Bob Heller’s Philly WBB Small College Report: Of Streaks and Milestones

by Bob Heller (@Bob_Heller1)

 

Streaks extended, streaks snapped, schools going undefeated for the week and another player reaching a milestone.  This is just a quick summary of last week’s small college women’s basketball action in the Philadelphia area.

 

We are going to start this week’s report with the hottest team in the Colonial States Athletic Conference (CSAC) – Cabrini University.

 

Cabrini win streak extends to 13

The Cavaliers won all three of their games last week, defeating Widener University (89-83 in overtime), Neumann University (60-54) and Marywood (74-69).

  The three wins extend Cabrini’s winning streak to 13 games, the longest by an area small college program this season.  The Cavs remain undefeated in conference play at 8-0 and improve to 15-2 on the season.

 

A pair of freshmen have been key to Cabrini’s success this season. 

Lexi Edwards exploded for a career high 31 points Sunday’s win over Marywood andhas reached double figures in four straight games.  Kate Lannon led the team with 24 points against Widener and scored ten against Marywood.  The freshman duo are Cabrini’s two leading scorers.  

 

Sophomore Meghan Matthews contributed 21 points in the win over Widener and added 13 as the Cavs defeated Neumann, handing the Knights their first conference loss and snapping their seven game win streak. 

 Junior Nomi Washington led the Cavs in the Neumann game with 16 points. Junior Sabrina Hackendorn has been Cabrini’s force on the boards of late, securing 25 rebounds over the past three games.

 

Neumann was led by Nafisa Saunders’ 22 points.  Lauren Legler added ten while Minnika Glenn added eight points and grabbed eight rebounds.  Neumann falls to 12-5 overall and 7-1 in league play. The Cabrini contest was the Knights only game during the week.

 

While USciences makes it ten straight wins

 

Cabrini is not the only area school to have a current win streak of at least ten games.

  Division II University of the Sciences extended their winning streak to ten with a win over Holy Family University (72-51) and Felician University (63-51).  

Coach Jackie Hartzell’s program has now won 17 games for the fourth time in her five years as their head coach.  At 17-2 overall and 9-1 in Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) game, Hartzell and her squad are clicking on all cylinders much like Cabrini.

 

Unlike Cabrini however, the Devils are winning with seniors and juniors. 

 Sarah Abbonizio continues to star, pouring in a career-high 27 points against Felician after scoring 12 earlier in the week against Holy Family.  Junior Alex Thomas had 17 points against the Golden Falcons of Felician and 13 against Holy Family.  

Senior Laura Trisch has been providing additional offense as well as being a rebounding force underneath, grabbing ten boards in the Felician game.  With senior Colleen Walsh and sophomore Jordan Vitelli also in the starting lineup, all five USciences starters are outside threats, combining for 171 three-point field goals in 19 games with Vitelli leading the way with 47 long balls.

 

Abbonizio was recently named the CACC’s Student-Athlete of the Month. She earned the award for achieving athletic and academic success, while also taking time to give back to her surrounding community.

 

One final note on the Devils, their 17-2 record is their best 19-game start in program history, as is their 9-1 conference record.

 

Three other Division II squads went undefeated last week, West Chester University, Lincoln and Jefferson, along with the Division III squads the College of New Jersey and Haverford College who we will look at first with one of their seniors reaching the 1,000 career point milestone.

 

Haverford’s Berkel, Chestnut Hill’s Wildgoose Score their 1,000th career point

 

Sierra Berkel became the seventh Haverford College player to reach 1,000 career points with her 17-point effort in the Fords’ 61-43 win over Franklin and Marshall on Saturday. 

 The victory was Haverford’s third of the week and their seventh win in their last eight games.  The Fords are now 13-3 overall and 9-2 in Centennial conference games.

 

Berkel’s 17 points led the Fords against F&M and the senior reached the 1,000 point milestone with a free throw in the fourth quarter.  She also grabbed eight rebounds.  

 

Haverford also scored victories over Swarthmore (63-41) and Immaculata (65-48). 

 Berkel, along with Samantha Wetzel scored 18 points apiece to lead the Fords against the Mighty Macs with Wetzel also grabbing a game-high nine rebounds. The senior duo also scored 13 points apiece in the win over Swarthmore with Megan Furch chipping in ten points and a team-high six rebounds.

