Edinboro Fighting Scots (16-8, 11-7 PSAC West) at Pitt-Johnstown Lady Cats (7-16, 4-13 PSAC West)DATE: Wednesday, February 10
TIME: 5:30 p.m.
LOCATION: Sports Center
CITY: Johnstown, Pa.
LIVE STATS:
http://www.sidearmstats.com/upj/wbball/LIVE STREAM: http://www4.upj.pitt.edu/video/FLASHrtmpPlayer/PJIT_Player.htmlRADIO: http://streamdb4web.securenetsystems.net/v5/WFSE GAME STORYThe Fighting Scots will make the final stop of a three-game road trip this Wednesday, traveling to Pitt-Johnstown. With a win at Pitt-Johnstown, Edinboro will clinch its seventh straight PSAC playoff appearance. The Fighting Scots sit in fourth place in the PSAC West with a 16-8 record and an 11-7 mark in conference play and hold a three-game lead over seventh-place Seton Hill with only three games remaining.
It will be the second meeting between the two teams this season as Edinboro looks for a third consecutive season sweep of the Lady Cats. The Fighting Scots took the first go-around in Edinboro, 61-59.
The Edinboro University women's basketball team comes off a 73-60 loss at Indiana (Pa.) this past Saturday. The Fighting Scots have won seven of their last nine games, including recording season sweeps of Mercyhurst and Slippery Rock.
The Lady Cats enter the contest at 7-16 overall and are in last place in the PSAC West with a 4-13 record in conference play. Pitt-Johnstown has lost six in a row and eleven of its last 12 outings, including the 61-59 loss at the hands of Edinboro in McComb Fieldhouse on January 16.
In the season's first meeting, the Fighting Scots led for all but 19 seconds of the game, but had to withstand a late Pitt-Johnstown rally to hold on for a 61-59 victory. Edinboro won the battle of the boards, holding a 45-35 advantage on the glass. The Fighting Scots will look for another repeat performance on the boards as Pitt-Johnstown ranks 11
th in the PSAC with a -1.0 rebound margin, while Edinboro is the second-best on the glass in the conference at +5.8.
The Fighting Scots average 68.7 ppg., good for ninth in the PSAC, while allowing 63.7 ppg., which ranks sixth. Pitt-Johnstown comes into the contest averaging 67.0 ppg., which is tenth in the PSAC, while allowing 71.3 ppg., ranking 17
th in the conference.
Edinboro ranks among the leaders in Division II in several categories. The Fighting Scots are 12
th in total assists (381), 14
th in total blocks (112), and 16
th in total rebounds (995). Those figures all lead the PSAC.
The Fighting Scots feature a dangerous trio of 3-pt. shooters in
Michelle Jahn,
Lauren Hippo, and
Katie Fischer. The trio is the first since 2013-14 to record 45 3-pointers apiece (
Valerie Majewski,
Laurel Lindsay,
Lauren Hippo). Jahn, Hippo, and Fischer combine to account for 144 of Edinboro's 146 3-pointers.
Edinboro has been a fast starter and a strong finisher this year, outscoring opponents by 107 combined points in the first and fourth quarters. However, the Fighting Scots have been outscored by opponents, 417-401, in the third quarter.
The Fighting Scots have made frequent trips to the charity stripe this season, ranking third in the PSAC with 453 free throw attempts. Edinboro is 14-3 in games where they attempt 15-or-more free throws and just 2-5 when they attempt less than 15 foul shots.
Edinboro has maintained a strong presence on the glass this season, ranking second in the PSAC with a +5.8 rebound margin. The Fighting Scots has been out-rebounded in just six contests this season and are 1-5 in those games.
ON THE RADIOThe Edinboro-UPJ game will be broadcast on WFSE 88.9. Drew Patrick will handle the play-by-play duties with Mike Lantinen on color commentary.
