Bucknell University Athletics
First Place on the Line as Bucknell Hosts Army in Women's Basketball Saturday
1/26/2007 7:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Jan. 26, 2007
What: Army (18-3, 5-1 PL) at Bucknell (13-8, 5-1 PL)
Where: Sojka Pavilion, Lewisburg, Pa.
When: Saturday, Jan. 27, 2007, 4 p.m.
Radio: WVBU 90.5 and SportsJuice.com
Live Video: Patriot League All-Access
Game Notes
The Bucknell Women's Basketball Alumni Game will take place at approximately 1:15 p.m. on Saturday at Sojka Pavilion.
The top two teams in the Patriot League clash Saturday at Sojka Pavilion. Bucknell and Army are the only two teams in the league who have reached double figures in wins this season and, appropriately, they have matching 5-1 records atop the conference standings. It is the second consecutive year the two teams have met while tied for first place. Last season the two squads entered their first contest at West Point with 9-2 records and Army came away with a one-point victory and sole possession of first place. The game will feature a matchup of two players selected to the Preseason All-Patriot League team in Bucknell's junior forward Hope Foster and Army's junior guard Cara Enright. Two of the top four scorers in the league, both have seen their numbers decrease slighty in conference play. Foster averaged 13.7 points in 15 non-league games, but just 11.5 since PL play started. Enright is averaging just 12.3 points in league play after scoring at better than 17.3 points per game in non-conference contests.
ABOUT ARMY
Army recently had its 12-game winning streak snapped by Navy, but still holds a sparkling 18-3 record. The Black Knights, under the guidance of first-year head coach Dave Magarity, are led by Patriot League Preseason Player of the Year Cara Enright. She is averaging a league-best 15.9 points per game, although that has dipped to 12.3 in conference outings. A stable starting five that has started all 21 games contributes nearly 78 percent of Army's offense. Sophomore forward Megan Evans paces the squad in rebounding with 6.7 per contest, a figure that has increased to 7.0 during league play. The Black Knights are outrebounding their opponents by a league-best 4.0 per game despite Evans being the only player in the regular rotation measuring at least 6-feet tall.
BISON VS. BLACK KNIGHTS
Bucknell leads the all-time series 21-15, but Army has claimed five of the last seven games. The last four losses in the series for the Bison have come by a total of 12 points. Bucknell is 3-1 in Sojka Pavilion against the Black Knights.
WITH A VICTORY OVER ARMY, BUCKNELL WOULD...
• ...own a 6-1 record in Patriot League play for the second consecutive season and the fourth time overall
• ...win back-to-back games against Army for the first time since March 2002 and January 2003
• ...win its fourth consecutive home game
• ...equal 2000-01 squad for earliest date to reach 14 wins
• ...improve to 7-3 against New York State foes this season
QUICK FACTS
Bucknell reached the semifinals of the Patriot League Tournament for the fourth time in five years last year ... Hope Foster leads current Bison with 599 career rebounds, 78 shy of climbing into Bucknell's top-10 list ... the Bison were one of the best defensive teams in the nation last year as they ranked in the top 50 nationally in four defensive categories, including seventh in field goal percentage defense ... just once in the last 91 games has an opponent converted at least 50.0% of its field goals against the Bison defense ... Foster is 22nd on Bucknell's career scoring list ... Kesha Champion is 29th on Bucknell's career scoring list ... senior guard Lindsey Hollobaugh has 75 career double-figure scoring games ... Hollobaugh became the 10th Bison to record 1,000 points and 500 rebounds in a career against Navy ... Hollobaugh made her 100th career start against Lehigh ... sophomore guard Amanda Brown became the fourth current Bison to eclipse 500 career points with 15 against Colgate ... Brown passed current assistant coach Monique LeBlanc '02 for 38th place on the career scoring list with 20 points against Lehigh.
SCORING BINGE FOR BROWN
Since Patriot League play began six games ago Amanda Brown has netted a team-best 105 points (17.5 ppg) and seen her average elevate from 9.1 to 11.5, which is now second on the Bison and 10th in the conference. She now has 524 career points to rank 38th on Bucknell's scoring list. An adept outside shooter, the Richardson, Texas, native has connected on a career-high four 3-pointers four times since league play began. The PL's top 3-point shooter at 48.0 percent, Brown is eighth on Bucknell's single-season list with 36 3-pointers this year. In addition to her outstanding offensive display of late, Brown leads the Patriot League in steals with an average of 2.0 per contest. She had at least two steals in seven consecutive games before garnering just one in Wednesday's victory over Lehigh.
