Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell Women's Basketball Goes for Colgate Sweep on Senior Night Saturday
2/18/2011 7:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Feb. 18, 2011
WHAT: Bucknell Bison (8-15, 5-6 PL) vs. Colgate Raiders (7-18, 2-9 PL)
WHERE: Sojka Pavilion, Lewisburg, Pa.
WHEN: Saturday, Feb. 19, 7 p.m.
RADIO: WVBU 90.5/SportsJuice.com
VIDEO: Bison Vision 
LIVE STATS: GameTracker 
EVENTS: Senior Night
Complete Game Notes in PDF Format 
ABOUT THE GAME
Bucknell hosts Colgate in their final regular-season home game of 2010-11 on Saturday at 7 p.m. The Bison are still in the hunt for a top-four seed in the Patriot League Tournament that will guarantee them home-court advantage in the quarterfinals. Heading into the showdown with the Raiders, the Bison are in a three-way tie for fourth. Bucknell will try to channel its success from the 10-point victory it claimed over Colgate earlier in the season to keep its postseason goals alive.
The Orange and Blue will recognize Cosima Higham, Joyce Novacek and Taylor Phillips as part of Senior Night prior to Saturday's game.
WITH A VICTORY OVER COLGATE, BUCKNELL WOULD...
► Win three consecutive games for the first time this season.
► Remain in fourth place in the Patriot League standings.
► Close the regular season with a 7-5 Sojka Pavilion record.
► Even its Patriot League record at 6-6, putting it at .500 for the first time this season.
► Sweep the Raiders for the first time since the 2008-09 season.
LAST MEETING - JAN. 22, 2011
► Bucknell 76, Colgate 66 (OT) (Cotterell Court)
► Shelby Romine led all players with 28 points, a school-record 19 of which came from the free throw line. Twenty of Romine's points came after halftime, and the freshman was just 4 of 9 from the field. The bulk of the points came at the free throw line where she closed out the day at a 19-for-21 clip, including 9-for-9 in overtime.
► Joyce Novacek also finished with a double-double on 13 points and 10 rebounds, helping the Bison to their second consecutive win on the road. It was the senior's third straight against the Raiders.
► Bucknell eventually reversed a 13-point deficit in the first half and outscored Colgate 17-7 in overtime. The Bison shot just 1-for-2 from the field but were 12-for-13 from the free throw line. The Raiders were 2 of 13 from the field and 2 of 4 from the line. Bucknell held Colgate scoreless in overtime for more than four minutes.
► The excitement did not begin early as the Raiders kicked things off looking like they were in complete control. Before Bucknell could react, Colgate had opened the contest with an 18-6 run.
► The teams headed into the locker room with Colgate in front, 31-26. Colgate's lead came on 48.1 percent shooting through the first 20 minutes.
QUICK FACTS
Bucknell held Lafayette to 18.0 percent shooting (11-for-61) on Feb. 16, setting a Sojka Pavilion record for lowest field goal percentage ... Bucknell's .569 field goal percentage vs. Holy Cross on Feb. 12 was its highest against a Division I opponent since 2004-05 ... the Bison held Holy Cross to a Sojka Pavilion low record 12 defensive rebounds ... Bucknell's two lowest turnover totals (15 and 13) this season have both come against Navy ... Joyce Novacek played in her 100th consecutive game vs. Army on Jan. 29 ... Shelby Romine broke a Bucknell record with 19 made free throws at Colgate on Jan. 22 ... Kathy Fedorjaka claimed her 200th win at Bucknell with the Bison's 57-49 victory at Lafayette on Jan. 19 ... the win at Lafayette was Bucknell's first on the road since Jan. 30, 2010 ... Romine was named the Patriot League/Anaconda Rookie of the Week on Nov. 15, Nov. 22, Dec. 27, Jan. 3, Jan. 10 and Jan. 24 ... Felicia Mgbada and Lindsay Horbatuck each had double-doubles at Wofford, giving Bucknell its second game this season in which two players achieved the feat in the same contest ... Novacek tied a career high with a team-best five assists vs. Iona ... Romine leads the Bison with six 20-point games, while Novacek and Cosima Higham both have two career 20-plus scoring games ... Bucknell was picked eighth in the 2010-11 Patriot League Preseason Poll.