ON STREAMThe Edinboro-UPJ game will be streamed by Pitt-Johnstown at
http://www4.upj.pitt.edu/video/FLASHrtmpPlayer/PJIT_Player.html ALL-TIME SERIESEdinboro leads 11-10 The Fighting Scots have won five in a row and nine of the last ten meetings. Last Meeting: January 16, 2016 – at Edinboro 61, Pitt-Johnstown 59
The Fighting Scots led for all but 19 seconds of the contest in McComb Fieldhouse, but needed to withstand a late Pitt-Johsntown rally to ensure the victory. Trailing 60-56 with 11 seconds remaining in the game, Pitt-Johnstown's Ana Hollen drilled a 3-pointer to cut the defecit to just one point at 60-59. The Lady Cats sent
Katie Fischer to the line on the ensuing possession and she split a pair of free throws to increase the lead to two points at 61-59 and give Pitt-Johnstown a chance to tie or win with six seconds remaining. A Kayla DeCriscio 3-pointer clanked off the front of the rim as time expired to give Edinboro the victory. Fischer led a pair of Edinboro scorers in double figures with 18 points.
Aignee' Freeland finished with a double-double, totaling 15 points and 10 boards. Jamie Tabon and Olivia McCabe led the Lady Cats with 13 points apiece.
FULL BOX SCORE /
FULL RECAP LAST TIME OUTFebruary 6, 2016 –at Indiana (Pa.) 73, Edinboro 60The Fighting Scots suffered a cold shooting second half en route to a loss at second-place Indiana (Pa.). After leading by as many as seven points in the first half and trailing by just one point at 33-32 to begin the second half, Edinboro shot just 25.0 percent (8-of-32) from the field and made just 1-of-13 3-pointers in the second half. The Crimson Hawks opened the final quarter on a 7-2 run to take a double-digit lead for good at 66-51 with 6:40 remaining to play. The Fighting Scots mustered just 11 points in the fourth quarter.
Katie Fischer led a trio of Fighting Scots in double-figures with 20 points.
Aignee' Freeland added 19, while
Lauren Hippo contributed 12.
FULL BOX SCORE /
FULL RECAPFebruary 6, 2016 – Gannon 84, at Pitt-Johnstown 54Gannon jumped out to a quick 15-3 just five minutes into the game and built the lead to 26-8 by the end of the first quarter. The Lady Cats would never recover, trailing by double-figures for all but five minutes of the contest and trailed by as many as 30 in the fourth quarter. Pitt-Johnstown shot just 31.6 percent (18-of-57) from the field and were 8-of-28 from beyond the arc. The Lady Cats turned the ball over 18 times, which led to 22 points off turnovers for the Golden Knights. Kayla DeCriscio led a pair of Lady Cats in double figures with 14 points. Jasmine Harper added 13 points and six rebounds.
FULL BOX SCORE /
FULL RECAP The Head Coaches Edinboro: Stan Swank (Purdue '76, 529-291, 29th year)Swank is in his 29
th season as the head coach at Edinboro and ranks as the all-time winningest coach in PSAC history and is also the longest tenured. He owns a career record of 529-291 at Edinboro, and over the previous five seasons Edinboro had a 125-27 record. The Fighting Scots seek their seventh straight PSAC Tournament appearance and have won three PSAC championships during that five-year span, the last coming in 2014. Swank entered the 2015-16 season tied for 12
th among active Division II coaches in victories. That figure is tied for 24
th all-time in overall victories. He ranks 35
th in career winning percentage (.645). Edinboro finished with a 20-8 record a year ago, the fifth straight season with 20-or-more wins and the 11
th in Swank's career. He guided the Fighting Scots to a 16-6 record in the PSAC West, good for fourth place. Edinboro defeated Seton Hill, 68-53, in the first round of the PSAC Tournament before suffering a 71-63 loss to Indiana(Pa.) in the quarterfinals. The Fighting Scots qualified for the PSAC Tournament for the sixth straight year and 11th time in the last 12 years.
