Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell Women's Basketball Plays Final Home Game of 2009 Saturday
2/20/2009 7:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Feb. 20, 2009
WHAT: Bucknell (14-10, 6-5) vs. Colgate (5-21, 1-10)
WHERE: Sojka Pavilion, Lewisburg, Pa.
WHEN: Saturday, Feb.21, 4:30 p.m.
RADIO: WVBU 90.5 FM, SportsJuice.com
TV: None
STREAMING VIDEO: Bison Vision
LIVE STATISTICS: GameTracker
COMPLETE BUCKNELL-COLGATE GAME NOTES 
***Think Pink Signed T-Shirt Auction***
***Women's Basketball Signed Poster Auction***
With a Victory Over Colgate, Bucknell Would...
- Win three in a row for its longest unbeaten streak in Patriot League play this season.
- Extend Colgate's losing streak to three games.
- Guarantee at least a .500 Patriot League record for the year.
- Go undefeated at 5-0 against teams from New York this season.
About the Game
Bucknell will play for its third consecutive victory against Colgate and third overall in its final home game on Saturday. The contest is the second game in the doubleheader with the Bison men who play Delaware at 2 p.m. as part of the ESPNU Bracketbusters.
The Bison are celebrating Senior Night, Cheerleading Night and Upward Basketball Night. Amanda Brown and Lauren Schober will be recognized for their four years in the Orange and Blue as well as receive basketballs commemorating their reaching 1,000 career points earlier this season. All fans in attendance also will have the opportunity to win a $500 gift certificate to the Bucknell Bookstore or one of two $250 Lewisburg Dollar Certificates.
Bucknell-Colgate Series
Bucknell has a commanding lead in the all-time series, having won 32 of 50 games. The Bison have dropped only four games on their home court, the last time on Jan. 30, 2004 when Colgate left Sojka Pavilion with the 78-66 victory. The previous three wins came at Davis Gym in the early 1990s.
Last Meeting - Jan. 24, 2009
- Bucknell came off a three-game losing streak to defeat Colgate 86-54 earlier this season. The Bison's 86 points marked the most scored this season and the most since they beat the Raiders 88-57 on Feb. 23, 2008. Bucknell's 32-point win tied the largest margin of victory in the series, originally set Feb. 17, 2007 with a 64-32 win.
- Four Bison finished in double-figure scoring, including Cosima Higham with 16 points and 14 rebounds. Morgan Wrightson and Lauren Schober also finished with 16 points, while Taylor Phillips chipped in 10. Amanda Brown flirted with her first career double-double, posting 10 assists and eight points on the day.
- Colgate's Tricia Oakes finished with a team-high 10 points and seven rebounds. Tayler Wejnert, who leads the team in scoring, added nine points.
Quick Facts
Bucknell won its 400th game in program history on Feb. 18 vs. Lafayette ... Trisha Krewson earned her second Patriot League Rookie of the Week honor of the season for the week of Feb. 1 ... Bucknell has outrebounded its opponent 12 times this season, including three of the last four games ... Lauren Schober became the 19th Bison to join the 1,000-point club vs. Army on Jan. 31 and was named the Damon's Bison Athlete of the Week the following Monday ... Cosima Higham posted her fifth double-double of the season with 12 points and 11 rebounds vs. Lafayette ... Amanda Brown leads the Patriot League in assists (4.9) ... After tying her career high with 23 points against American Jan. 14, Brown set a new high with 26 points at Holy Cross Jan. 17 ... Brown's 21 points at Lafayette marked her sixth game this season and 14th of her career with more than 20 points ... Brown also moved into the Bucknell top ten in assists with 324 ... Lauren Schober tied a Sojka Pavilion record against Cornell with seven steals by a Bison ... Joyce Novacek posted her second double-double of the season and the fourth of her career with 19 points and 14 rebounds at Howard ... Morgan Wrightson also collected a Patriot League Rookie of the Week honor this season (Dec. 7) ... Bucknell has two of the top 15 scorers in program history on this year's team in Amanda Brown (9th) and Lauren Schober (15th).
