career blocked shot early in the first half and finished with three swats on the night. The 6-2 center led the NEC in blocks last season with 50 and is in tied for the early season lead with four this year. She also holds the school record for blocks in a game with seven against Lafayette in 2002.
