
Women's Basketball Hosts Merrimack on Sunday
12/14/2023 11:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
LEWISBURG, Pa.- The Bucknell Bison women's basketball team (2-7) emerges from a 12-day break due to finals to play the Merrimack Warriors (3-8) this Sunday at Sojka Pavilion. This is the first-ever contest between Bucknell and the NEC foe. The Bison already played and defeated another NEC foe in FDU. The tip is scheduled for 2 p.m. and the game will be Bucknell's last home game until Lehigh on Jan. 10.Â
For Bison fans, the action resumes Sunday afternoon with a return to Sojka Pavilion when the Bison play Merrimack at 2:00 p.m. The game can be seen live on ESPN+, and this will be one of six men's and women's games with a holiday half-price ticket special. Click on the image below to purchase tickets, and use the promo code RAY4SNOW to get 50% off all tickets.Â
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Game Notes
What: Bucknell vs. Merrimack
When:Â Sunday, December 17 at 2 p.m.
Where:Â Lewisburg, Pa.-Sojka Pavilion
Streaming:Â ESPN+
Radio:Â 90.5 WVBU
Live Statistics:Â bucknellbison.com
Last Game's Starters:
So. G/F: Emma Theodorsson (9.9 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 1.4 apg)
Jr. F/G: Isabella King (8.4 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 1.1 apg)
Sr./G: Caroline Dingler (5.2 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 1.6 apg)
Fr./F: Ashley Sofilkanich (11.7 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 0.7 apg)
So./G: Ashley O'Connor (2.8 ppg, 0.8 rpg, 1.2 apg)
WITH A WIN OVER MERRIMACK, BUCKNELL WOULD...
• ... improve to 3-7 on the season
• ... improve to 3-2 at home
• ... improve to 1-0 all-time against the Warriors
• ... improve to 1-0 against the Warriors under Woodruff
• ... improve to 73-41 overall under Woodruff
• ... improve to 40-14 at home under Woodruff
HEADLINES
• Bucknell completed a one-game road trip against Mount St. Mary's with a 55-46 loss to the Mountaineers. The Bison led for 23 minutes and had a slim 36-35 advantage, entering the fourth quarter. However, the Mount outscored Bucknell 20-10 in the final period to win the game. Freshman star Ashley Sofilkanich led Bucknell with 15 points. Sophomore stud Emma Theodorsson earned her second double-double of the season, scoring 12 points and gathering 13 rebounds. Bucknell fell to 3-7 all-time in the Route 15 Rivalry against Mount St. Mary'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.Â
• 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.Â
• 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.Â
• 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.Â
• 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 has dominated the circuit and recently won Player of the Month. Â
• 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 Merrimack
• The Warriors went 15-16 overall and 10-6 in NEC play during the 2022-23 season. They qualified as the third seed for the NEC Tournament. They defeated sixth-seeded SFU for the third time that year before falling 68-61 to the second-seeded Sacred Heart Pioneers. In 2023-24, Merrimack is 3-8 with wins over Bryant, Siena, and Yale. The Warriors have been vanquished by Albany, NJIT, Rider, Northeastern, #10 Utah, California-Riverside, Penn, and Dartmouth.Â
• The Bison and Warriors share two common opponents: FDU and Holy Cross.
• Merrimack was picked to finish second out of the nine teams in the NEC. Jayme DeCesare and Kaylee Thomas made the Preseason All-NEC Team.
• Merrimack announced a month ago the university will depart the NEC for the MAAC starting in the 2024-25 athletic season. Merrimack just moved up from Division II several years ago.Â
• Kelly Morrone is 32-51 in her four seasons at Merrimack.
SERIES HISTORY with THE WARRIORS
• This is the first meeting between the Bison and the Warriors.
• Merrimack is the second NEC team that Bucknell faces this season.
• Trevor Woodruff has never battled the Warriors.
Series History with Merrimack Â
12/17/23   Merrimack      First Meeting  Â
Last Time Out
• Mount St. Mary's defeated Bucknell, 55-46, on Tuesday, Dec. 5 in Emmitsburg. The Bison jumped to a 16-14 lead after the first quarter. Bucknell kept the lead into halftime up 25-22. The Orange & Blue remained one point ahead (36-35) entering the fourth period. As against Cornell, the Bucknell opponent dominated the final stanza. The Mount outscored the Bison 20-10 to win comfortably.Â
• Bucknell's offense shot 38.6%, while Mount shot 35.6%. However, the Mount recorded 59 shots to Bucknell's 45 to overcome the lower percentage. Neither team did much from three-point land as Bucknell went 4-of-13 (Isabella King hit two threes), and Mount hit 5-of-20. The Mount only had eight turnovers.Â
• Freshman Ashley Sofilkanich again led the Bison in scoring with 15 points. Sofilkanich went 7-of-10 from the charity stripe. Emma Theodorsson collected her second double-double of the season and her career, scoring 12 points and grabbing 13 rebounds. Julie Kulesza scored a season-high five points. The Mount has three double-digit scoring. Jo Raflo led the way with 14 points. Jessica Tomasetti notched 13 points, and Jada Lee added 10. Both teams each only had six scorers.Â
Notable CAREER HIGHS SET vs. Mount St. Mary's
Julie Kulesza - rebounds (5)
Ashley Sofilkanich - free throws made (7) and free throws attempted (10)
Emma Theodorsson - rebounds (13)
STREAKS OF NOTE
Isabella King — starts (25)
Up Next
The Bison will complete the non-conference and pre-Christmas campaign with a road trip to Marquette on Dec. 21.Â
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For Bison fans, the action resumes Sunday afternoon with a return to Sojka Pavilion when the Bison play Merrimack at 2:00 p.m. The game can be seen live on ESPN+, and this will be one of six men's and women's games with a holiday half-price ticket special. Click on the image below to purchase tickets, and use the promo code RAY4SNOW to get 50% off all tickets.Â
Â
Game Notes
What: Bucknell vs. Merrimack
When:Â Sunday, December 17 at 2 p.m.