History vs. Colgate
- Bucknell has won seven of the last eight matchups with the Raiders. The lone loss came on March 3, 2207 as Colgate became the only team in Patriot League history seeded eighth in the tournament to upset the No. 1 seed. During that stretch, the Bison have outscored Colgate 74.1 points to 52.1. Bucknell also beat the Raiders by 32 points twice in that time, which is the largest margin of victory by either team in 50 tries.
- The Bison are 17-4 at home against Colgate, having won those contests by an average of more than nine points per game. Bucknell has also won 12 of the last 13 on its home court.
- Most Recent Results:
Feb. 17, 2007 Bucknell, 64-32
March, 3, 2007 Colgate, 69-62 (PL Tournament)
Jan. 26, 2008 Bucknell, 65-36
Feb. 23, 2008 Bucknell, 88-57
Jan. 24, 2009 Bucknell, 86-54
About the Raiders
Colgate earned its first Patriot League victory in over two years when it defeated Lafayette 62-61 on Feb. 11 at the Kirby Sports Center. The Raiders have lost their nine other league games by an average score of 64.4 to 47.3. Freshman Tricia Oakes has missed five of the last six games. The six-time Patriot League Rookie of the Week has played just once since the Raiders last faced Bucknell. After leading the team in points (10) and rebounds (7) against the Bison, she totaled four points and four rebounds in 12 minutes of action in Colgate's win over Lafayette.
Most recently, Colgate lost to Lehigh 71-42. Kelly Korkowski posted a team-high nine points for the Raiders, while Gretchen Polinski led with seven rebounds.
Last Time Out
Bucknell won its 400th game in program history, defeating Lafayette 58-40 at Sojka Pavilion Wednesday. After the Leopards shot 7-for-8 from behind the three-point line in the first half of their first meeting, the Orange and Blue held them to 1 of 5 shooting in the first half and 2 of 12 overall this time around. The Bison also held Lafayette to 25.5 percent from the field.
Amanda Brown led with 13 points and six assists, and Cosima Higham recorded her fifth double-double of the season with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Joyce Novacek rounded out the list of scorers in double figures with 11 points.
Senior Night
Bucknell will recognize its seniors, Lauren Schober and Amanda Brown, prior to the game on Saturday. Both have been key members of the team for the past four years. The Bison's team manager, Andy Rancourt, will also be recognized for his dedication to the team this season.
400 Program Wins
Bucknell women's basketball recorded the 400th win in program history against Lafayette on Wednesday. The Bison have accumulated a 400-478 record in nearly 36 years. Bucknell began a varsity team for the 1973-74 season. Since its inaugural season, the Orange and Blue have made two trips to the NCAA Tournament, won two Patriot League regular-season titles and recorded three 20+ win seasons. Bucknell is the sixth team in the Patriot League to hit the 400-win mark, following Holy Cross (614 wins), Army (465), Navy (452), Lafayette (415) and Lehigh (409).
Schober Starts 100
Heading into Senior Night, Lauren Schober has accumulated 99 career starts in 116 games as a Bison. She played in her 100th career contest on Dec. 19 when Bucknell took on Wofford at Sojka Pavilion. No other current Bison has started as many games with classmate Amanda Brown in second with 80 career starts. Both seniors have a 28-game starting streak dating back to 2007-08. The last game in which they were not in the starting lineup was last year's Senior Night when then-seniors Hope Foster, Kesha Champion, Ashton Sprouse, Kristina Collymore and Andrea Wright made up the first five.
Fifty or Fewer
With the 58-40 win over Lafayette on Wednesday, Bucknell held its second consecutive opponent to less than 50 points. The Bison topped Holy Cross 58-44 four days earlier. Bucknell has limited its opponent to 50 points or fewer on six occasions this season, including Fordham (46 points), Drexel (44), Cornell (45) and Navy (50).
National Girls and Women in Sports Day
Bucknell celebrated National Girls and Women in Sports Day (NGWSD) on Wednesday. Started in 1987, NGWSD is celebrated in all 50 states with community-based events, award ceremonies and activities honoring the achievements and encouraging participation of girls and women in sports.
Bucknell also promoted life-long participation in sports at the monthly Women's Sports Luncheon on Feb. 4. The luncheon included highlights of Bison women's sports and speeches from Page Kannor, a senior rower, Megan Mongan, a junior swimmer, and Lisa Verge, a current Bucknell staff member and volunteer softball assistant coach, who spoke about the importance of athletics and physical activity in their lives.
