Pioneers to Face UL-Lafayette Saturday in Final Game of San Juan Shootout
11/27/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
SACRED HEART (1-3, 0-0 NEC) vs. Louisiana-Lafayette (3-1, 0-0 Sun Belt)
GAME 5 * Guaynabo, Puerto Rico * Mario Morales Coliseum * 1:15 p.m.(12:15 EST)
Inside the Series...
- This is the second meeting between SHU and Louisiana
- In the only previous meeting, the Pioneers downed the Ragin' Cajans 75-60 in the 2003 Maryland Terrapin Classic
Last Time They Met...
- In their only meeting back in November of 2003, a Pioneer squad that featured SHU legends Amanda Pape, Nicolle Rubino, Jasmine Walker and Kerri Burke led from the get-go and took a 35-27 lead at the half
- Pape's 24 points, one of three SHU double-digit scoring performances, led SHU to the 75-60 win in the Maryland Terrapin Classic. The then-sophomore shot .666 (10-15) from the field contributing to Sacred Heart's 37.1 field goal percentage
- Kate Maher's 11 rebounds helped the Pioneers top Louisiana at the boards, outrebounding the Ragin' Cajans 41-39
Scouting the Ragin' Cajans...
- The Ragin' Cajans come into Saturday's game 3-1 after defeating Arkansas 67-59 in comeback fashion. Louisiana rode a 21-4 streak in the fourth quarter to clinch the win
- After finishing sixth last year, UL-Lafayette was picked to finish fourth in the Sun Belt Conference Coaches Preseason Poll garnering 95 points and one first place vote. Senior Keke Veal was chosen to the All-Sun Belt Preseason First Team, and classmate Kia Wilridge was selected to the All-Sun Belt Preseason Second Team
A Day of Firsts...
The Pioneers win over Coastal Carolina on Friday marked many firsts:
- The program's first win over a Big South opponent
- SHU's first win of the season
- The first time this season four Pioneers reached double-digit scoring as Adaysha Williams tallied 21, Hannah Kimmel and Alissa Tarsi had 16, and Shelby Hickey recorded 10
- The first time since Nov. 23, 2012 that Sacred Heart claimed a victory at a neutral location. The last time being a 58-54 win over Boston College in the Washington Dental Thanksgiving Invitational
- The first time this season a Pioneer was perfect from the foul line in a game where she makes five or more free throws. Williams knocked down all 13 of her shots from the charity stripe, a personal best for the junior
- The first time the season the Pioneers beat a team in the third quarter as they outscored the Chanticleers 18-17 in the third
Adaysha Leads the Charge...
Adaysha Williams led the Pioneers' fourth-quarter comeback Friday. The junior tallied 19 of her 21 points in the second half, and accounted for 11 of SHU's 28 points in the final quarter. At one point in the period, she and classmate Shelby Hickey combined for 10 straight points over two minutes giving Sacred Heart its largest lead up to that point, 60-53.
Coming Back...
Lerae Ettienne made her return to the court. The senior snapped a six-point Coastal run for her first points of the year, a lay-in with just under four minutes left in the first quarter. She totaled four points, one rebound and one steal in her final season debut. Kiana Ye made her first appearance in a Pioneer jersey in the first quarter after missing her first year with a knee injury