100 STARTS FOR HOLLOBAUGH
Senior guard Lindsey Hollobaugh played in her 100th career game on Jan. 13 at Holy Cross and started her 100th career game Wednesday against Lehigh. She exited Wednesday's game four minutes in with a stiff knee. It was the third game in her career she has left early due to injury and the Bison are now 1-2 in those contests. Bucknell is 5-0 in games played without her over the last two years and has an average margin of victory of 10.8 in those contests.
23 GAMES OVER .500
With its recent hot spell, which has featured a season-best five wins in six games, Bucknell has vaulted head coach Kathy Fedorjaka's record at the helm of the Bison to 150-127. It is the first time in her 10-year tenure at the helm of the Bison that Fedorjaka has been 23 games over .500. Already the school's leader in wins, Fedorjaka is four wins shy of doubling second-place Lori Howard's victory total of 77.
REBOUNDING BATTLE
Bucknell outrebounded Lehigh by a season-high 42-29 margin on Wednesday. It was the largest the Bison won the rebounding battle by since last Feb. 14 when they had 46 boards to 30 for Lafayette. Bucknell, which averages 1.8 rebounds per game less than its opponents, will need to be strong on the boards agaisnt Army as the Black Knights own a 4.0 per game average over their opponents. The Bison are 9-1 when grabbing more rebounds than their foes.
BACK-TO-BACK 25-POINT WINS
Bucknell defeated Colgate last Saturday by 26 points and Lehigh by a season-high 27 on Wednesday. It is the second consecutive season the Bison have won two straight games by at least 20 points, but the first time they have won back-to-back contests by at least 25 since the first two games of the 1995-96 campaign.
HOLDING OPPONENTS TO 37 POINTS
For the first time since a 1992-93 contest against Army, Bucknell held a team to 37 points or less Wednesday against Lehigh. The only time since 1980-81 a team scored less than the Mountain Hawks' total was in 1985-86 when Coppin State netted just 36 points.
ENRIGHT STRUGGLES VS. BISON
While Cara Enright, the Patriot League Preseason Player of the Year, is averaging more than 15.0 points per game in her three-year career, she has had limited success against Bucknell. She is averaging just 6.5 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.0 assists in four career games against the Bison.
FOSTER HITS BOARDS VS. BLACK KNIGHTS
Bucknell junior forward Hope Foster averaged a modest 6.0 rebounds in two games agaisnt Army as a freshman. That figure vaulted to 13.0 in a pair of contests last winter. She is averaging 10.3 points and 9.5 rebounds in four career games against the Black Knights, up slightly from her career averages of 9.8 points and 7.7 rebounds.
WINNING THE JUMP
Thanks to 6-foot-2 forward Hope Foster, Bucknell has won the opening jump ball 16 times this season. The Bison are 9-7 in games they have possession first and 4-1 when the other team gains control of the opening tip.
60+ POINTS (USUALLY) LEADS TO WIN
With its 64-37 win against Lehigh on Wednesday, Bucknell improved to 11-1 when netting at least 60 points. The Bison are just 2-7 when falling short of that figure. Bucknell was 14-4 when registering at least 60 points in 2005-06 and is 28-6 in its last 34 games with at least 60 points.
MOST MEMBERS OF 500-POINT CLUB
With four members of the 500-point club, this year's Bison team is one of six to have that many at once. Sophomore forward Lauren Schober is just 57 points shy of 500 and should she reach that figure would give Bucknell five players at that plateau, marking just the fourth time there has been that many on a Bison team at once.
Most Players with 500 Career Points
Year # of Players
2001-02 6
1995-96 5
1987-88 5
13-4 WHEN LEADING AT HALF
Bucknell led Lehigh 32-18 at halftime on Wednesday, marking the 17th time this season the Bison led at halftime and they are 13-4 in those contests. Bucknell is outscoring its opponents by more than 100 points in the first halves of games this season.
LARGE MARGINS
After playing 10 games last year that were decided by six points or less, Bucknell has played a game that close just four times this season. Fourteen of the 21 games for the Bison have been decided by margins of at least 10 points.
SOJKA SUCCESS
Bucknell has posted a 7-3 home mark this year to improve its all-time record at Sojka Pavilion to 34-20 (.630). In their first four years playing at Sojka Pavilion, the Bison never finished below .500. Bucknell posted victories in six of its final seven home games in 2005-06.
Bucknell's All-Time Record in Sojka Pavilion
Year W-L Pct.
2002-03 4-2 .667
2003-04 8-5 .615
2004-05 7-5 .583
2005-06 8-5 .615
2006-07 7-3 .700
Totals 34-20 .630
UP NEXT
Bucknell has its longest idle streak since the Christmas holiday as it is off until next Saturday's road contest against Navy. The Bison defeated the Mids 67-47 earlier this month at Sojka Pavilion and are 22-15 in the all-time series.