Lucky 13
Just one day after Friday, Feb. 13, Bucknell earned its 13th win of 2008-09. It marked the 13th time in program history that the Bison had reached 13 wins in a season.
Double Digits x4
Throughout the season, Bucknell has aimed to place at least four of its scorers in double figures each game. The team has met that goal on seven occasions, most recently at American on Wednesday as Amanda Brown (16 points), Joyce Novacek (14), Lauren Schober (11) and Trisha Krewson (10) hit the high tallies. Four combinations of players, including Cosima Higham, Taylor Phillips and Morgan Wrightson in addition to the above four, have helped to accomplish the feat during the season. Schober is the only Bison to factor in each of the seven games. Bucknell is 5-2 in games in which four players score in double figures.
Two-Time Rookie of the Week
For the second time this season, Trisha Krewson was named the Patriot League Baden Rookie of the Week on Feb. 9. The award follows a career night for the freshman in which she totaled a personal-best 18 points on 4-for-5 shooting from three-point distance against Navy. The long-range shots total is a career high for Krewson who had yet to make more than one three-pointer in a single game this season. The Ohio native also tied a career high in rebounds with seven.
Perfection On the Line
The Bison shot a perfect 12-for-12 from the free throw line against Navy on Feb. 7. Those 12 made shots is the second-most in Bucknell history, beaten only on Feb. 20, 1991 when the Bison shot 18-for-18 at Colgate. The Orange and Blue have had a perfect night from the free throw line in seven games in nearly 36 seasons.
Novacek Earns Academic All-District Honors
Joyce Novack was named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District II First Team by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) on Feb. 5. A management major, Novacek has earned a cumulative grade-point average of 3.94, including two semesters with a perfect 4.0 GPA. Her success in the classroom, combined with her volunteer efforts in the community and her prominent role in the Bison's on-court success has earned her a spot on the ballot for Academic All-America Team to be voted on later this month. Novacek is the first Bison to earn Academic All-District honors since Lindsey Hollobaugh was named to the Second Team in 2006-07.
One Down
The Bison will be without their lone junior for the remainder of the season. Le'Le' LeSeur suffered a season-ending knee injury in practice in late January. The forward earned four starts this year, all coming in the first games of the season. A former Patriot League All-Rookie Team selection, LeSeur was averaging 2.1 points and 2.0 rebounds in less than 10 minutes per game.
250 Wins for Fedorjaka
With the win over Colgate on Jan. 24, head coach Kathy Fedorjaka earned her 250th career victory. In 16 years as a head coach, Fedorjaka has amassed a 253-194 (.566) record and is 186-155 (.545) in her 12th season at Bucknell. Prior to Bucknell, Fedorjaka coached at Connecticut College and Bloomsburg. She returned to Lewisburg after serving as a Bucknell assistant from 1990-93 to take over as head coach in 1997. Since then, she has led two teams to the NCAA tournament and twice earned Patriot League Coach of the Year honors.
Block Party
Cosima Higham has joined the program leaders in single-season blocks. With her two rejections against Lafayette on Wednesday, the sophomore has 32 on the year, tying her for 10th with Susie Hopper and Marie Kocornik. Joyce Novacek is on the brink of joining the group having posted 29 blocks the year. Two pairs of teammates have made the top-10 list previously - Kocornik (36 blocks) and Ann Kirwin (33) in 1985-86, and Hopper (32) and Julie Bachman (34) in 1989-90.
Dishing It Out
While most fans recognize Amanda Brown as the Patriot League's leading scorer, she is also the Bison's most adept passer, dishing out 4.9 assists per game. That average is good for first in the Patriot League and 42nd in the nation (as of Feb. 15). Brown is also ranked 23rd nationally in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.9). The success is not new for the senior either, who is sixth in program history with 324 career assists.
Mixing It Up
After using the same starting lineup in each of their first three games, the Bison have been mixing it up ever since. The team recently used its ninth different starting combination at Colgate on Jan. 24. The switches are not new to Bucknell fans, as the team also used nine different sets of starters last year as well, including six different lineups in the season's first six games. That team tied for second on the list of most lineups used during a single season behind only the 1991-92 squad with 13. The 1981-82, 1983-84 and 1992-93 teams also had nine different starting lineups during the regular season.
