Dec. 4, 2010
St. Peter's Game Notes | WFUV Audio | Live Video | GameTracker | Follow on Twitter
Bronx, N.Y. - The Fordham women's basketball team returns home after its Thanksgiving trip to Kansas, as the Rams host the St. Peter's College Peahens at the Rose Hill Gym.
Both teams are looking to right the ship in this December match-up. Fordham has lost its last three games, two of which were a one-point loss to Memphis and an overtime loss to Kansas. The Peahens are 0-5 to begin the 2010-11 season, losing by an average of 21.8 points.
SERIES HISTORY: This will be 41st all-time meeting between the two Jesuit institutions, as the squads were long time rivals as members of the MAAC. St. Peter's holds a 29-11 series advantage, but it was Fordham coming away with the win in Jersey City last season by a 61-59 margin. The win snapped a seven-game win streak by St. Peter's over Fordham. Fordham had not beaten St. Peter's since 1993. It was also Fordham's first victory over St. Peter's at the Yanitelli Center since the 1977-78 season.
In that game, Randall Hurst just missed out on a double-double with 16 points and nine rebounds, while Katie Vican had 14 points. Kyara Weekes and Becky Peters each added nine points with Peters dishing out four assists.
SCOUTING ST. PETER'S: The Peahens have opened the season slowly at 0-5 with losses to Sacred Heart, Hofstra, Monmouth, Albany, and Toledo. St. Peter's is coached by Stephanie DeWolfe, who is in her seventh season in Jersey City with a record of 70-97.
On the court, Jynae Judson is the top performer, averaging 10.8 points and 6.6 rebounds a contest, while Charlene Riddick is averaging 7.6 points and 6.4 rebounds, good for second on the squad in both categories.
JESUIT BASKETBALL SPOTLIGHT: For the third straight year, Fordham will once again be in Jesuit Basketball Spotlight games this season. These games are between a pair of Jesuit universities or colleges, and feature a different breed of student-athlete that handles the academic and athletic workload of a Jesuit institution.
Today's game against St. Peter's is the second of five Jesuit Basketball Spotlight Games. Fordham won the first contest this season, defeating Holy Cross, 67-36, on November 20th. The other three will come against Saint Joseph's, Xavier, and Saint Louis, once conference play begins.
TAKING CHARITY: Continuing a long standing tradition, the Fordham Rams are again among the Atlantic 10 leaders in free throw percentage. Through December 2nd games, Fordham is second in the league at 74.8%, trailing only St. Bonaventure at 80.6%.
The Rams have six players clicking at 70% or better heading into the St. Peter's game. Senior Kristina Bell is second in the league at 88.9%, while Arielle Collins (83.3%), Becky Peters (75.8%), Kyara Weekes (75.0%), Abigail Corning (75.0%), and Caitlin Shadbolt (74.1%) are also over 70.0% shooting.
HITTING THE GLASS: One of the biggest improvements for the Rams this season has been the team's work on the glass. Fordham has outrebounded its opponent in six of eight contests this season. The Rams have five players averaging at least 4.3 rebounds per game, led by Tiffany Stokes at 7.6 per game.
Fordham won the rebounding battle only nine times in 30 games a year ago.
GREAT START: The Fordham Rams are out to a 4-1 start for the first time in 14 years, on the strength on an early four-game win streak. One of the biggest reasons has been the consistency of the offense. Fordham has scored at least 60 points in seven of its first eight games for the first time, since the 1993-94 season.
The Rams also have balance on offense with three players averaging in double figures.
TOURNAMENTS, TOURNAMENTS, & MORE TOURNAMENTS: Fordham will compete in three in-season tournaments this season for the first time since the 1990-91 season. This year, Fordham plays in the Phoenix Classic, followed by the Kansas Classic after Thanksgiving, and the Fordham Holiday Tournament, right after Christmas.
So far, Fordham started 1-1 at the Phoenix Classic with Fordham junior Becky Peters being named to the All-Tournament team. Then at the BTI Tip-Off Classic, the Fordham came up short in all three games, but came close with a one-point loss to Memphis, 67-66, and an overtime loss to Kansas, 81-68. Following the that tournament, senior Caitlin Shadbolt was selected to the All-Tournament team, after leading the tournament with an 18.3 scoring average and two 20-point games.
FROM NEW YORK, THIS IS 20-20: Already through eight games this season, the Fordham Rams have had four different players break the 20-point barrier in a game, surpassing last year's total through 30 games.
Kristina Bell got the ball rolling with her first career 20-point game, posting a career-high 22 against Elon University. The following night, senior Caitlin Shadbolt matched that total with her first 20-point game, scoring 22 points against Stony Brook, while fellow senior Tiffany Stokes netted 21 points for her third career 20-point game. Becky Peters then joined the mix with a season-high 21 points at Fairleigh Dickinson.
Shadbolt has added two more 20-point efforts since the Stony Brook game, netting a career-high 26 points versus Memphis and 22 points at Kansas, giving Fordham six 20-point games. The Rams had 11 during the 2009-10 season.
COMING ATTRACTIONS: Fordham gets back to the road for its next contest, as the team plays at Rider on December 8th, which will be followed by back-to-back home games against Monmouth (Dec. 11) and Manhattan (Dec. 18). Fordham concludes the pre-Christmas schedule with a road game at Iona on December 22nd.