 

Berkel was not the only area player to reach 1,000 career points last week as Chestnut Hill’s Jaeda Wildgoose notched her 1,000th in the Griffin’s 84-75 loss to Bloomfield College (more on that game later). 

 Wildgoose reached the milestone late in the second quarter making the first of two free throws that cut Bloomfield’s lead to six at the time.

 

West Chester and Lincoln Extend Win Streaks

Moving south of the main line and into Chester County where West Chester University has strung together eight straight wins to move atop the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) East Division standings with a 10-3 PSAC mark and a 13-4 overall record.

 

The high powered Golden Rams offense defeated Shippensburg 82-74 Saturday for their eight straight win.  Mia Hopkins again led the way with 19 points while Camden Boehner added 13.  Justyn Roberts and Lexi Bruno had 12 and 11 points respectively.

 

Boehner’s 21 points led West Chester to an 84-77 win over East Stroudsburg University on Wednesday in a battle for sole possession of first place in the PSAC East.  Hopkins and Porscha Speller had 18 points apiece while Bruno chipped in 15.  

 

A little further south, Lincoln University has quietly strung together seven straight conference victories and sits at 12-4 on the season and a program best 7-1 in the tough Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA).

 The Lions sit in second place in the CIAA north Division behind Nationally ranked Virginia Union University (#9/#11).  VUU climbed this week to the top spot in the D2SIDA regional poll and will be the Lions’ next opponent.

 

Lincoln rallied from a double digit second quarter deficit to defeat Elizabeth City State University 57-49 to extend their win streak.  Freshman DeeDee Irwin was the lone Lions player in double figures, coming off the bench to score a career-high 19 points while grabbing a career-high five rebounds in the process.

 

Jefferson went undefeated last week…

Back in the CACC, Jefferson University went a perfect 2-0 last week and now has won four straight to boast a 16-2 mark and remain tied with USciences atop the CACC South with a 9-1 conference record.

 

The Rams’ two wins were of the blowout variety as they defeated Wilmington 92-49 and Concordia (NY) 85-42.  

Rachel Day led five Rams in double figures with 21 points against Wilmington with the team as a whole shooting a season-best 55.2% from the field.  Alyanna Williams chipped in 13 points (5-5 FG) while Jess Kaminski stuffed the stat sheet with 10 points, nine rebounds, six assists, three steals and a block.

 

Kaminski notched a double-double with 14 points and ten rebounds against Concordia.  She also added seven assists.  

Williams added 13 and Erin Maher chipped in ten.  Jefferson held the Clippers to just two points in the third quarter while scoring 24 to lead 70-21 as they cruised to the win.

 

As does TCNJ in New Jersey…

Over in New Jersey, the College of New Jersey won two low scoring affairs last week, defeating  Rutgers-Camden 50-45 and Kean College 48-34.  The Lions improve to 14-4 overall and 9-2 in New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) games.

  TCNJ sits in second place in the league standings, behind 11-0 Montclair State.

 

Jen Byrne led the Lions in both contests scoring 14 points against Rutgers-Camden and 15 points in the win over Kean.  Shannon Devitt notched a double-double against Rutgers with 13 points and 14 rebounds.  Devitt also had a game-high 14 rebounds in the win over Kean.  

 

Elsewhere in the CACC…

 

Chestnut Hill College and Holy Family University split their two conference games last week. 

 Chestnut Hill defeated Dominican College 80-71 before the Griffins lost at Bloomfield College 85-74 snapping their six game win streak.  Holy Family lost to USciences 72-51 before defeating Post University 69-67.

 

Jaeda Wildgoose led the Griffins with 24 points in the win against Dominican and added 13 points in the loss at Bloomfield, which included the 1,000th of her career (see mention above). 

 Freshman guard Cassie Sebold continued her stellar play with 22 points off the bench against Dominican.  Sebold, the daughter of former Villanova superstar Susan Sebold (nee Glenning) has earned CACC Rookie of the Week honors five times so far this season.  

 

Vicky Tumasz was the third Griffin in double figures in the Dominican win and added a team high 22 points in the loss at Bloomfield.  She continues to lead the Griffins in scoring this season at 17 points per game.  Wildgoose is averaging 16 while Sebold averages 12.