HISTORY VS. COLGATE
► Bucknell has the series lead against Colgate, 35-19, all-time. The Bison have dominated on their home court by winning 19 of 23 games, including each of the last six. The last time the Raiders won at Sojka Pavilion was Jan. 30, 2004 by a 78-66 score.
► In the last five meetings at Sojka Pavilion, Bucknell has outscored Colgate by an average of 21.4 points. That includes a 32-point win (64-32) on Feb. 17, 2007 that gave the Bison their largest margin of victory in series history.
► Colgate has had its field goal percentage held to under .300 six times in their last 11 meetings with Bucknell. The lowest came on Feb. 21, 2009, when the Raiders shot .241 from the field and included a 9.1 percentage in the first half. The Bison ended up with a 53-35 win at the end of the night. Colgate shot just .279 from the field in the teams' last meeting in January.
► Bucknell helped Colgate to a Sojka Pavilion record on Feb. 21, 2009, but the Raiders would probably rather forget it. Colgate managed just nine points in the first half of that meeting, the fewest by a Bucknell opponent on its home court.
► The Raiders set a Sojka Pavilion record on Feb. 17, 2007 as well. Colgate made just 12 field goals in the 64-32 loss, which held as the fewest by a Bucknell opponent until last Wednesday when Lafayette made 11.
► Bucknell has outrebounded Colgate in each of their last three contests, something the Bison had not done since 2006-07. In their 23 meetings since 2000-01, Bucknell has outrebounded Colgate 11 times. The largest positive rebounding margin for the Orange and Blue during that stretch is 18, coming 44-26 on Feb. 23, 2008 and 42-24 on Jan. 26, 2000.
► Since 2000-01, Bucknell has had 10 double-doubles against Colgate. Joyce Novacek and Cosima Higham have four of those. Novacek has recorded her double-doubles in each of the last three meetings.
► Bucknell took Colgate to overtime in their last meeting and won 76-66. The Bison are 2-0 against the Raiders when the game goes into extra time, including an 81-72 victory on Jan. 10, 1989.
► Recent Results:
Jan. 24, 2009: Bucknell, 86-54
Feb. 21, 2009: Bucknell, 53-35
Jan. 23, 2010: Bucknell, 60-47
Feb. 20, 2010: Colgate, 62-58
Jan. 22, 2011: Bucknell, 76-66 (OT)
ABOUT THE RAIDERS
Colgate is 1-5 since it hosted Bucknell on Jan. 22. The lone win came 59-55 over Navy in Annapolis. The losses, which includes a 72-65 defeat at the hands of Lehigh last Wednesday, have come by an average of 16.8 points. With this recent stretch, Colgate enters Saturday's contest with an overall record of 7-18 and is 1-9 in the Patriot League.
Senior Tayler Wejnert leads Colgate in scoring, averaging 11.9 points in Patriot League action. That ranks eighth, as do her 6.2 rebounds per game. Jhazmine Lynch is the only other Raider in the league's top 20 in scoring, but her 7.5 points per game in league play is well below her overall season scoring average of 11.7 points.
ODDS & ENDS
► Bucknell recorded its best field goal percentage of the season on Feb. 12, shooting 56.9 percent from the field against Holy Cross. The Bison are now 6-6 in games in which they shoot better than 40 percent.
► Bucknell is 8-2 since 2001 on Senior Night. The Bison are also 4-0 in that time when playing Colgate on Senior Night.
► When Bucknell defeated Colgate 76-66 in overtime on Jan. 22, it marked the first time this season in which the Bison were the victors in the same game that Shelby Romine tallied at least 20 points. Bucknell is 1-5 this winter when Romine scores 20+ points.
► Bucknell has faced just four opponents with a winning record this season. American was 10-4 overall when it entered the game with the Bison on Jan. 12 and went into the Feb. 9 game with a 15-7 record. Penn State was 10-3 prior to its game with Bucknell on Dec. 28. Bucknell's third .500+ opponent was Lehigh (11-9) on Jan. 26. A fourth foe was added to the list when the Bison took on Navy (13-8) on Feb. 5.
