Women's Basketball Faces Cornell on Saturday

LEWISBURG, Pa.- The Bucknell Bison women's basketball team (2-5) finishes up its three-game home stretch with a visit from Ivy League Cornell on Saturday. Bucknell will seek to go 2-1 during the homestand, as the Bison defeated Robert Morris 68-54 but lost to St. Joseph's 71-46. The Orange & Blue is 2-1 at Sojka Pavilion and has never been defeated by Cornell at home (15-0). Bucknell won last year's meeting at Cornell in an epic 65-58 overtime triumph. Saturday's tip is slotted for a 2 p.m. start.

Game Notes

What: Bucknell vs. Cornell
When: Saturday, December 2 at 2 p.m.
Where: Lewisburg, Pa.-Sojka Pavilion
Streaming: ESPN+
Radio: 90.5 WVBU
Live Statistics: bucknellbison.com

Last Game's Starters:
So. G/F: Emma Theodorsson (9.6 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 1.4 apg)
Jr. F/G: Isabella King (8.6 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 1.1 apg)
Sr./G: Caroline Dingler (5.7 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 2.0 apg)
Fr./F: Ashley Sofilkanich (9.7 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 0.7 apg)
So./G: Sophia Sabino (2.3 ppg, 0.9 rpg, 0.7 apg)

WITH A WIN OVER CORNELL, BUCKNELL WOULD...
• ... improve to 3-5 on the season
• ... improve to 3-1 at home
• ... improve to 21-5 all-time against the Big Red
• ... improve to 2-0 against the Big Red under Woodruff
• ... improve to 73-39 overall under Woodruff
• ... improve to 40-13 at home under Woodruff

HEADLINES
• Bucknell fell 71-46 to St. Joseph's on Tuesday night. The A-10 squad dominated the contest, never trailing once to Bucknell. St. Joe's jumped out a 13-2 lead in the first quarter before Bucknell started to dice into the lead. Another Hawks run gave them an 18-9 lead at the end of the opening period. St. Joseph's extended the lead to 37-23 by halftime. Bucknell never got closer as the Hawks flew out of halftime with a 6-0 run. It was 59-31 after three quarters. The Hawks played substitutes in the final quarter to win 71-46. Ashley Sofilkanich was a bright spot for Bucknell, scoring a career-high 18 points on 8-of-11 shooting. Nicole Davis scored seven points to set a new career-high. The Bison fell to 1-6 all-time against St. Joseph's.
• The Orange & Blue have four newcomers on the roster. All four players hail from New Jersey. The Garden State has been fruitful for the Lewisburg team.
• 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 stepped up for the Bison after Second Team All-Patriot League member Cecelia Collins was injured. 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.
• This summer, Bucknell graduate Taylor O'Brien signed with the Leicester Riders of the Women's British Basketball League. O'Brien is averaging 21.3 points per game for the British outfit.
• 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 of 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 CORNELL
• The Big Red went 10-17 overall and 3-11 in Ivy League play during the 2022-23 season. They did not qualify for the exclusive four-team Ivy League Tournament. Cornell is 3-4 with wins over Binghamton, Mount St. Mary's, and Southern Illinois. The Big Red have tasted defeat against Albany, Colgate, #12 Ohio State, and Western Kentucky.
• The Bison and Big Red share three common opponents: Colgate, Mount St. Mary's, and Western Kentucky.
• Cornell was picked to finish seventh out of the eight teams in the Ivy League. The conference did not select a preseason all-league team.
• Danya Smith is 220-330 in her 21 seasons at Cornell.

SERIES HISTORY with THE BIG RED
• This is the 26th meeting versus the Big Red
• Bucknell is 20-5 all-time against Cornell
• Trevor Woodruff is 1-0 all-time against Cornell. The win came in the 2022-23 season in an epic 65-58 overtime contest in Ithaca.

Series History with Cornell (Last Six Games)
12/30/10   Cornell            W, 54-45
11/18/11    at Cornell       L, 65-45
1/2/13        Cornell            W, 64-39
11/23/13   at Cornell       W, 72-59
11/29/14   Cornell            W, 59-51
11/19/22   at Cornell       W, 65-58 (OT)

Series Record: 20-5
Record at Home: 15-0
Record at Cornell: 5-5
Neutral Site Record: 0-0
Trevor Woodruff Record: 1-0
Current Streak: Bucknell W4
Longest Winning Streak: 6 games

Last Time Out
• Saint Joseph's handled Bucknell, 71-46, Tuesday night at Sojka Pavilion. Bucknell never led in the contest as the veteran-laded Hawks swiftly flew out to a 13-2 advantage. By halftime, the score was 37-23 St. Joe's. Bucknell trailed by as much as 64-31 before rallying to cut the ultimate deficit to 71-46.
• Bucknell's offense shot 39.6%, while Saint Joseph's shot 47.5%. Neither team did much from three-point land as Bucknell went 2-of-11 (Ashley O'Connor hit both makes), and St. Joe's hit 4-of-16. Both squads shot 60.0% from the charity stripe (Bucknell: 6-of-10 & St. Joe's: 9-of-15).
• Freshman Ashley Sofilkanich tallied a career-high 18 points and grabbed five rebounds. Sofilkanich was a sparkling 8-of-11 from the field. Senior forward Nicole Davis notched a career-high in points for the second straight game. This time, she scored seven points. Kaylee Reinbeau had a season-high six board to lead Bucknell. Saint Joseph's was led in scoring by Talya Burgler, who generated 23 points. Laura Ziegler poured 12 points and grabbed 11 rebounds to obtain a double-double.

Notable CAREER HIGHS SET vs. ST. JOSEPH'S
Nicole Davis - points (7) and field goals made (3)
Ashley Sofilkanich - points (18) and field goals made (8)

STREAKS OF NOTE
Isabella King — starts (23)

Up Next

The Bison hit the road to play Mount St. Mary's in a Route 15 Clash.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Cecelia Collins

Nicole Davis

Caroline Dingler

Tai Johnson

Isabella King

Isabella King

Ashley O'Connor

Kaylee Reinbeau

Sophia Sabino

Emma Shaffer

Ashley Sofilkanich

Emma Theodorsson