NEAC Women's Basketball Championship Preview

NEAC Women's Basketball Championship Preview

North Eastern Athletic Conference
Women's Basketball Championship

Wells College at Lancaster Bible College
Sunday, March 2, 2014 - 3:00 p.m.
Horst Athletic Center - Lancaster, Pa.

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For the first time in team history, the Wells College women's basketball team will compete for the North Eastern Athletic Conference Women's Basketball Championship crown. The Express will face-off against the Chargers from Lancaster Bible College on Sunday, Mar. 2 at 3:00 p.m. on the latter's campus. Before you head to the game or log on to the free live video broadcast, check out some interesting notables regarding both programs.

  • Through 26 games in 2013-14, the Express are in the midst of their best season in team history. Wells has set records for overall victories (19), conference victories (12), winning percentage (.812), home victories (9), away victories (8), point scoring (1,737), scoring average (66.8), field goal percentage (.377), rebounds (1,321), assists (372), assists average (14.3), blocked shots (152) and blocked shots average (5.8).
  • Lancaster Bible enters play on Sunday with an overall record of 21-5, riding a 15 game winning streak into the NEAC championship game. The Chargers have accumulated a 16-0 record against NEAC opponents in 2013-14 and have not lost a contest to a league opponent dating back to Jan. 21, 2013. Lancaster Bible is also 26-3 at home dating back to last season.
  • As of Feb. 27, Wells leads all NCAA Division III programs in three point field goal defense, limiting opposing shooters to a 21.9% three-point field goal conversion percentage.
  • The Express rank eighth nationally as a team, posting an average of 5.9 blocks per game. Junior Kaitlynne Knapp (Port Byron, N.Y.) ranks 10th nationally and second in the NEAC with 3.40 blocks per game. Senior Ashley Roser (Taberg, N.Y.) is 51st amongst qualifying players with 2.04 blocks per game.
  • Roser also ranks sixth nationally in double-doubles (19) and ninth nationally in rebounds per game (22.5) and rebounds per game (13).
  • Lancaster Bible boasts three shooters averaging more than 14 points per game – Aubrey Folger (18.7 ppg), Katy Stover (16.2) and Shanice Smith (14.2) each rank within the top-10 in the NEAC in scoring average.
  • As a team, the Chargers have scored an average of 69.2 points per game in 2013-14, ranking third in the NEAC in team scoring average. The Express rank fifth, tallying an average of 66.8 points per game.
  • A win against Lancaster Bible on Sunday would send the Wells College women's basketball team to the NCAA Division III Women's Basketball tournament through the conference's automatic qualifier. Only one team in school history has appeared at the NCAA Division III tournament, the 2010-11 Wells College men's basketball team.
  • Through Feb. 27, Shanice Smith of Lancaster Bible ranks fifth amongst NCAA Division III players with an average of 14 rebounds per game. As a team, the Chargers stand eighth nationally in rebound margin (10.7).
  • Lancaster Bible shooters average 40.6% from the floor, leading the conference in field goal percentage. The Chargers also rank as the league's most proficient shooters from distance (34.8%) and their 66% conversion rate from the charity stripe also leads the 12 team league.
  • The Express dropped their first-ever tilt against the Chargers on Jan. 6, 2012, losing by a 63-56 margin at the Farenthold Athletic Wing. In the game, the Express saw a 19 point performance from then-sophomore Ashley Roser (Taberg, N.Y.). Freshman Jessilyn Artaho-Aki (Kapa'a, Hawaii) racked up six assists and Kelli Furney racked up 10 points to place second on the squad. With the score tied at 54 with 4:57 left in the second half, the Chargers took control of the game and scored nine of the game's next 11 points to secure the victory.
  • Wells was competitive in their next meeting, a 58-49 Chargers victory on Jan. 5, 2013. The Express possessed a 49-45 lead with 5:19 remaining in regulation following a Lindsay Achzet (Johnstown, N.Y.) jumper. However, the Express remained locked in at 49 points for the remainder of the game as the Chargers went on a 13 point run to conclude play.
  • The Express were eliminated from the NEAC postseason on Feb. 23, 2013 by the Chargers after falling by a 69-50 margin. Despite a team-leading 28 points from Roser, the other four members of the starting lineup combined to shoot 2-for-28 from the floor en route to their first-ever postseason loss. Lancaster Bible went on to claim the NEAC title after defeating Keuka College by a 67-63 margin after trailing by 12 points.
  • Wells clinched the North Eastern Athletic Conference North Division Regular Season Championship on Saturday, Feb. 22, posting the program's first-ever victory over the Storm of Keuka College by a 76-68 score. The NEAC North Division title was the first regular season division championship at Wells since the women's tennis team at Wells posted a 6-0 conference record to secure the top spot in the league's West Division in 2011-12.