► Five of Bucknell's first six wins this season came by single digits. The Bison defeated Rider by five (53-48), Niagara by seven (69-62), Cornell by nine (54-45), Lafayette by eight (57-49) and Army by one (49-48). Bucknell earned its first double-digit victory at Colgate on Jan. 22, winning 76-66 in overtime.
NOT A LOT OF POINTS
Lafayette suffered one of the toughest offensive outings in Sojka Pavilion history when Bucknell defeated them 46-34 on Wednesday night. The Leopards finished the outing shooting 18.0 percent, setting facility records for lowest field goal percentage and fewest field goals (11-for-61) by an opponent.
The Leopards' 34 points were the fewest allowed by the Bison since a 64-32 win over Colgate on Feb. 17, 2007 and is the ninth-lowest point total by a Bucknell opponent in the program's 38-year history. Bucknell and Lafayette also combined for 80 points, giving them the lowest combined point total since Bucknell and Lehigh totaled 77 points on Jan. 26, 1980. The Bison came away with a 39-38 win 31 years ago.
LOVING THE LEOPARDS
Cosima Higham seems to enjoy playing against Lafayette. In seven meetings with the Leopards, the senior is averaging a double-double with 10.0 points and 10.0 rebounds per game. She also has double-figure rebounds and at least one blocked shot on five occasions and three double-doubles. Higham's 14 rebounds on Wednesday are the most by a Bison in the series since the 2000-01 season.
CRAZY ABOUT COLGATE
Joyce Novacek has put up some impressive numbers against Colgate in recent meetings. In the Bison's last four games against the Raiders, the senior forward is averaging a double-double and 2.3 blocked shots. In her first three career contests opposite Colgate, Novacek had just 7.0 points, 5.0 rebounds and 0.3 blocks per game.
NOVACEK VS. COLGATE (SINCE FEB. 2009)
| Date | Points | Rebounds | Blocks | Minutes | Score |
| Feb. 21, 2009 | 8 | 11 | 1 | 28 | W, 53-35 |
| Jan. 23, 2010 | 11 | 11 | 6 | 33 | W, 60-47 |
| Feb. 20, 2010 | 13 | 10 | 1 | 38 | L, 62-58 |
| Jan. 22, 2011 | 13 | 10 | 1 | 37 | W, 76-66 (OT) |
| 11.3 | 10.5 | 2.3 | 34.3 |
REBOUNDING REPEATS
With 13 rebounds at Wofford and another 10 in the following game at Penn State, Lindsay Horbatuck became the first Bison this year to earn double-digit boards in back-to-back contests. Cosima Higham joined the act last week when she grabbed 12 boards opposite Holy Cross on Feb. 12 and 14 against Lafayette the next time out.
During the 2009-10 campaign, Horbatuck was one of three Bison to record double-digit rebounds in at least two consecutive games. Higham went three straight vs. Holy Cross (16), Lafayette (11) and Colgate (13), while Joyce Novacek had back-to-back strong outings against Fordham (15) and Loyola (Md.) (10).
NEW SOJKA PAVILION RECORDS
With Bucknell playing in what could be its final game of the season at Sojka Pavilion, it's time to look back at the facility records that have fallen in 2010-11. Since the season opener on Nov. 12, 11 marks have been tied or replaced.