Where:Â Lewisburg, Pa.-Sojka Pavilion
Streaming:Â ESPN+
Radio:Â 90.5 WVBU
Live Statistics:Â bucknellbison.com
Last Game's Starters:
So. G/F: Emma Theodorsson (9.9 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 1.4 apg)
Jr. F/G: Isabella King (8.4 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 1.1 apg)
Sr./G: Caroline Dingler (5.2 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 1.6 apg)
Fr./F: Ashley Sofilkanich (11.7 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 0.7 apg)
So./G: Ashley O'Connor (2.8 ppg, 0.8 rpg, 1.2 apg)
WITH A WIN OVER MERRIMACK, BUCKNELL WOULD...
• ... improve to 3-7 on the season
• ... improve to 3-2 at home
• ... improve to 1-0 all-time against the Warriors
• ... improve to 1-0 against the Warriors under Woodruff
• ... improve to 73-41 overall under Woodruff
• ... improve to 40-14 at home under Woodruff
HEADLINES
• Bucknell completed a one-game road trip against Mount St. Mary's with a 55-46 loss to the Mountaineers. The Bison led for 23 minutes and had a slim 36-35 advantage, entering the fourth quarter. However, the Mount outscored Bucknell 20-10 in the final period to win the game. Freshman star Ashley Sofilkanich led Bucknell with 15 points. Sophomore stud Emma Theodorsson earned her second double-double of the season, scoring 12 points and gathering 13 rebounds. Bucknell fell to 3-7 all-time in the Route 15 Rivalry against Mount St. Mary'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.Â
• 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.Â
• 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.Â
• 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.Â
• 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 has dominated the circuit and recently won Player of the Month. Â
• 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 Merrimack
• The Warriors went 15-16 overall and 10-6 in NEC play during the 2022-23 season. They qualified as the third seed for the NEC Tournament. They defeated sixth-seeded SFU for the third time that year before falling 68-61 to the second-seeded Sacred Heart Pioneers. In 2023-24, Merrimack is 3-8 with wins over Bryant, Siena, and Yale. The Warriors have been vanquished by Albany, NJIT, Rider, Northeastern, #10 Utah, California-Riverside, Penn, and Dartmouth.Â
• The Bison and Warriors share two common opponents: FDU and Holy Cross.
• Merrimack was picked to finish second out of the nine teams in the NEC. Jayme DeCesare and Kaylee Thomas made the Preseason All-NEC Team.
• Merrimack announced a month ago the university will depart the NEC for the MAAC starting in the 2024-25 athletic season. Merrimack just moved up from Division II several years ago.Â
• Kelly Morrone is 32-51 in her four seasons at Merrimack.
SERIES HISTORY with THE WARRIORS
• This is the first meeting between the Bison and the Warriors.
• Merrimack is the second NEC team that Bucknell faces this season.
• Trevor Woodruff has never battled the Warriors.
Series History with Merrimack Â
12/17/23   Merrimack      First Meeting  Â
Last Time Out
• Mount St. Mary's defeated Bucknell, 55-46, on Tuesday, Dec. 5 in Emmitsburg. The Bison jumped to a 16-14 lead after the first quarter. Bucknell kept the lead into halftime up 25-22. The Orange & Blue remained one point ahead (36-35) entering the fourth period. As against Cornell, the Bucknell opponent dominated the final stanza. The Mount outscored the Bison 20-10 to win comfortably.Â
• Bucknell's offense shot 38.6%, while Mount shot 35.6%. However, the Mount recorded 59 shots to Bucknell's 45 to overcome the lower percentage. Neither team did much from three-point land as Bucknell went 4-of-13 (Isabella King hit two threes), and Mount hit 5-of-20. The Mount only had eight turnovers.Â
• Freshman Ashley Sofilkanich again led the Bison in scoring with 15 points. Sofilkanich went 7-of-10 from the charity stripe. Emma Theodorsson collected her second double-double of the season and her career, scoring 12 points and grabbing 13 rebounds. Julie Kulesza scored a season-high five points. The Mount has three double-digit scoring. Jo Raflo led the way with 14 points. Jessica Tomasetti notched 13 points, and Jada Lee added 10. Both teams each only had six scorers.Â
Notable CAREER HIGHS SET vs. Mount St. Mary's
Julie Kulesza - rebounds (5)
Ashley Sofilkanich - free throws made (7) and free throws attempted (10)
Emma Theodorsson - rebounds (13)
STREAKS OF NOTE
Isabella King — starts (25)
Up Next
The Bison will complete the non-conference and pre-Christmas campaign with a road trip to Marquette on Dec. 21.Â
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