Women's Basketball Heads to Temple for Saturday Night Showdown

LEWISBURG, Pa.- The Bucknell Bison women's basketball team (0-1) continues its non-conference tour of Pennsylvania with a Saturday night showdown against the Temple Owls (1-1). Last year, the Owls defeated the Bison 77-62 in Sojka.

Game Notes

What: Bucknell (0-1) at Temple (1-1)
When: Saturday, November 11 at 7 p.m.
Where: Philadelphia, Pa.-Liacouras Arena
Streaming: ESPN+
Radio: 90.5 WVBU
Live Statistics: BucknellBison.com

Last Game's Starters:
So./G/F: Emma Theodorsson (4.0 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 2.0 apg)
Jr. F/G: Isabella King (14.0 ppg, 1.0 rpg, 2.0 apg)
Sr./G: Caroline Dingler (6.0 ppg, 7.0 rpg, 2.0 apg)
So./F: Grace Sullivan (5.0 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 1.0 apg)
So./G: Ashley O'Connor (3.0 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 2.0 apg)

WITH A WIN OVER TEMPLE, BUCKNELL WOULD...
• ... improve to 1-1 on the season
• ... improve to 1-1 on the road
• ... improve to 1-4 all-time against the Owls
• ... improve to 1-3 against the Owls under Woodruff
• ... improve to 71-35 overall under Woodruff
• ... improve to 32-23 on the road under Woodruff

HEADLINES
• Bucknell lost 91-54 to Penn State in the Route 45 Rivalry. Bucknell tied the game at 2-2 but fell behind 26-17 by the end of the first quarter. Penn State controlled the remainder of the game and cruised to a substantial victory. Bucknell fell to 0-10 all-time against the Nittany Lions.
• The Orange & Blue have four newcomers to the roster. All four players hail from New Jersey. The Garden State has been fruitful for the Lewisburg team.
• The Bison relied on youth through their first thirteen games in 2022-23. The starting combo of Dingler, Johnson, King, Shaffer, and Theodorsson stepped up to win five of their eight games while Cecelia Collins was out with an injury.
• Cecelia Collins was named to the Patriot League Second Team, and Emma Theodorsson earned All-Patriot League Rookie Team honors.
• Against American, on Feb. 11, 2023, Emma Shaffer earned her seventh career double-double by scoring 12 points and obtaining 21 rebounds. Her 21 rebounds were two away from the Patriot League record.
• Bucknell finished 13-17 overall and 9-9 in Patriot League play last season. The Bison reached the 2022 Patriot League Quarterfinals, playing as the No. 6 seed in the tournament, but they fell 63-55 to No. 3 seed Lehigh.
• Bucknell graduated two seniors in the spring, Tai Johnson and Emma Shaffer. Tai Johnson played a large role in stepping up for the Bison after Second Team All-Patriot League member Cecelia Collins was sidelined with an injury. Shaffer was a constant double-double member and led the Bison attack in the paint.
• Bucknell was picked sixth in the 2023 Patriot League Preseason Poll. It's the first time since 2015-16 Bucknell was not picked in the top four. The Bison have gone 109-25 in league play since the start of the 2015-16 season.
• Senior Caroline Dingler was named captain ahead of the 2023-24 season.
• Emma Theodorsson spent the summer playing for the U20 Icelandic National Team as they competed in the U20 Nordic Championships and FIBA U20 European Championships. Theodorsson powered the Icelandic attack, averaging 8.7 ppg, 5.1 rpg, and 1.6 apg. All three marks were in the top 70 in the FIBA competition. Theodorsson finished third in points and second in rebounds for Iceland.
• Bucknell graduate Taylor O'Brien signed with the Leicester Riders of the Women's British Basketball League. O'Brien has scored 37 points through two games.
• Head coach Trevor Woodruff is in his fifth season at Bucknell. He was named PL Coach of the Year in his first two seasons.
• Following the departure of associate head coach Kelly Mazzante to Georgetown, Sherill Baker was hired as the newest assistant coach. Baker comes to Lewisburg from a stint at George Washington University. Baker played in the WNBA and overseas professional leagues. Dubbed "The Queens of Steals" for her defensive prowess at Georgia, Baker joins a staff with continuity. Taylor Coleman has been enrolled for five years at Bucknell, and LaSashia Connelly marks her fourth season in Lewisburg. Molly Gillis enters her second season as the program's manager of operations.

SCOUTING Temple
• The Owls finished 11-18 overall and 6-10 in AAC play in 2022-23. They started 1-1 this season, having defeated Delaware State and lost to Georgetown
• This season, Bucknell and Temple share one common opponent in St. Joseph's. Temple plays St. Joseph's on Nov. 22 as part of the Big 5 Classic.
• Temple was selected to finish ninth in the 14-team AAC.
• Guard Aleah Nelson was named to the Preseason All-ACC Team.
• Temple is led by second-year head coach Diane Richardson, who owns a 12-19 career record with the team.

SERIES HISTORY with THE OWLS
• Bucknell trails 0-4 in the all-time series, which dates back to 1993.
• Temple's last win over Bucknell came last year at Sojka Pavilion.
• Bucknell is 0-3 against Temple during the Trevor Woodruff era.

Series History with Temple

Series Record: 0-4
Record at Home: 0-2
Record at Temple: 0-1
Neutral Site Record: 0-1
Trevor Woodruff Record: 0-3
Current Streak: 4 losses
Longest Winning Streak: None

Last Time Out
• Bucknell lost to Penn State, 91-54 at the Bryce Jordan Center. The game was briefly tied at 2-2 before the Nittany Lions pulled away for the decisive win. Bucknell fought hard, but the BIG 10 team's superior athleticism proved too much for the Lewisburg squad. The latest edition of the Route 45 Rivalry went to the Nittany Lions.
• Bucknell's offense shot 35.4%, while Penn State shot a crisp 59.3%. Penn State was 12-for-25 from three-point land
• Isabella King led Bucknell with 14 points, and senior Caroline Dingler provided six points. Dingler grabbed seven rebounds to lead the Bison. Ashley Sofilkanich had a nice collegiate debut by scoring eight points. Emma Theodorsson scored four points in limited action. Penn State had six players score double-digits, including Shay Ciezki, who led the team with 18 points.

Notable CAREER HIGHS SET vs. PENN STATE

Ashley Sofilkanich — points (8)

STREAKS OF NOTE
Emma Theodorsson — starts (21)

Up Next

Bucknell returns to Sojka for the 2023-24 home opener against FDU. The game will serve as Education Day and has a special 11 a.m. tip.

Women's Basketball Heads to Temple for Saturday Night Showdown

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Players Mentioned

Cecelia Collins

Caroline Dingler

Tai Johnson

Isabella King

Isabella King

Ashley O'Connor

Emma Shaffer

Ashley Sofilkanich

Grace Sullivan

Emma Theodorsson

Emma Theodorsson