| RECORD | OPPONENT | |||||||||
| Total Rebounds | Opponent Low: | 21 | Lehigh (Jan. 26, 2011) | |||||||
| Defensive Rebounds | Bucknell High: | 36 | vs. Lafayette (Feb. 16, 2011) | |||||||
| Bucknell Low: | 16 | vs. Buffalo (Nov. 21, 2010) | ||||||||
| Opponent Low: | 12 | Lehigh (Jan. 26, 2011) | ||||||||
| Holy Cross (Feb. 12, 2011) | ||||||||||
| 3FG Attempted | Bucknell Low: | 4 | vs. Rider (Nov. 12, 2010) | |||||||
| 3FG Made | Bucknell Low: | 0 | vs. Iona (Dec. 18, 2010) | |||||||
| 3FG% | Bucknell Low: | .000 (0-5) | vs. Iona (Dec. 18, 2010) | |||||||
| Blocked Shots | Bucknell Low: | 0 | vs. Iona (Dec. 18, 2010) | |||||||
| Fewest Points - Half | Bucknell | 13 | vs. Lehigh (Jan. 26, 2011) | |||||||
| FG Made | Opponent Low: | 11 | Lafayette (Feb. 16, 2011) | |||||||
| FG% | Opponent Low: | .180 (11-61) | Lafayette (Feb. 16, 2011) |
KEEPING AN EYE ON THE POSTSEASON
Just three games remain on the regular-season schedule, but the Patriot League is still too close to call. Currently tied for fourth, Bucknell is one of several teams still battling for a top-four seed and the right to host a quarterfinal game in next month's league tournament. Although the Bison won't be able to clinch home-court advantage on Saturday, others could.
► Navy and American will solidify their spot in the top four with wins over Army and Holy Cross, respectively, and host a first-round game.
► If Navy, American and Lehigh win, and Colgate defeats Bucknell, Lehigh would also host a quarterfinal game.
► If Bucknell beats Colgate, the Bison will remain in fourth place (wins from Holy Cross and Army would tie them all for fourth at 6-6). Bucknell plays Lehigh and Army in its final two games of the season.
TURNING THEM AWAY
After not registering a blocked shot in the first game of the season, Cosima Higham tried to make up for lost time. Since the season opener vs. Rider, the senior has 26 blocks, including a career-best six against Lafayette. Higham now has 101 rejections in her career, placing her fifth all-time at Bucknell. Teammate Joyce Novacek ranks sixth with 95 career rejections.
MORE BOARDS
Joyce Novacek has been doing her best to leave her mark in the history books at Bucknell. The forward has ranked among the Bison's top three in rebounding in each of her first three seasons in the Orange and Blue. After averaging 4.3 boards as a freshman, that number improved to 6.3 in 2008-09 and finally 7.2 to lead the team in 2009-10. With 177 rebounds (7.7/game) this season, Novacek leads all current Bison with 687 career rebounds, putting her in 10th place all-time at Bucknell.
HOT SHOTS
Bucknell shot an impressive 56.9 percent (29-for-51) against Holy Cross on Feb. 12. The field goal percentage was the highest against a Division I opponent since the Bison posted a 62.7 percent mark (32-for-51) opposite Iona on Jan. 3, 2005. The Orange and Blue defeated the Gaels 90-66 in that contest.
Saturday's performance was the second time this season Bucknell shot 50 percent for better from the field. The first came on a 23-for-46 outing vs. Lehigh on Jan. 26 when they lost 64-48 to the Mountain Hawks. In the last three seasons, the Bison are 3-4 in games when they shoot 50 percent or better.
BY THE NUMBERS
After a relatively quiet stretch for the team, several Bison made some noise in the Feb. 12 game vs. Holy Cross. Seven season-best totals were either set or matched, three program top-10 marks were made and one Sojka Pavilion record was tied. Here's the lengthy list:
► Rachel Voss: 14 points, 3 assists both tied season highs
► Cosima Higham: 12 rebounds was then a high mark for 2010-11; three blocked shots tied a then-season high and moved her into a fifth-place tie on the career record list; recorded 600th career rebound
► Shelby Romine: tied career highs with seven assists and seven rebounds; moved into ninth at Bucknell in single-season 3-point field goals made (41)
► Joyce Novacek: moved into 10th all-time at Bucknell in career rebounds
► Christina Chukwuedo: tied a career high with six assists
► Felicia Mgbada: made first career 3-point field goal
► Bucknell held Holy Cross to 12 defensive rebounds, tying the Crusaders with Lehigh for the fewest defensive boards by an opponent at Sojka Pavilion.
KEEPING THE CRUSADERS DOWN
Although Bucknell split decisions with Holy Cross this season, the Bison held their opponent to less than 60 points in both contests. In two games, Holy Cross averaged just 54.5 points against Bucknell. The Crusaders won game one, 57-47, on Jan. 15 before losing on Saturday night, 68-52.
