Bucknell University Athletics
Patriot League Tournament gets Underway for Bucknell Women's Basketball Saturday at Army
3/6/2008 7:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
March 6, 2008
What: #5 Bucknell (13-15, 8-6 PL) at #4 Army (18-11, 9-5 PL)
Where: Christl Arena, West Point, N.Y.
When: Saturday, March 8, 2008, 2:30 p.m.
Radio: WVBU 90.5 FM and SportsJuice.com
Live Video: Patriot League All-Access
Game Notes
With a Victory Over Army, Bucknell Would...
► Improve to 3-1 all-time against Army in the Patriot League Tournament
► Sweep a season series from a team and then beat that same team in the Patriot League Tournament for the fifth time
► Win two consecutive games at Christl Arena for the first time since posting three straight victories from 2000 to 2002
► Advance to the Patriot League Tournament semifinals for the fifth time in seven years
► Improve to 4-0 in the first round of the Patriot League Tournament as a No. 5 seed
► Post its fourth two-game winning streak of the season
► Become the fourth straight No. 5 seed to win a first round Patriot League Tournament game
Bucknell-Army Series
Bucknell owns a 24-16 edge in the all-time series, including a pair of victories this year. Since the 2003-04 season the two teams have played 10 times with only two of those games decided by more than five points. Excluding the 2006 and 2008 regular-season finales, which the Bison won by a combined 25 points, Bucknell has been outscored by Army by six points (470-464) since 2003-04.
Last Meeting - March 1, 2008
► Bucknell 59, Army 47 (Sojka Pavilion)
On Senior Night, all five of Bucknell's seniors appeared in the starting lineup and combined for 47 points as Bucknell defeated Army 59-47. The Bison trailed by as many as eight points in the first half, but a 9-0 run that expanded into 25-8 helped Bucknell open a nine-point lead in the second half. The Bison overcame a scoreless drought of nearly eight minutes as Army never drew closer than three points in the second half. Kesha Champion led Bucknell with 15 points, while Alex McGuire's 12 paced Army.
Upcoming Milestones
► Amanda Brown (895 points) - 5 points shy of 900 in career
► Kesha Champion (971 points) - 29 points shy of 1,000 in career
► Kesha Champion (116 games played) - 1 shy of equaling Molly Creamer's program record
► Kristina Collymore (99 steals) - 1 steals shy of 100 in career
► Hope Foster (872 reb.) - 1 rebound shy of equaling Bucknell's Desire Almind (2001-04) for eighth place on Patriot League career list; 30 rebounds shy of equaling Bucknell record
► Hope Foster (1,038 FGA) - 39 field goal attempts shy of 10th place on Bucknell career list
► Hope Foster (99 assists) - 1 assist shy of 100 in career
► Hope Foster (116 games played) - 1 shy of equaling Molly Creamer's program record
Bucknell Patriot League Tournament History
Bucknell has an all-time record of 10-16 in the Patriot League Tournament, including 2-1 against Army. The Bison have reached the semifinals in four of the last six seasons and have two championship game appearances to their credit.
Bison PL Tournament Log Year Seed Results 1991 7 lost Fordham 103-75 1992 7 lost Lafayette 64-58 1993 5 def. Army 50-46; lost Holy Cross 75-63 1994 8 lost Fordham 57-51 1995 5 def. Colgate 53-52; lost Holy Cross 62-39 1996 1 lost Colgate 65-53 1997 4 lost Lafayette 60-47 1998 4 lost Lehigh 59-55 1999 2 lost Army 72-67 2000 2 def. Navy 62-43; def. Colgate 69-66; lost Holy Cross 87-63 2001 2 lost Colgate 85-69 2002 2 def. Navy 72-57; def. Army 83-67; def. Holy Cross 88-74 2003 4 def. Navy 79-69 (OT); lost Holy Cross 66-63 2004 5 def. Holy Cross 94-75; lost Colgate 61-57 2005 7 lost Lehigh 54-52 2006 3 def. Lehigh 64-54; lost Holy Cross 64-60 2007 1 lost Colgate 69-62 championship games in bold.
No. 5 Seed History
This is the fourth time Bucknell has been seeded fifth in the Patriot League Tournament. Each of the previous three times it was the fifth seed it won its first-round game to advance to the semifinals before losing there. Overall, No. 5 seeds are 12-5 in the first round of the Patriot League Tournament, but they have advanced to the finals just twice.
Tough to Beat a Team Three Times?
Bucknell swept the season series from Army, marking the first time it had done that since 2001-02. The Bison will now meet the Black Knights in the postseason. Eight other times Bucknell has swept the season series from an opponent and then met that foe in the Patriot League Tournament. The Bison are 4-4 in those games, including 1-1 opposite Army after sweeping it in the regular season.
All-League Selection
Senior co-captain Hope Foster earned her third consecutive First Team All-Patriot League citation earlier this week. She is the second Bucknell player to land on the first team three straight years, joining Molly Creamer. It has been accomplished just six times in Patriot League history. Foster averaged 12.0 points and 7.1 rebounds during the regular season to lead the Bison, while her 75 blocks topped the Patriot League. In addition to her three First Team All-Patriot League honors, Foster has been the Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year (2006), Player of the Year (2007), Preseason Player of the Year (2008) and was named to the All-Rookie Team in 2005.
