Nov. 21, 2012

San Francisco, Calif. - The Fordham women's basketball team is 3-0 for the first time in 17 years, and looks to continue its winning ways on the West Coast, as the Rams make their first trip to California in eight years. Fordham's first of two games in the Golden State comes on Wednesday night against fellow Jesuit institution, the University of San Francisco. It will be the first of six Jesuit Basketball Spotlight games on the Rams' schedule this season.

In addition to a fourth straight win to open the season, Fordham will be going for a 3-0 mark in road games. The last time the Rams did that was in the 1996-97 season, when Fordham also traveled to California, defeating both San Diego and Loyola-Marymount on that trip.

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SERIES HISTORY: This is just the third all-time meeting between the Rams and the Dons. Both games have taken place on the West Coast with USF winning both games in convincing fashion. The first meeting came in the 1990-91 season, a 24-point win by the Dons, while the second came in the 1994-95 season, which was a 25-point win by San Francisco.

SCOUTING SAN FRANCISCO: The Dons enter tonight's game with a 2-1 record, as San Francisco opened with home wins against Hawaii (65-52) and UC-Davis (72-65), while falling to Cal State Fullerton, 60-55, in the team's last outing. In the Cal State Fullerton game, the Dons could not recover from 24 turnovers and an 82% (19-23) shooting night from the free throw line by the Titans.

San Francisco is coached by Jennifer Azzi, who is her third season with the Dons, posting an 11-51 record.

USF is led by a trio of double-digit scorers. Mel Khlok is the team's top scorer at 13.7 points a contest, shooting better than 41% from three-point range. Taylor Proctor is averaging 11.0 points and 4.7 rebounds over her first three games, shooting 48% from the field, while Zhane Dikes is averaging 10.0 points a game.

JESUIT BASKETBALL SPOTLIGHT: For the fifth 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.

Fordham will six of these contests this season, three in non-conference play and three in conference action. The Rams will face the University of San Francisco (Nov. 21), Marquette (Dec. 1), and Holy Cross (Jan. 6) in non-conference games, while having annual league match-ups with Xavier (Jan. 23), Saint Louis (Feb. 17), and Saint Joseph's (Feb. 24).

FORDHAM WOMEN'S BASKETBALL HONORED WITH THE KEEN NEW YORK PROUD PARTNERS AWARD (11/15): On November 15th, the Fordham Athletic Department and the Fordham women's basketball team were honored by the Kids Enjoy Exercise Now (KEEN) organization with the KEEN New York Proud Partner Award for 2012. The special recognition was accepted by Fordham's assistant women's basketball coach Salee Johnson-Edwards at the KEENfest event, the program's annual fundraising gala, held at Helen Mills on West 26th Street. KEEN is a non-profit organization that provides one-on-one recreational activities for children and young adults with mental and physical disabilities.

The KEEN New York Proud Partner Award is presented in appreciation of a group's leadership, dedication and continuing support for KEEN New York, where the group's volunteers serve as coaches for KEEN's young athletes with disabilities.

The Fordham student-athletes have developed a strong partnership with KEEN New York over the past year, sending dedicated volunteers who not only helped KEEN New York to continue to grow in the group's first expansion program in the Bronx, but also furthered KEEN's reach in events like the upcoming KEEN Night at the Rose Hill Gym in correlation with the women's basketball game against Manhattan College on Wednesday, November 28th.

The Fordham women's basketball team sent a number of players to a function in May, where members of the Fordham squad were paired up in groups of two student-athletes per child and engaged in recreational sports with the KEEN participants as well as working on various arts and crafts projects.

The goal was to provide the youngsters with companionship and allow them to partake in physical fitness activities. This is consistent with KEEN's mission to foster the self-esteem, confidence, skills and talents of its athletes through non-competitive activities, allowing young people facing even the most significant challenges to meet their individual goals.

WHO'S NEXT: Fordham remains on the road for the team's next contest against the University of the Pacific following Thanksgiving on Friday, November 23rd, before heading home for a match-up with Manhattan College on Wednesday, November 28th. The Rams then return to the road for games at Marquette (Dec. 1) and Yale (Dec. 4).