Pioneers Close Out 2007 Hosting Columbia
12/29/2007 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Dec. 29, 2007
Complete Release in PDF Format 
Sacred Heart Pioneers (6-6, 2-0 NEC) vs. Columbia Lions (2-9, 0-0 Ivy League)
Game #13 - Sunday, December 30, 2007 - 2:00 pm - Fairfield, Conn. - William H. Pitt Center (2,100)
Radio - WICC 600 am; SacredHeartPioneers.com
The Storyline... Sacred Heart closes out the non-conference portion of the 2007-08 schedule as they play host to the Columbia Lions. The Pioneers are looking to shake off a tough 75-70 overtime loss to La Salle on Friday and ring in the New Year with a win over the Lions. SHU held a 10-point lead with 2:50 to go and led by five with 33 seconds left but let the game slip away at La Salle on Friday. Despite the loss, junior Stephanie Ryan exploded for a career-high 24 points with 10 rebounds against the Explorers, her third double double this year. The Lions are also looking to end 2007 on a positive note, as they visit Fairfield in the midst of a six-game slide.
Series... The all-time series is tied, 3-3. The two teams have alternated wins since the 2001-02 season with the home team earning the victory each time. The Lions posted a 61-57 win in overtime in Levien Gymnasium last season. This is the seventh-straight season the Pioneers and Lions have faced on the hardwood.
Pioneers vs. the Ivy League... The Pioneers are 18-14 all-time versus the teams from the Ivy League. SHU has faced every team in the league with the exception of the University of Pennsylvania. The Pioneers have faced instate rival Yale the most of any school, holding an 9-3 series lead including eight-straight wins. The Pioneers are tied 3-3 with Columbia and hold a 3-0 lead over Princeton after posting a win over the Tigers on Dec. 22nd. SHU is an even 3-3 in their all-time series with Brown and 0-2 against the Big Green of Dartmouth after a loss earlier this year.. SHU has faced Cornell just once, losing to the Big Red.
The Coaches... Ed Swanson (SHU `89) is in his 18th season as head coach at his alma mater. Swanson posts a 284-208 record in his career at Sacred Heart. His teams have a 158-89 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, (284) and winning percentage (.577). He earned his first ever NEC Brenda Reilly Coach of the Year award after guiding SHU to a then school record 21 wins in 2003-04. Paul Nixon (Vanderbilt `93) is in his third season at Columbia University and owns a 16-50 record at the helm of the Lions women's basketball program. Nixon had assistant coaching stints at Indiana, Southern Mississippi and Nevada-Reno before accepting his first head coaching job at Columbia.
Last Time Out... La Salle used an 11-1 run over the final 2:50 of regulation to force overtime and senior Carlene Hightower scored six of her game-high 28 points in the extra session to lead the Explorers to a 75-70 win over the Pioneers on Saturday afternoon. The Pioneers got a career-high 24 points and 10 rebounds from junior Stephanie Ryan in the loss. SHU held a 10-point lead at the 2:50 mark when La Salle began to make their move. The Explorers quickly cut it to four at 1:19 before Kaitlin Sowinski pushed the lead to five on a made free throw with 33 seconds left. After a turnover by La Salle on the in bounds, Sowinski was fouled by Melanie Gibbons but was then called for an intentional foul for an elbow on the same play. Sowinski missed both of her free throws while Gibbons hit her pair as La Salle set up with the ball down three with 32 ticks left. Guard Jamie Walsh made it count for the Explorers and got the lucky roll on her three tying the game at 63-63. The game headed to extra time and La Salle took control with the game tied 69-69 with 1:55 left. Gibbons hit a jumper from the foul line followed by a Hightower lay-in and the Explorers held on for the win. Sowinski poured in 20 as the Pioneer's only other player in double digits while blocking a season-high seven shots on the afternoon.