 

The Griffins sit in third place in the CACC South with an 8-2 conference record and a 12-7 overall mark.

 

Holy Family’s Casey Thomas was the lone Tiger in double figures in the loss against USciences with 16 points while also leading the team with six rebounds.  

The Tigers trailed by eight at halftime against Post and by four entering the final quarter before quickly tying the game.  

The two teams exchanged baskets until Alexis Hofstaedter (9 points) put the Tigers up for good with a minute left.  

Katie O’Hare led four players in double figures with 17 points while Thomas chipped in 16.  Casey Schweitzer and Anjali Hayes had 11 and 10 respectively.

 

Cheyney Earns a PSAC Win

Meanwhile back in the PSAC, Cheyney University outscored Lock Haven 27-2 in the opening quarter and hung on to earn the 80-73 win, just their second conference triumph of the season.  The Wolves (4-14, 2-10 PSAC) were led by Takayla Ellis’ 21 points and Marlon Herring’s 18 points and 15 rebounds.  

 

Lock Haven did come all the way back to tie the game but the Wolves finished the game with a 12-5 spurt to earn the win.

 

 

Elsewhere in the CSAC..

As we move back into the Division III ranks and the CSAC, Rosemont College won their first two games last week, defeating Keystone College 61-51 and Cairn University 72-50 before bowing to Centenary (NJ) 88-79.

 

Jasmyn Parker has had the hot hand for the Ravens, scoring a total of 62 points in Rosemont’s three games last week.  

The senior guard opened her week with 21 points against Keystone on Monday, added 19 two days later against Cairn and closed out the week with 22 points in the Ravens loss to Centenary.

 

Ke’alohilani Naone-Carter contributed 13 points and nine rebounds in the win over Cairn and 14 points in the loss to Centenary.  

Shawn Dowd and Leilani Naone-Carter scored 12 and 10 points respectively against Keystone. Ayanna Thompson and Kira Lewis scored 12 points apiece in the Centenary loss while Leilani Naone-Carter added 10.

 

The Ravens sit in third place in the CSAC South with and 11-7 overall mark and 5-4 conference record.

 

Cairn meanwhile was led by Payton Emrick’s 11 points and 18 rebounds in the loss to the Ravens.  The Highlanders rebounded from the loss with a 66-56 win over Keystone and Saturday.

 

The Highlanders placed three players in double figures in the Keystone win, led by Emrick’s 13 points.  Jenna Krage added 12 points while Kendra Stum chipped in ten.  Cairn improve to 6-9 overall and 2-6 in CSAC games with the win.

 

Area MAC Teams Struggle…

Over in the Mid-Atlantic Conference, Arcadia University was the only local squad in the league to earn a win last week as the Knights defeated another area team Widener University 71-68 on Wednesday.

 

The Knights also suffered two losses on the week, falling to Connecticut College 72-59 and Stevenson 71-62.  Their record now stands at 8-10 overall and 3-6 in MAC Commonwealth games.

 

Taylor Dunn and Sydney Cyr led the Knights in the win over Widener with 19 and 15 points respectively. 

Camille Menns added 12 points.  Widener got 21 points and nine rebounds from Allison Gallagher and 16 points from Devan Rimmer in a losing effort.

 

Kylie Fischer meanwhile led the Knights with 15 points in their loss at Connecticut College. 

 Taylor Fritz and Hayley Still had 11 points apiece.  Dunn was Arcadia’s leading scorer in the loss to Stevenson with 17 points.  Cyr, Menns and Fritz had ten points apiece.  

 

Widener meanwhile dropped games at Cabrini (mentioned above) and at Albright College 67-52.  The Pride fall to 9-9 overall and 3-6 in MAC Commonwealth games.

 

Gallagher led Widener with 27 points in the loss at Cabrini.  Madison Ireland added 13 while Rimmer and Tatiana Pleasant had 10 points apiece.   In the loss at Albright, Rimmer and Ireland led the Pride with 145 and 13 points respectively.

 

Shifting over to the MAC Freedom, Eastern University and Delaware Valley University both suffered losses this week to first place FDU-Florham  with the eagles falling 71-63 on Wednesday and the Aggies 68-42 on Saturday. 

Both squads also lost to second place Manhattanville as well last week with Aggies dropping a 75-47 decision on Wednesday and the Eagles losing 62-53 on Saturday.