MOVING UP THE RANKS
Shelby Romine continues to make inroads in the Bucknell record book. With 317 points this winter, she ranks seventh on the Orange and Blue's freshman scoring list. Just ahead of her is Vicki Quimby in sixth with 388 points. Lindsey Hollobaugh holds the top mark with 483 points in 2003-04.
After going 1-for-4 from behind the arc at American on Feb. 9, Romine moved onto the program's single-season record list for 3-point field goals made. She has since improved to ninth with 41 successful attempts, making her the only freshman on the list. Over the course of the season, Romine is 41 of 98 from long range, giving her a .418 shooting percentage. If the season ended today, that average would rank third among single-season marks.
NOVACEK NAMED CAPITAL ONE ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT FOR THIRD STRAIGHT YEAR
For the third consecutive year, Joyce Novacek was named to the Capital One Academic All-District 2 First Team on Feb. 3. Novacek becomes the only Bison other than Bucknell Hall of Famer Jennifer Walz to be recognized for her academic success during all three years in which she was eligible for the award. Walz was named First Team Academic All-America from 1986-87 to 1988-89. After more than three years at Bucknell, Novacek has maintained a cumulative grade-point average of 3.92 while majoring in management and English. She has even recorded a perfect 4.0 GPA on four separate occasions.
The senior forward is now eligible for Academic All-America status, which will be voted on later this month. In order to be considered for Academic All-America honors, a candidate must be at least a sophomore with a minimum 3.30 cumulative GPA and be a starter or significant reserve on his/her team.
HOME SWEET HOME
Having played more than 30 games apiece during their careers at Sojka Pavilion, Joyce Novacek and Cosima Higham are starting to move up the facility record lists. Novacek is second on her home court in rebounds (315), third in blocked shots (42) and free throws attempted (104), and fifth in games started (38) and played (49). Higham is second in blocks (44) and third in rebounds (267). Felicia Mgbada recently entered the top five as well, having rejected 17 shot attempts in less than two seasons at Sojka Pavilion, ranking her fifth all-time at the facility.
LIMITED AT THE LINE
Bucknell limited American to a mere five foul shot attempts on Feb. 9, and the Eagles cashed in on four of them. Both totals were season lows for a Bucknell opponent in 2010-11. American has gotten used to many more trips to the line than what they got against the Orange and Blue. Entering the game on Feb. 9, the Eagles were shooting a Patriot League-best .707 in league play and were averaging better than 12 made shots on 17 attempts per contest.
CHUKWUEDO AT THE LINE
Christina Chukwuedo has been making her own push at the free throw line. The junior opened the season just 4-for-12 (.333) from the stripe in her first 10 games. In the last 13 contests, she has improved to 15-for-20 (.750). That progress brings her season average to .594 (19-for-32).
BENCH BATTLERS
Bucknell got some big-time production from its bench players against Lehigh on Jan. 26. Of the Bison's 48 total points, 29 came from the team's reserves and all 13 first-half points came from non-starters. At the end of the game, Bucknell outscored Lehigh in bench points, 29-19.
The Bison have outscored opponents in bench points 10 times this year, but no advantage was as convincing as in the Niagara contest on Nov. 28. Bucknell reserves won that battle, 41-11, thanks in large part to 16 points from Alyssa Dunn and 11 more from Cosima Higham.
FREE THROWS HIGHS AND LOWS
Four days after Bucknell recorded season-best marks from the free throw line by shooting 30 of 35 at Colgate, including a school-record 19 made baskets from Shelby Romine, the team set a season low in the same category against Lehigh. The Bison were 1-for-5 from the line against the Mountain Hawks. The one made basket is the team's fewest this winter.
RECORD-BREAKING ROMINE
Shelby Romine never ceases to amaze the crowd and the game at Colgate on Jan. 22 was no exception. The freshman guard broke a Bucknell record, making 19 of her 21 free throw attempts. Romine's success at the line snapped the record previously held by Molly Creamer, who was 18-for-22 vs. Navy on March 7, 2003. The 19 made free throws also tied a Patriot League record, set by Navy's Erica Hayes shot 19-for-22 vs. Morgan State on Jan. 19, 2000. Romine led all scorers against Colgate with a career-best 28 points.