Scouting the Lions... Columbia is 2-9 on the season and has dropped six-straight coming off a 66-49 loss at Loyola (Md.) last time out. The Lions are led by freshman center Lauren Dwyer who leads the team in scoring at 11.4 points per game. Sophomore Chelsea Frazier leads the squad in rebounding at 6.1 boards per game while averaging just under double digits at 9.4 points per game. The Lions were picked seventh in the Ivy League Preseason Poll.
Last Meeting with Columbia... The Pioneers held Columbia scoreless for the last 4:57 of regulation and used a 9-0 run to force overtime but came up short being outscored 8-4 in the extra session, falling to the Lions 61-57 last season. SHU got 20 points, six rebounds and four blocks from Kaitlin Sowinski in the loss. Columbia used a 15-4 run midway through the first half and got four three's from Megan Griffith, including one at the halftime buzzer, to lead 37-22 at the break. Sowinski carried the Pioneers in the opening minutes of the second half, scoring the first nine points, including a three point play. The Lions had an answer each time and maintained a nine-point lead for much of the second stanza. It wasn't until the five minute mark when the SHU defense, led by Amanda Pape, willed the Pioneers back into the game. The Pioneers turned Columbia over six times on the run, including a shot clock violation and tied the game at 53-53 on a Pape fast break lay-up. The Pioneers mustered just a Pape free throw in the opening minute of overtime as lay-ups by Caitlin Stachon and Griffith sealed SHU's fate. A SHU three pulled the Pioneers to within 57-54, but Danielle Browne buried four free throws in the last 12 seconds to ice the win. In addition to Sowinski's 20, Jasmine Walker turned in a double double with 11 points and 13 rebounds while making five steals.
Team News and Notes...
- The Pioneers close out non-conference play this afternoon hosting Columbia University. SHU is 6-6 on the season and 4-6 in non-league action, with all four wins coming at home. Sacred Heart finishes the year 0-5 on the road in non-conference games. The NEC schedule kicks back in on Saturday, January 5th as SHU plays host to Wagner. The Pioneers are 2-0 after NEC wins over Monmouth and Central Connecticut.
- The Pioneers suffered their first overtime loss since last season's defeat at Columbia losing at La Salle Friday afternoon, 75-70. SHU held a 10-point lead with 2:50 to play and a five-point lead with 33 second to go but couldn't close it out.
- Junior Stephanie Ryan is coming off a career-high 24 points at La Salle. Ryan posted her third double double of the year adding 10 boards to her totals. Ryan hit a season-high four-of-seven from behind the arc on the way to her 24 point afternoon. She is leading the NEC in defensive rebounds with 74 on the year. She leads the team with 8.2 caroms per game.
- Junior center Kaitlin Sowinski has scored double-figures in every game this season, a 12-game streak that marks the longest of her career. She scored 20 points against La Salle and posted 23 points to lead SHU over Princeton, her fourth and fifth games this season at or above the 20-point mark. Sowinski sits second in the league in field goal percentage, hitting 56.0% (79-141) from the floor on the year. Defensively, she is coming off a season-high seven blocks against the Explorers and has a league-high 44 swats on the year.
- Freshman Alisa Apo has played her way back into the starting lineup and has upped her scoring to 9.0 points per game. Apo posted a 19-point afternoon against Princeton and a season-best 20-point night at Lehigh last week. Over the last five games, Apo has shot 52.3% (23-44) from the field and 43.8% (7-16) from behind the arc while averaging 14.8 points.
- On the year, the Pioneers are averaging 13.8 assists per game on the season, second among the NEC's leaders. Four players have over 20 assists led by junior Khalia Cain with 35. Freshman Maggie Cosgrove is right on her heels with 30 while junior Stephanie Ryan has 24 and senior Lisa Moray has 23.
- The Pioneer's two starting guards, Khalia Cain and Maggie Cosgrove, both have positive assist-to-turnover ratios. Cain has 35 helpers against 26 turnovers and Cosgrove has 30 assists and 26 miscues. Senior Lisa Moray has 23 assists against 11 turnovers.