Pitt-Johnstown: Mike Drahos (West Virginia '08, 27-49, 3rd year)Drahos is in his third season at the helm at Pitt-Johnstown. In his debut season, Drahos led the Mountain Cats to a PSAC playoff berth with a 7-9 record in conference play. Prior to accepting the position at Pitt-Johnstown, Drahos spent five seasons as an assistant coach at West Liberty. During his stint at West Liberty, the Hilltoppers amassed a 107-47 overall record and appeared in the NCAA Tournament twice. During his playing days, Drahos was a two-time PAC Player of the Year and three-time First Team all-conference selection at Bethany.
SCOUTING THE FIGHTING SCOTS2015-16 STATS: HTML / XML2015-16 ROSTER PROBABLE STARTERS
TOP RESERVESPLAYERS TO WATCHAignee' Freeland (F, 6'3", Sr.) – a two-time All-PSAC West selection, Freeland joined the 1,000-point club as a junior. The senior forward ranks seventh on Edinboro's all-time scoring list with 1,458 career points. She is also third all-time in career rebounds with 916 boards. Heather Gates (1,301) and Montique Wade (1,113) rank first and second, respectively. Freeland is also fifth all-time in career blocks with 129. The 6'3'' forward leads the PSAC with 45 blocks this season, the 13
th-most in single-season history. She also ranks fifth in the PSAC in scoring (16.3 ppg.) and seventh in rebounding (8.8 rpg.). Freeland has recorded nine double-doubles this season, good for fifth in the PSAC.
Lauren Hippo (G, 5'10", Sr.) – the 5'10" senior recorded her 1,000
th career point recently at Gannon, joining fellow senior
Aignee' Freeland in the 1,000-point club. Fittingly, her 1,000th career-point came off a 3-pointer. She is tied for 28
th on the all-time scoring list with Lachelle Crawl (1999-03) at 1,034 points and ranks among the all-time 3-point shooters in Edinboro history. Hippo is ranked second all-time in 3-point percentage at 38.8 percent, fifth in career 3-pointers made (169) and sixth in career 3-pointers attempted (436). She is tenth in the PSAC with 46 3-pointers made and tenth with a 29.7 3-pt. percentage while averaging 12.1 ppg. Hippo also ranks fourth on the team in rebounding, averaging a career-high 5.0 rpg.
Katie Fischer (G, 5'7", Jr.) – the transfer from Mercyhurst is in her first season at Edinboro and continues her impressive season as a Fighting Scot, leading the PSAC and ranking sixth in Division II with 6.4 assists per game. She ranks third in the nation with 154 total assists, the seventh-most in single-season history. Fischer is tied with
Aignee' Freeland for the scoring lead, averaging 16.3 ppg., good for sixth in the PSAC. Fischer has recorded four double-digit assist games this season and posted five double-doubles.
Michelle Jahn (G, 5'8'', Fr.) - the four-time PSAC West Freshman of the week has proven to be one of the most dangerous 3-pt. threats in the conference. The General McLane product ranks third in the PSAC with a 41.7 3-pt. percentage and fourth with 53 3-pt. field goals. Jahn has scored in double figures in four of the past five contests and has recorded a 3-pt. field goal in all but four games this season. She is fourth on the team averaging 11.6 ppg.
SCOUTING THE LADY CATS2015-16 STATS: XML2015-16 ROSTER The Lady Cats are searching for their first win since January 13 when they upset Indiana (Pa.) 87-86 in overtime. Pitt-Johnstown has lost six straight contests since then, including the first meeting with Edinboro on January 16. Five of the Lady Cats' losses this season have been decided by five points or less and eight by 10 points or less.
Pitt-Johnstown has struggled at home lately. Since starting the season 4-1 at the Sports Center, the Lady Cats are just 1-4 playing at home since.
Sophomore Olivia McCabe is the only starter to score in double-figures for Pitt-Johnstown, averaging 11.0 ppg. She also leads the Lady Cats in rebounding, averaging 7.6 rpg. McCabe joins Edinboro's
Aignee' Freeland as one of the most feared shot-blockers in the conference, ranking sixth in the PSAC with 32 blocks.
Jasmine Harper, a second-team 2015 All-PSAC West selection and a member of the 1,000-point club, comes off the bench to contribute 13.0 ppg. The 6'0'' senior forward is also the team's second-leading rebounder, averaging 6.6 rpg.