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6: ROMINE NAMED PATRIOT LEAGUE ROOKIE OF THE WEEK AGAIN
For a league-best sixth time, Shelby Romine was named the Patriot League/Anaconda Rookie of the Week on Jan. 24. The freshman, who was also cited as the league's top newcomer on Nov. 15, Nov. 22, Dec. 27, Jan. 3 and Jan. 10, earned the award after setting the Bucknell free throw record with 19 made shots at Colgate and averaging 20.0 points, 7.0 assists and 5.0 rebounds on the week. In two games, Romine set career highs in points (28 at Colgate), assists (7 at Lafayette, Colgate) and rebounds (7 at Lafayette). She also combined to go 24-for-28 from the free throw line.
Romine's first two Rookie of the Week accolades came back-to-back to open the season, making her the sixth player in league history to be named the top newcomer in each of the season's first two weeks. With her latest honor, the guard becomes the first Bison to earn at least six league rookie accolades since Lindsey Hollobaugh received the award eight times in 2003-04.
ROMINE TAKING THE LEAD
With the season heading into the final stages, Shelby Romine is trying to hold on to her team lead in scoring (13.8) and assists (83). The last freshman to end her campaign with team highs in both categories was Molly Creamer. The former guard averaged 15.8 points and tied Lori Houck for the team high in assists with 107 during the 1999-2000 season.
MORE HONORS FOR ROMINE
Shelby Romine claimed a second honor on Jan. 24 after her record-breaking performance at Colgate. Along with her sixth Patriot League/Anaconda Rookie of the Week accolade, the guard was selected as the Susquehanna Valley Limousine Bison Athlete of the Week. Romine is the first women's basketball player to earn the award since Lauren Schober on Feb. 1, 2009.
TRIPS TO THE LINE
Shelby Romine, who broke the school record with 19 made free throws, was not the only Bison to get in on the act at Colgate on Jan. 22. As a team, Bucknell was 30 of 35 (.857) from the line, setting a season high in free throws made. The team's previous high had been 18 against Rider in the season opener.
The last time Bucknell attempted more free throws was on Nov. 19, 2007. Bucknell was 31-for-38 (.816) from the line against Howard and won the game 89-79 at Sojka Pavilion.
GLASS CLEANERS
Bucknell dominated on the glass in both games against Holy Cross. At the end of the first meeting, the Bison held a 42-29 rebounding advantage. The second game ended with Bucknell leading 38-22 on the glass, giving it its then-second-largest margin of the season. The Bison outrebounded Loyola (Md.) 51-27 (+24) on Dec. 1 before posting a +13 rebounding lead vs. Cornell (48-35) on Dec. 30 and again at Holy Cross (42-29).
IT'S BEEN A WHILE
With the victory at Colgate on Jan. 22, Bucknell won back-to-back road games for the first time since defeating Saint Francis (Pa.) (61-56) and Howard (63-53) in December/January of 2008-09. It had been even longer since the Bison's last back-to-back set of Patriot League road victories. That came at Lafayette (68-45) and Colgate (88-57) in February of the 2007-08 season. That team eventually went on to win the Patriot League Championship despite entering the tournament as the fifth seed.
FEDORJAKA GETS 200TH WIN AT BUCKNELL
For the second year in a row, Kathy Fedorjaka has reached a major milestone in her head coaching career. Now in her 14th season at Bucknell, Fedorjaka claimed her 200th win with the Orange and Blue when they defeated Lafayette 57-49 on Jan. 19. She now has a 203-194 record at Bucknell, good for a .511 winning percentage. That total has long put her at the top of the list for most program victories. Number two on that list is Fedorjaka's predecessor, Julienne Simpson, with a six-year mark of 65-98.
Last year, Fedorjaka surpassed the century mark in Patriot League wins with her 60-47 win over Colgate. She entered 2010-11 with a career record of 101-73 in the league.
