Women's Basketball Unveils Northeast Conference Schedule
7/31/2019 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
FAIRIFELD, Conn. – With just over three months remaining before the start of the regular season, the Sacred Heart women's basketball team has released its 2019-20 Northeast Conference regular season slate, following an announcement by the NEC on Wednesday afternoon.
�� weeks of #NECWBB action await.
— Northeast Conference (@NECsports) July 31, 2019
The league slate is ready for consumption ������ pic.twitter.com/uJWylJX2EC
The Pioneers completed a successful 19-win campaign in 2018-19 that included a 14-4 mark in NEC play, earning the No. 2 seed in the 2019 NEC Tournament and the league's automatic bid into the WNIT. The 14 league victories marked the highest single-season conference win total since 2015-16.
New to the NEC scheduling format this season is the addition of Merrimack College. Now with 11 teams in the league, the total number of league games will remain at 18 for all teams. As part of the league's restructuring, there will no longer be a home-and-home series between each team in the conference, thus ensuring the slate remains at 18 games. Due to this, SHU will face Wagner and Mount St. Mary's once each in the 2019-20 season. In the seasons to follow, the teams that SHU only face once in a single-season will rotate.
#RapidReaction��️ Merrimack will make its #NEChoops debut. LIU is ready for its first season as the Sharks.
— Northeast Conference (@NECsports) July 31, 2019
There are a total of 9⃣9⃣ #NECWBB games on the docket and commentator @CraigCD13 breaks it down pic.twitter.com/cfl4rbB8pa
Some key dates in the conference schedule include:
- The NEC slate opens against the newest league member in Merrimack at the Pitt Center on Thursday, January 2nd
- The Pioneers' long game against Wagner in the regular season comes next with a showdown in Staten Island on Saturday, January 4th
- A third game in six days follows with an in-state matchup at home against CCSU on Wednesday, January 8th
- A crucial stretch in the league schedule follows with five of the next six contests coming away from the Pitt Center
- The lengthiest road trip of the season falls early in the NEC slate as the Pioneers head to face Saint Francis U (Jan. 18) and Robert Morris (Jan. 20)
- SFU knocked SHU out of the 2019 NEC Tournament with a 68-60 triumph in Fairfield while RMU won its third NEC title in four seasons in 2018-19
- After all the time away from home, three straight home games for the Pioneers begins on Monday, February 3rd with SHU's only meeting against Mount St. Mary's in the regular season
- RMU (Feb. 8) and SFU (Feb. 10) head to Fairfield to complete the three-game homestand
- The Pioneers were able to sweep the home series against the Colonials and Red Flash in the regular season in 2018-19
- Four of the final six games of the season come against Long Island and Bryant as the Pioneers first head to LIU before finishing their regular season schedule against the Sharks at home on March 5th
- After 14 league games, the Pioneers' first showdown with Bryant comes at home on Sunday, February 23rd before SHU heads to Smithfield less than a week later on Monday, March 2nd
All game times for the 2019-20 season will be announced at a later date.
