Game Info: Thursday, March 11, 2021 - 7:00 p.m.
Location: Alumni Gym - Glenside, Pa.
Game Info: Friday, March 12, 2021 - 7:00 p.m.
Location: Schwartz Athletic Center - Chester, Pa.
Social Media: @WidenerSports |
@WUWBB
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Opening Tip
The Widener University women's basketball team steps away from MAC Commonwealth play to close the regular season with a MAC Freedom crossover series against the Arcadia Knights. Tipoff in the Thursday, March 11 opener from Alumni Gym in Glenside is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
Last Time Out - Schenk Posts Double-Double For @WUWBB Against No. 13 Messiah
Kyra Schenk posted her fourth double-double of the season, but the Pride fell to the No. 13 Messiah Falcons 65-42 on Friday night.
BY THE NUMBERS
- Schenk posted 12 points and 11 rebounds in the contest. She now has 635 boards in her career, just six away from 10th place on the Widener all-time list. She also had three blocks and three assists,
- Erin Phelan contributed with eight points and eight rebounds.
- Jordan D'Ambrosio tallied nine.
- Off the bench, Brooke Bachtle had three points and five boards. Charlotte Stern chipped in four points and three rebounds.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The game got off to a great start for the Blue and Gold, who connected on 8-of-14 shots in the opening frame and pulled ahead 17-8 on a layup by Phelan. From that point, the shooting went cold for both teams. Widener shot just 2-of-12 in the second quarter with the Falcons going 5-of-21. On the strength of offensive rebounding and second chance points, Messiah chipped away at the lead for the Pride, tying the game on a driving layup before the half.
The third period saw the Falcons pull away, before securing the victory in the fourth quarter.
Scouting Report
Arcadia enters the game 5-3 overall, most recently splitting a two-game set against Lycoming with both teams winning on their home floor. Like Widener, the Knights have completed conference play, but are still in contention for the MAC Freedom championship as the second seed, pending the results of games this week involving Lycoming, Misericordia, and Delaware Valley.
Julia Makowski leads Arcadia in scoring at 16.1 points per game, thanks in large part to getting to the line as she attempts nearly six free throws a game and converts 77.8 percent of her shots from the charity stripe. Taylor Fritz and Scarlett Glasser-Nehis provide complimentary scoring options, netting 9.0 and 8.6 an outing respectively. Makowski holds the triple crown for AU, leading the team in rebounds per game (8.3) and assists per contest (3.0) as well.
It isn't just Makowski that is drawing fouls and getting to the line. As a team, the Knights lead the MAC Freedom with 117 free throw attempts, knocking down 79, also the top mark in the conference. Despite the opportunity for free points, scoring has been slightly inconsistent, topping the 60-point mark just twice this year while being held below 50 on three occasions. The defense has been good, holding opponents to 55.9 points per game.
Now in her seventh season, Rose Katz-Gobeli holds a 70-90 record as the head coach of the Knights and an 85-148 record in 10 seasons overall as a collegiate head coach. She has guided Arcadia to a trio of 12-win seasons in her tenure, including each of the last two years.
Crossing Over (Part I)
For the first time this season, Widener plays outside the MAC Commonwealth. As designated in the schedule released by the Middle Atlantic Conference in January, three schools each in the MAC Commonwealth and MAC Freedom play crossover opponents during the regular season. These games count towards the overall record, but not conference winning percentage, which determines a team's berth in the upcoming conference championship.
Conference Championship, You Say?
The Middle Atlantic Conference announced that the top two teams MAC Commonwealth will compete for the conference championship on March 18 at the site of the higher seed. The remaining teams in the conference will have an opportunity to opt-in for a crossover game against the corresponding seed in the MAC Freedom. Only MAC Commonwealth games count towards the wining percentage that determine championship seeding. Participants will be announced by the league office following the completion of all potential makeup games on March 15.
Old Friends
There are several ties between the coaching staffs of Widener and Arcadia. Knights' head coach Rose Katz-Gobeli was an assistant under
Alisa Kintner for three seasons from 2008-11 and was part of the coaching staff that led the Pride to the MAC Commonwealth championship and NCAA Tournament in 2009. Arcadia assistant, Francesca Lee, appeared in 110 games for Widener from 2009-13, scoring 642 points while pulling down 540 rebounds.
Old Rivals
There are few teams that the Blue and Gold has played as far back in its history as Arcadia. The first matchup between the schools came on February 6, 1974, the first ever verifiable date for a Widener women's basketball game. The then named Pioneers came away with a 78-66 victory against Beaver College. That game started a three-year stretch of competition between the schools, who, after February 5, 1976, would not play again for nearly 27 years, until January 10, 2003.
Crossing Over (Part II)
With the Knights' move from the MAC Commonwealth to the MAC Freedom during the summer, Thursday will be the first time since the 2002-03 season that Widener and Arcadia have played a non-conference game, a span of 6,633 days. At the time of that game — an 83-51 WU victory — Arcadia was a member of the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference (now the Colonial States Athletic Conference).
Cleaning The Glass
Despite a truncated senior season,
Kyra Schenk is on the verge of breaking into the Widener top-10 in rebounding. Entering Thursday, she has 635 career boards, six away from Becky Tyler, who posted 641 from 2006-10. A couple more spots up the charts aren't out of the question as Corinne Gawason (1996-00) is at 645 and Chelsea Luhta (2002-06) is at 649.
Senior Sendoff
Friday night marks the last scheduled regular season home games for
Izzy Hamlin, Mack McCracken, and
Kyra Schenk. In their careers, the trio has posted a 59-29 record, good for a .670 winning percentage, and advanced to the postseason twice including the NCAA Tournament last year. Overall, they have accounted for 1,058 points, 935 rebounds, 195 assists, and 133 blocks.
Shooting (And Making) Your Shot
Despite a rough go against a premier defensive team in Messiah, Widener remains one of the top three-point shooting teams in the country, hitting 38.9 percent of its attempts from distance, ranking 12th nationally.
Gianna Samuels leads the MAC Commonwealth and is 14th in NCAA Division III, connecting on 51.5 percent (17-of-33).
Helena Salmon is also contributing to the total, hitting 43.8 percent (7-of-16).
Triple Your Fun
Kyra Schenk's performance on February 20 against Albright was her third straight double-double, extending her mark as the first Widener player to record consecutive double-doubles since Brianna Wylie had 16 points and 12 boards against TCNJ followed by 17 points and 14 rebounds versus Swarthmore on November 11 and 18, 2015.
Putting On A Show
Helena Salmon developed a reputation as a strong shooter off the bench for Widener during her career, justified by the fact that she is the team's active career leader in treys. Saturday, February 20 was something special, however, as she drained five three-pointers and set a career-high with 17 points. Her previous scoring best was 11 and she had dropped a trio of triples on three previous occasions.
Score...
Widener is 31-3 in its last 34 games when it scored 70 or more points.
...And Score Early
The Pride is 27-2 in its last 29 games where it was either leading or tied at the half, dating to a 71-70 win against Stevenson on February 9, 2019.
Home Is Where The Wins Are
The Blue and Gold is 25-5 in the last 30 games at the Schwartz Athletic Center, an .833 winning percentage. Of the five losses, four of them came to ranked opponents; No. 11 Messiah (November 28, 2018), No. 6 Amherst (January 4, 2020), No. 21 Albright (February 26, 2020), and No. 13 Messiah (March 5, 2021).
Up Next
Widener concludes the regular season hosting Arcadia for Senior Night on Friday, March 12 at 7:00 p.m.