EXTRA TIME
Bucknell played its first overtime in more than two years when it lost to American, 60-55, on Jan. 12. The Bison did not have to wait that long for their next overtime game, going into extra time at Colgate 10 days later. Before this season, the last time Bucknell needed overtime was on March 8, 2008, when it knocked Army out of the Patriot League Tournament with a 50-47 victory. The 2007-08 season saw four games into overtime with Bucknell going 3-1 in those contests. Here are some other OT tidbits:
► The Bison are 19-15 all-time and 1-1 this year in overtime games.
► The four overtime games in 2007-08 tied a program record for the most in a single season. The 1988-89 team also played four overtime games, going 2-2.
► The last overtime loss prior to Jan. 12 vs. American came on Jan. 23, 2008. Bucknell fell to Lafayette, 64-58, at Sojka Pavilion.
► The last overtime win prior to Jan. 22 at Colgate came on March 8, 2008 over Army, 50-47.
► The Orange and Blue's longest overtime game came on Dec. 17, 2005. Bucknell defeated Maryland-Eastern Shore 93-92 in triple-OT.
► Bucknell is 1-3 all-time in double-overtime games.
100 GAMES AND COUNTING
Joyce Novacek played in her 100th career game when she went up against Navy on Jan. 8 (she's now at 110). Novacek's classmate, Taylor Phillips, is also looking to join the club, having played in 100 career contests. The last Bison to reach 100 contests were Amanda Brown (113) and Lauren Schober (120), who both played from 2005-06 to 2008-09.
DISHING IT OUT
Taylor Phillips dished out a career-high-tying three assists against Cornell on Dec. 30 before equaling that total at Yale just days later. The performances gave the senior her 10th assist in five games. She has since recorded a season-best 31 assists, doubling her career total. Phillips' unselfish play has been rewarded by making her the Bison with the best assist/turnover ratio this season at 1.1.
STREAKING
Although Joyce Novacek's 88-game scoring streak came to an end vs. Army, she still has plenty of others in the works. The senior forward has ...
► played in 104 consecutive games (last non-appearance: at Marist, 12/1/07).
► made 75 consecutive starts (last non-start: vs. Drexel, 11/25/08).
► grabbed at least one rebound in 24 straight games (last rebound-less night: vs. Army, 2/27/10).
Over the course of her career, Novacek has played in 110 of a possible 111 games and has been a part of the Bison's starting lineup 89 times, more than any other current Bison. She has been held without a rebound just six times in her nearly four years.
PUTTING POINTS ON THE BOARD
With the season being 23 games old, Shelby Romine has 14 contests in which she has scored in double figures. That is the most by a Bison freshman since Lauren Schober had 16 double-digit scoring games and Amanda Brown had 15 during the 2005-06 season. Romine's highest point total this year was 28 at Colgate on Jan. 22, while her lowest mark is four points vs. Lehigh.
BECOMING A HABIT
Shelby Romine continued to impress when she recorded 28 points at Colgate on Jan. 22. The point total gave the freshman six games with at least 20 points this season. The last Bucknellian to have at least six 20-point games in the same campaign was Amanda Brown, who posted seven in 2008-09. Lindsey Hollobaugh was the last Bison freshman with more than six 20-point games, tallying nine during her rookie season.
FRESHMAN FEAT
Through Bucknell's first three games this season, the same name appeared atop the scoring column. Shelby Romine posted the team's highest point total in the first outings, tallying 17 against Rider, nine at Fordham and 21 against Buffalo. No other single Bison freshman has ever led the team in scoring in each of her first three contests.
During the 1975-76 season, which was Bucknell's third sponsoring women's basketball as a varsity sport, freshmen led the team in scoring in every game. No single player posted the high mark in three consecutive games, however. The 1975-76 roster was comprised of six freshmen, three sophomores and two juniors.
UP NEXT
Bucknell will close out the regular season with a pair of contests on the road. First up is Lehigh, which will host the Bison at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 23 at Stabler Arena. The Mountain Hawks took the 64-46 win from the Bison earlier this season, giving them their eighth straight victory in the series.