Connecting with the Community
The Bucknell women's basketball team has always understood the importance of community service, but in the midst of the winter break from classes, the Bison took their involvement to another level. The Orange and Blue spent an afternoon playing basketball and other games with children at the Donald Heiter Community Center in Lewisburg. Players and coaches also visited recently with families at the Ronald McDonald House in Danville and residents at the RiverWoods senior living community in Lewisburg.
Lowe's Senior CLASS Award
Lauren Schober was named a candidate for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award on Dec. 20. She was joined by 29 other Division I women's basketball players around the country exemplifying the "Four C's" - classroom, character, community and competition.
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, the award was launched during the 2001-02 season to honor the attributes of college basketball seniors who remain committed to their university and pursue the many rewards that a senior season and complete college education brings.
Thousand Point Club
Bucknell women's basketball has welcomed two new members to the 1,000-point club this season. Lauren Schober became the newest member on Jan. 31 as she scored 20 points versus Army. She now has 1,072 for her career. Amanda Brown achieved the milestone on Nov. 29 at Loyola (Md.). Since the game against the Greyhounds, Brown has reached 1,289 points in her career. Brown was the 18th Bison to score 1,000 career points, while Schober was the 19th.
Hope Foster (1,256) and Kesha Champion (1,016) became the 16th and 17th members of the club last season. Foster, who is the ninth on the list of all-time scorers at Bucknell, crossed the threshold against Penn State. Champion, tied for 16th with former player Kim Delfs, achieved the milestone when she scored 13 points versus Holy Cross in the Patriot League Tournament. The two were the first teammates to reach 1,000 points in the same season since Desire Almind and Kate Franks in 2002-03.
Brown and Schober will both be recognized for their scoring achievments during Senior Night on Saturday, Feb. 21.
Slides That Led to Success
The four-game losing skid earlier this season was the longest by a Bison team since the 2004-05 squad dropped six in a row. The slide came during Patriot League play and was finally stopped with a 66-60 win over American on Feb. 11. Before that, the 2001-02 team also experienced a five-game drought. The winless streak was not indicative of the team's final success, however, as the squad eventually went on to win the Patriot League Tournament and qualify for the program's first NCAA Tournament.
NCAA Tournament Appearance
The Bison made their second trip in history to the NCAA Tournament last year. With their automatic bid from winning the Patriot League Tournament, they earned the opportunity to face North Carolina in a first-round matchup in Norfolk, Va. North Carolina came out on top, 85-50. In Bucknell's only previous appearance at the NCAA Tournament in 2002, the Bison were defeated by Baylor 80-56 in Waco, Texas.
Patriot League Preseason Poll
Bucknell was picked fifth with 53 points in the 2008-09 Patriot League Preseason Poll. The Bison were voted to finish first in the league prior to the 2007-08 season, then slipped to fifth before claiming the Patriot League Tournament championship. Bucknell has finished at or better than predicted seven times in the last 10 years. Holy Cross was picked first with 90 points. Lehigh (83 points), American (75) and Army (60) rounded out the top four.
Preseason Patriot League Poll
Team (First-place votes) Pts.
1. Holy Cross (8) 90
2. Lehigh (6) 83
3. American (2) 75
4. Army 60
5. Bucknell 53
6. Lafayette 38
7. Navy 35
8. Colgate 14
Patriot League "Growing Our Community"
In 2008, the Patriot League received a grant as part of the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Grant Program that allows it to help its member schools further promote women's basketball during the 2008-09 academic year. The league is working with its eight member institutions to develop a number of activities and initiatives targeted to include youth organizations, senior groups, community and civic organizations and students and alumni.
The goal is to increase the home attendance for the entire 2009 Patriot League women's basketball campaign through a variety of promotions and engaging local organizations to attend and learn more about the Patriot league women's basketball programs, as well as expose individuals to the academic institutions.
Up Next
Bucknell returns to the road for its final two regular-season contests. The Bison will take on Lehigh at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 25 in Bethlehem, Pa., before heading to West Point, N.Y., for a 7 p.m. matchup with Army on Saturday, Feb. 28.