PROBABLE STARTERS
| | | | | | PPG | RPG |
| F | 11 | Olivia McCabe | 6-0 | So. | Portage, Pa. | 11.0 | 7.6 |
| F | 34 | Jamie Tabon | 5-10 | Jr. | Pittsburgh, Pa. | 6.2 | 6.0 |
| G | 4 | Olivia Rizzo | 5-5 | Sr. | Harrison City, Pa. | 7.0 | 2.5 |
| G | 14 | Ana Hollen | 5-7 | Fr. | Bellowood, Pa. | 9.4 | 3.5 |
| G | 20 | Laurel O'Barto | 5-5 | Fr. | Blairsville, Pa. | 4.7 | 2.9 |
NEXT FOR THE FIGHTING SCOTS: Saturday, February 13 vs. Clarion
HIPPO JOINS THE 1,000-POINT CLUBSenior Lauren recorded her 1,000
th career point recently at Gannon. Hippo totaled 14 points, hitting the milestone with a 3-pointer in the fourth quarter. Hippo is also one of the most prolific 3-pt. shooters in Edinboro history, ranking among the top in all 3-pt. categories. She is third on the team this season, shooting 29.7 percent from beyond the arc.
Career Points| 1. | Samantha Reimer (2006-10) | 1,926 |
| 2. | Jessica Rowe (1996-00) | 1,846 |
| 3. | Montique Wade (1986-90) | 1,775 |
| 4. | Sarah Bishop (1986-90) | 1,652 |
| 5. | Kelsey Conklin (2006-10) | 1,557 |
| 6. | Kelly Calderone (2004-07) | 1,460 |
| 7. | Aignee' Freeland (2012-Pres.) | 1,458 |
| 8. | Renee' Brown (2008-12) | 1,430 |
| 9. | Meghan Miller (1995-99) | 1,426 |
| 10. | Shauna Nevel (1992-96) | 1,384 |
| 11. | Samantha Blazetic (2009-13) | 1,372 |
| 12. | Lori Montgomery (1992-96) | 1,356 |
| 13. | Tina Skidmore (1977-81) | 1,337 |
| 14. | Heather Gates (1994-98) | 1,320 |
| 15. | Kiara Brown (2010-13) | 1,278 |
| 16. | Tammy Walker-Strode (1990-92) | 1,273 |
| 17. | Krystal Henson (1999-03) | 1,263 |
| 18. | Marin Hightower (1997-00) | 1,218 |
| 19. | Maria DiVecchio (2002-06) | 1,214 |
| 20. | Jeannine Jean-Pierre (1991-93) | 1,203 |
| 21. | Audrey Scott (1976-80) | 1,191 |
| 22. | Ellen Mulligan (1980-84) | 1,169 |
| 23. | Darche' Jackson (2010-14) | 1,167 |
| 24. | Laurel Lindsay (2010-15) | 1,165 |
| 25. | Amy Rapelje (1994-98) | 1,105 |
| 26. | Mary Ann Chilcott (1981-85) | 1,068 |
| 27. | Lori Dolby (1977-80) | 1,067 |
| 28. | Lachelle Crawl (1999-03) | 1,034 |
| Lauren Hippo (2012-Pres.) | 1,034 |
Career 3-Pt. Field Goal Percentage (minimum 100 attempts) | 1. | Valerie Majewski (2013-15) | .396 |
| 2. | Lauren Hippo (2012-Pres.) | .388 |
| 3. | Meghan Miller (1995-99) | .377 |
| 4. | Jessica Rowe (1996-00) | .358 |
| 5. | Laurel Lindsay (2010-15) | .349 |
| 6. | Hope Mancini (2010-15) | .344 |
| 7. | Kelly Calderone (2004-07) | .343 |
| 8. | Krystal Henson (1999-03) | .342 |
| 9. | Mari Hollman (1990-91) | .339 |
| 10. | Kelli Mankowski (1994-98) | .338 |
Career 3-Point Field Goals Made | 1. | Krystal Henson (1999-03) | 275 |
| 2. | Meghan Miller (1995-99) | 222 |
| 3. | Jodi Calderone (2001-05) | 209 |
| 4. | Samantha Reimer (2006-10) | 190 |
