Thursday, March 14
Lewisburg, Pa.
6 p.m.
Bucknell University
27-5
66
vs
31
Holy Cross
18-13
1
2
3
4
F
Holy Cross
4
8
12
7
31
Bucknell
12
16
19
19
66
Photo by: Marc Hagemeier
Defense Helps Women's Basketball to 66-31 Win Over Holy Cross to Advance to PL Championship Game
3/14/2019 8:10:00 PM | Women's Basketball
** Tickets are on sale right now for the upcoming Patriot League Women's Basketball Championship game between Bucknell and American on Sunday. The game tips off at noon in Sojka Pavilion and will be telecast live on the CBS Sports Network. Tickets are $14 for adults and $7 for children and seniors. Please contact the Campus Box Office at 570-577-1000 or you can purchase your tickets on-line at www.bucknell.edu/BoxOffice
FOUR-PACK SPECIAL -- Limited Offer
For $42 you can get two adult tickets, two youth tickets, and four meal vouchers (good for 4 hot dogs, 4 bags of chips, and 4 sodas) WHILE SUPPLIES LAST!!!
FREE YOUTH TICKETS -- Limited Offer
While supplies last, you can get free youth tickets to the game on Sunday. To claim the tickets simply email Todd Newcomb at tnewcomb@bucknell.edu. This offer is sure to go quickly!
LEWISBURG, Pa. – Kaitlyn Slagus and Abby Kapp led four Bison starters in double figures with 13 points apiece and Bucknell forced 24 Holy Cross turnovers on its way to an easy 66-31 victory over the Crusaders on Thursday at Sojka Pavilion in the Patriot League Tournament semifinals. The top-seeded Bison (27-5) advanced to the Patriot League title game for the second time in three seasons, while the fifth-seeded Crusaders ended their season with an 18-13 mark.
Sunday's championship game will take place at Sojka Pavilion at noon. Bucknell will face defending champion American with the league's automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament on the line. The second-seeded Eagles advanced with a 68-57 win over third-seeded Lehigh in the semifinals.
Bucknell's defense limited Holy Cross to single digits in three of the four quarters and held the Crusaders to the fewest points ever in a Patriot League Tournament game (31). The Bison also posted the largest margin of victory ever in a Patriot League Tournament game (35) and their 18 steals were also a tournament record. It was the least amount of points allowed by the Bison since giving up just 30 against Elmira in 1980.
"That's a really talented team and Ann McInerney is doing a really good job with them," Bucknell head coach Aaron Roussell said. "Our players just stepped up today. We had some adversity this week and some players weren't feeling well, but there were never any excuses made. I loved the energy we played with tonight."
Bucknell opened up a 28-12 halftime lead thanks to limiting Holy Cross to 6-for-30 shooting in the first half. The Bison led by as many as 36 points in the second half and held the Crusaders to 12-of-53 (22.6 percent) shooting in the contest. Holy Cross turned the ball over 24 times and Bucknell registered 24 points off those turnovers.
Bucknell's defense held Holy Cross without a field goal for nearly 10 minutes at one point in the first half.
Slagus added seven rebounds and five steals to go along with her 13 points, while Kapp was 5-for-6 from the field with a pair of 3-pointers. Ellie Mack and Kate Walker each tallied 12 points. Walker grabbed a team-high nine rebounds, while Mack had four boards and three steals.
Lauren Manis and Oluchi Ezemma led Holy Cross with six points apiece. Manis hauled in 14 rebounds, including five offensive boards. The Crusaders recorded 16 offensive rebounds as a team.
"Kyi and Ellie did a tremendous job on great players in Avery LaBarbera and Lauren Manis, but really this was a team defensive effort," Roussell said. "The energy from everybody on the floor and on the bench was awesome to see."
Bucknell and Holy Cross split their two-game series during the regular season, with the two games being decided by an average of 2.5 points. The Crusaders had won the most recent matchup on a buzzer-beating 3-pointer. The Bison haven't lost back-to-back games against a Patriot League opponent since 2015.
Bucknell now turns its attention to American, a team it swept in the regular season. The Bison beat the Eagles in the Patriot League opener, but the Eagles responded by winning 15 straight games until the teams met again on March 2. That game went down to the wire before the Bison hung on for a 65-64 victory.
Bucknell features two First Team All-Patriot League players (Mack and Slagus) and a Second Team selection in Walker. Additionally, Kyi English was voted to the Third Team last year as a junior. American is led by Cecily Carl, who was the Patriot League Player of the Year this season and the Patriot League Tournament MVP last year. Elina Koskimies made the Second Team this season.