Another Five-Block Game for Foster
In the regular-season finale against Army, Hope Foster blocked five shots. She has registered 22 of the 30 five-block games in Bucknell history. In those 22 contests where she has accumulated at least five rejections, she has piled up 129 blocks. That figure alone would rank second on the Bison career list (excluding Foster), just three behind Marie Kocornik.
Senior Class
Last Saturday's game against Army marked the final home contest of the season for the Bison. Head coach Kathy Fedorjaka inserted all five members of the senior class into the starting lineup and the quintet totaled 47 of Bucknell's 59 points. Over the course of the last four years, the Class of 2008 has put together a 61-55 record and ranks sixth in program history in victories. With a win in the first round of the Patriot League Tournament, the class will match the Class of 1989 for fifth on that list.
Durable Champion
Senior co-captain Kesha Champion went over 1,000 minutes played this season last weekend when she played 40 minutes against Army. Since 1984, she is the 12th different Bison to have logged at least 1,000 minutes in a season. Overall, it has been accomplished 22 times by those 12 players. Hope Foster was the last person to play 1,000 minutes in a season, tallying 1,083 last year, the sixth-most in program history.
Most Minutes Played in a Season (since 1984) 1. Molly Creamer - 1,143 (2001-02) 2. Stacey Spitko - 1,098 (1986-87) 3. Molly Creamer - 1,091 (2002-03) 4. Stacey Spitko - 1,086 (1987-88) 5. Stacey Spitko - 1,084 (1985-86) 22. Kesha Champion - 1,004 (2007-08)
Closing Out the Season Strong
With its 12-point win against Army last weekend, Bucknell improved to 7-4 in its final game of the regular season under head coach Kathy Fedorjaka. Bucknell is 3-3 in its first Patriot League Tournament game under Fedorjaka after winning its final regular-season contest.
Close Losses
Bucknell finished the regular season in fifth place in the Patriot League, but with a couple of breaks, the Bison could have finished much higher. Bucknell's six Patriot League losses came by a total of 31 points and the widest margin it lost by was seven points. By comparison, Army's five Patriot League losses came by 33 points.
Halftime Leads
Bucknell's biggest key to victory has been holding the lead at halftime. The Bison are 10-3 when leading at halftime and 3-12 when trailing after the first 20 minutes of play. In both games against Army this year, Bucknell has trailed at halftime and come back to win.
Patriot League Blocks Record
Senior co-captain Hope Foster broke the Patriot League career blocks record with three blocks Jan. 30 at Lehigh. She now has 330 in her career and ranks tied for 22nd in NCAA history.
NCAA Career Blocked Shot Leaders Rank Name Last Season Blocks 19. Cassie Hager (Northern Iowa) 2006 337 20. Amy Lundquist (LMU/DePaul) 1997 336 t-20. Teresa Jenkins (Florida A&M) 1999 336 22. Hope Foster (Bucknell) 2008 335
Cracking the Top 10
While Hope Foster has made headlines throughout her career by blocking shots, she is now drawing attention for her rebounding prowess. The senior cracked the Patriot League top-10 list for rebounding earlier this year and currently ranks ninth in conference history with 872 boards. Next up for her on the Patriot League career list is eighth-place Desire Almind, a former Bison, and her 873 career rebounds. Almind is also next on the Bucknell career list for Foster, who is averaging a team-best 7.1 rebounds per game this season to rank second in the Patriot League.
Patriot League Career Rebounding Rank Name Last Season Rebounds 7. Vicki Quimby (Bucknell) 2002 902 8. Desire Almind (Bucknell) 2004 873 9. Hope Foster (Bucknell) 2008 872
Games Played Record
Seniors Kesha Champion and Hope Foster are expected to equal Molly Creamer's program record with their 117th career games played in the first round against Army. Currently, Champion and Foster are tied with current assistant coach Monique LeBlanc and two of her classmates for second on Bucknell's games played list.
Strong in Second Half
Bucknell, which has trailed at halftime in both meetings with Army this year, has been much stronger in the second half throughout the season. The Bison have been outscored 839-821 in the first halves of games, but they hold an impressive 844-800 second-half edge.
Patriot League Wins for Fedorjaka
Bucknell head coach Kathy Fedorjaka wrapped up the regular season with 90 career Patriot League wins. That figure is tied with Lehigh's Sue Troyan for second place in Patriot League history. However, Fedorjaka's .564 PL winning percentage is much better than Troyan's .480. In Patriot League Tournament play, Fedorjaka has posted an 8-9 record.
Starting Lineups
Bucknell head coach Kathy Fedorjaka has used nine starting lineups this season. She used six different lineups in the season's first six games and then started all five seniors for the first time last Saturday against Army to make it nine lineups in 28 games. The only time a Bison team used more starting lineups during the regular season was in 1991-92 when they had 13 different starting units. The 1981-82, 1983-84 and 1992-93 squads also had nine different starting lineups during the regular season.
Up Next
If Bucknell defeats Army, it will advance to the semifinals for the fifth time in the last seven years. The Bison will face either top-seeded American or eighth-seeded Colgate at 1 p.m. Sunday at Christl Arena. Bucknell split its regular season series with the Eagles, while it swept the Raiders. The Bison were upset by Colgate in the first round of last year's Patriot League Tournament.