| 5. | Lauren Hippo (2012-Pres.) | 169 |
| 6. | Kelly Calderone (2004-07) | 153 |
| 7. | Jessica Rowe (1996-00) | 140 |
| 8. | Kiara Brown (2010-13) | 139 |
| 9. | Laurel Lindsay (2010-15) | 128 |
| 10. | Valerie Majewski (2013-15) | 110 |
Career 3-Point Field Goals Attempted | 1. | Krystal Henson (1999-03) | 803 |
| 2. | Jodi Calderone (2001-05) | 653 |
| 3. | Samantha Reimer (2006-10) | 610 |
| 4. | Meghan Miller (1995-99) | 589 |
| 5. | Kelly Calderone (2004-07) | 446 |
| 6. | Lauren Hippo (2012-Pres.) | 436 |
| 7. | Kiara Brown (2010-13) | 421 |
| 8. | Jessica Rowe (1996-00) | 391 |
| 9. | Laurel Lindsay (2010-15) | 367 |
| 10. | Shauna Nevel (1992-96) | 345 |
AIGNEE' FREELAND CRACKS TOP TEN IN CAREER SCORING, RANKS THIRD IN CAREER REBOUNDS, AND SIXTH IN CAREER BLOCKSAignee' Freeland joined the 1,000-point club as a junior and recently moved into ninth all-time on the career points list. The senior ranks fifth in the PSAC, averaging 16.23ppg. Freeland has also been a force to be reckoned with on the glass her entire career and this season is no different. She ranks seventh in the PSAC with 8.8 rpg. and has recorded nine double-doubles this year. Freeland has turned away 45 shots this season, the 13
th most in single-season history and putting her career total at 129.
Rebounds| 1. | Heather Gates (1994-198) | 1,301 |
| 2. | Montique Wade (1986-90) | 1,113 |
| 3. | Aignee' Freeland (2012-Pres.) | 916 |
| 4. | Tina Skidmore (1977-81) | 809 |
| 5. | Samantha Blazetic (2009-13) | 784 |
| 6. | Tammy Walker-Strode (1990-92) | 777 |
| 7. | Kelsey Conkil (2006-10) | 772 |
| 8. | Renee' Brown (2008-12) | 735 |
| 9. | Terri Ayers (1990-93) | 721 |
| 10. | Amy Rapelje (1994-98) | 716 |
Blocks| 1. | Samantha Blazetic (2009-13) | 285 |
| 2. | Terri Ayers (1990-93) | 159 |
| 3. | Toyia Giles (1988-90) | 141 |
| 4. | Kate Kosewicz (1974-77) | 130 |
| 5. | Aignee' Freeland (2012-Pres.) | 129 |
| 6. | Micki Cerchiaro (2008-12) | 127 |
| 7. | Agnieszka Michalow (2005-07) | 106 |
| 8. | Donna Esposito (1982-86) | 102 |
| 9. | Heather Gates (1994-98) | 88 |
| 10. | Renee' Brown (2008-12) | 86 |
KATIE FISCHER DISHING IT OUTFirst-year Fighting Scot
Katie Fischer leads the PSAC with 6.4 assists per game and 154 total assists. Fischer's 154 assists rank seventh on the single-season leaderboard.
Assists
| 1. | Callie Iorfido (2005-06) | 249 |
| 2. | Andrea Martre (1989-90) | 236 |
| 3. | Callie Iorfido (2004-05) | 225 |
| 4. | Laurel Lindsay (2014-15) | 206 |
| 5. | Desiree Alexander (1991-92) | 204 |
| 6. | Desiree Alexander (1990-91) | 188 |
| 7. | Katie Fischer (2015-16) | 154 |
| 8. | Karen Urey (1988-89) | 151 |
| 9. | Pam Artman (1992-93) | 146 |
| Karen Urey (1987-88) | 146 |