Sunday's game will air live on CBS Sports Network. Fans were treated to a classic when Bucknell hosted the title game in 2017. Claire DeBoer recorded 30 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Bison to a 79-71 overtime win over Navy. That was one in a current streak of four straight seasons in which the top seed won the title.
Gallery: (3/15/2019) WBB vs. Holy Cross - PL Semifinal
FOUR-PACK SPECIAL -- Limited Offer
For $42 you can get two adult tickets, two youth tickets, and four meal vouchers (good for 4 hot dogs, 4 bags of chips, and 4 sodas) WHILE SUPPLIES LAST!!!
FREE YOUTH TICKETS -- Limited Offer
While supplies last, you can get free youth tickets to the game on Sunday. To claim the tickets simply email Todd Newcomb at tnewcomb@bucknell.edu. This offer is sure to go quickly!
LEWISBURG, Pa. – Kaitlyn Slagus and Abby Kapp led four Bison starters in double figures with 13 points apiece and Bucknell forced 24 Holy Cross turnovers on its way to an easy 66-31 victory over the Crusaders on Thursday at Sojka Pavilion in the Patriot League Tournament semifinals. The top-seeded Bison (27-5) advanced to the Patriot League title game for the second time in three seasons, while the fifth-seeded Crusaders ended their season with an 18-13 mark.
Sunday's championship game will take place at Sojka Pavilion at noon. Bucknell will face defending champion American with the league's automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament on the line. The second-seeded Eagles advanced with a 68-57 win over third-seeded Lehigh in the semifinals.
Bucknell's defense limited Holy Cross to single digits in three of the four quarters and held the Crusaders to the fewest points ever in a Patriot League Tournament game (31). The Bison also posted the largest margin of victory ever in a Patriot League Tournament game (35) and their 18 steals were also a tournament record. It was the least amount of points allowed by the Bison since giving up just 30 against Elmira in 1980.
"That's a really talented team and Ann McInerney is doing a really good job with them," Bucknell head coach Aaron Roussell said. "Our players just stepped up today. We had some adversity this week and some players weren't feeling well, but there were never any excuses made. I loved the energy we played with tonight."
Bucknell opened up a 28-12 halftime lead thanks to limiting Holy Cross to 6-for-30 shooting in the first half. The Bison led by as many as 36 points in the second half and held the Crusaders to 12-of-53 (22.6 percent) shooting in the contest. Holy Cross turned the ball over 24 times and Bucknell registered 24 points off those turnovers.
Bucknell's defense held Holy Cross without a field goal for nearly 10 minutes at one point in the first half.
Slagus added seven rebounds and five steals to go along with her 13 points, while Kapp was 5-for-6 from the field with a pair of 3-pointers. Ellie Mack and Kate Walker each tallied 12 points. Walker grabbed a team-high nine rebounds, while Mack had four boards and three steals.
Lauren Manis and Oluchi Ezemma led Holy Cross with six points apiece. Manis hauled in 14 rebounds, including five offensive boards. The Crusaders recorded 16 offensive rebounds as a team.
"Kyi and Ellie did a tremendous job on great players in Avery LaBarbera and Lauren Manis, but really this was a team defensive effort," Roussell said. "The energy from everybody on the floor and on the bench was awesome to see."
Bucknell and Holy Cross split their two-game series during the regular season, with the two games being decided by an average of 2.5 points. The Crusaders had won the most recent matchup on a buzzer-beating 3-pointer. The Bison haven't lost back-to-back games against a Patriot League opponent since 2015.
Bucknell now turns its attention to American, a team it swept in the regular season. The Bison beat the Eagles in the Patriot League opener, but the Eagles responded by winning 15 straight games until the teams met again on March 2. That game went down to the wire before the Bison hung on for a 65-64 victory.
Bucknell features two First Team All-Patriot League players (Mack and Slagus) and a Second Team selection in Walker. Additionally, Kyi English was voted to the Third Team last year as a junior. American is led by Cecily Carl, who was the Patriot League Player of the Year this season and the Patriot League Tournament MVP last year. Elina Koskimies made the Second Team this season.
Sunday's game will air live on CBS Sports Network. Fans were treated to a classic when Bucknell hosted the title game in 2017. Claire DeBoer recorded 30 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Bison to a 79-71 overtime win over Navy. That was one in a current streak of four straight seasons in which the top seed won the title.
Team Stats
HolyCr
Buck
FG%
.226
.426
3FG%
.133
.240
FT%
.500
.800
RB
42
37
TO
24
10
STL
6
18
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
13
FGM
5
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Pts
12
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
3
Pts
12
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
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