 

In the loss to FDU-Florham, the Aggies were led by 11 points from Danielle Skedzielewski to go with four rebounds while Ashley Smink finished with eight points and five boards.

  At Manhattanville, Smink led the team with 13 points while Monika Smallwood chipped in ten.

 

The Eagles held a lead against the first place FDU-Florham squad for the first 34 minutes before the Devils took over with an 11-2 run late in the game to break the game open.  Taylor Price led Eastern with 23 points and nine rebounds.

 

Eastern again held a lead in the fourth quarter before succumbing to Manhattanville.  Brianna Young-Harris and Da’Naziah Brown had 14 points apiece to pace the Eagles in the loss.

 

Back to New Jersey…

The Eagles opened the week with a loss to Rowan University, 89-78.  This game was originally to be played over the Christmas holiday but was postponed due to a winter storm that passed through the area.  

 

Young-Harris led five Eastern players in double figures in the loss at Rowan with 17 points.  She also grabbed 12 rebounds to record a double-double.  Price and Maya Harris added 14 and 13 points apiece while Amanda Riiff scored 11.  Taylor Azer chipped in ten points.

 

Rowan also placed five players in double figures led by Dominique Peters’ 29 points. Alex Raring added 15 while Summer Crilley and April Szymczyk added 13 points apiece. Olivia Rulon chipped in ten.  Szymczyk and Crilley had nine and eight rebounds respectively.

 

Rowan won their second game of the week on Saturday, defeating William Paterson University 70-48. 

 Szymczyk led the Profs with 20 points while Peters chipped in 14.  Rowan’s record now stands at 11-6 overall and 8-3in the NJAC.  The Profs sit in third place in the league standings behind Montclair State and TCNJ.

 

Rutgers-Camden also won on Saturday, defeating New Jersey City University, 72-38.  Michelle Obasi led the Scarlet Raptors with 12 points. Cara Racobaldo and Gabby Greene chipped in 11 apiece.  Ariel Robinson led the team with nine rebounds.  The Scarlet Raptors are now 9-8 overall and 6-5 in NJAC games.

 

In other Centennial Conference action…

Back over the river into Pennsylvania we will close out this week’s notebook with a look at some of the other area schools in the Centennial Conference.

 

Lydia Konstanzer recorded her second double-double of the week with 13 points and 13 rebounds but it was not enough as McDaniel clawed their way to a 49 41 win over Ursinus College on Saturday.

  Aliyah Stevens added ten points. The Bears fall to 9-8 overall and 6-6 in Centennial games.

 

Earlier in the week, the Bears notched a 61-41 win over Bryn Mawr College with Konstanzer leading the way with 12 points and 11 rebounds.  The Bears defense forced the Owls into 29 turnovers which led to 28 Ursinus points as they led wire-to-wire.

 

Bryn Mawr remains winless on the season at 0-15.  Swarthmore College defeated the Owls 53-50 on Monday to give the Garnet their first conference win of the season.

 

Isabelle Ewart led the garnet with 13 points while Audra Woodside added ten.  Raina Williams and Abigail Pirron led the team with ten rebounds apiece.

 

Laya Paladugu led Bryn Mawr with 12 points while  Halena Martin chipped in ten.  Sydney Garner had a game-high 15 rebounds for the Owls.

 

Swarthmore is currently 3-12 overall and 1-9 in Centennial games.

 

In closing and a peek at the week ahead…

 

Sources tell me that there may be up to three more players reaching their 1,000th career point in games this week.

  Stay tuned and find out.  

In the meanwhile big games in Division II on Wednesday with Jefferson playing at Chestnut Hill and Lincoln hosting the #1 team in the Atlantic Region nationally ranked Virginia Union University. 

 USciences hosts CACC North leader Caldwell University on Saturday.

Gwynedd Mercy who was idle last week will play Division I University of Pennsylvania at the Palestra at 1 p.m. on Sunday.  The Griffins will also travel to Rosemont on Wednesday. 

Immaculata hosts Neumann University and Haverford hosts Ursinus, also on Wednesday.

Rowan will play Rutgers Camden on Wednesday and host nationally ranked Montclair State on Saturday.

Check each institution’s athletic website for game times and live stat/video availability.

Until next week….