Women's Basketball Hosts Niagara Thursday Afternoon

Watch | Listen Live | Live Stats
Twitter Updates @FordhamWBB
Games Notes | WBB Promotions
 
Bronx, N.Y. – The Fordham women's basketball team (8-4, 1-0 A-10) is looking to keep its momentum going after Saturday's thrilling comeback Battle of the Bronx victory when it hosts Niagara (4-6, 1-1 MAAC) on Thursday afternoon at 2 p.m.  
 
Women's Basketball Promotions
There are several promotions going on associated with the Fordham women's basketball program.
 
Women's basketball is hosting a coloring contest for young fans, with prizes for the best renditions given out to three different age groups. Read more about it here. Tomorrow's game is the LAST chance to enter the contest and will serve as fans' FREE entry.  
 
Finally, interested youth groups should check out the Women's basketball program's Harry's Hustler's young group initiative to attend home games and participate in a variety of activities and opportunities.
 
Last Time Out vs. Manhattan (12/17)
It was a thrilling 48th installment of the all-time Battle of the Bronx series on Saturday evening but for the sixth straight time, all under Stephanie Gaitley, the Rams walked away victors. It wasn't easy, though, as the Jaspers jumped out to an 11-point lead after a 27-point third quarter, the most points allowed in a single period this season by Fordham. The Rams regrouped after a Manhattan three to start the fourth pushed the lead up to 14 and rattled off an incredible 22-5 run to close the contest out, including a 19-3 run to take the lead late, 59-58, on a G'mrice Davis wide-open layup after a defensive miscommunication.  Free throws by Davis and Lauren Holden iced the game although the Jaspers did have two deccent chances to tie the game up at the end. Davis led the way with seven points and eight boards in the fourth quarter alone and finished the contest with a new career-high of 24 points to go with 18 rebounds in 38 minutes. Danielle Burns added 17 points on an efficient 7-of-12 shooting from the floor.
 
It was just the third time all season in which an opponent has scored 60+ points against the Rams. Before that, Fordham had held opponents within 49-59 points in seven consecutive games.
 
Series History vs. Niagara
The all-time series is tied 1-1 since the two schools first met in 1990 in Niagara Falls, N.Y., an 83-75 win for the Purple Eagles. That was Fordham's final year in the MAAC and Niagara's first. The two schools next met in Baltimore at a tournament hosted by UMBC on December 2, 1995. Fordham dominated the Purple Eagles, 96-69. This will be the series' first contest in the Bronx.
 
Scouting the Purple Eagles
The Purple Eagles are 4-6 and, like the A-10, have already played two conferecne contests, splitting a pair of home MAAC match-ups with a 21-point win over Monmouth and a 30-point loss to Rider. Niagara began its season by defeating St. Bonaventure before losing three straight at Michigan, at Buffalo, and at home to Maryland. A win against Cleveland State preceded the Monmouth victory and since MAAC play began briefly at the start of the month, Niagara has defeated Hartford by 13 but lost by 49 at Syracuse and by eight at Drexel. Niagara average 61 points per contest but allow 73.1, somewhat because of the big losses to Power 5 schools.
 
Redshirt junior Victoria Rampado leads the team with 16.7 points per game and 7.2 rebounds per game, shooting 40.4% from the floor and having 25 assists, second-most in the squad. Rampado was the MAAC Rookie of the Year in 2013-14 and a Second Team selection two years ago as a sophomore. Kaylee Stroemple and Tiffany Corselli both average double digits per game, 11.3 and 10.5, respectively, with Corselli the team's leader in assists (33) and steals (17). Morgan Baughman has started all 10 games and averages 7.7 points per contest and since returning from injury, Jamie Sherburne has started the past five contests and is averaging 5.0 points and 2.4 rebounds per game. Against Drexel, Rampado tallied a game-high 25 points on 10-of-20 shooting to go with 12 rebounds.
 
Gaitley Hits 100
Stephanie Gaitley reached 100 wins with the Fordham program against Little Rock on November 19. This marked the third school the 31-year veteran head coach has reached the century mark, plus four with at least 95 wins. Gaitley had previously reached the milestone with Richmond and Saint Joseph's, plus compiled 95 wins with LIU Brooklyn, the first three schools she coached at. Her most at a single stop was 196 over a decade with the Hawks. 10 more wins and Gaitley will surpass Kathy Mosolino ('74-'80) to become the all-time winningest head coach in Fordham history.
 
Gaitley's 900^th Game
The double overtime win over Albany on November 22 was Stephanie Gaitley's 900 career contest as a head coach. She has a 570-338 record over 31 seasons with five different schools.
 
Second-Most Wins in A-10 History
Continuing the trend of Gaitley milestones, the win over Albany was Gaitley's 157th all-time as a coach of an A-10 school (Saint Joseph's and Fordham), passing Theresa Grentz for second-most all-time. Gaitley now has 162 with the win over Grambling State but needs 79 more to break Joe McKeown's all-time record of 240.
 
The Road to 1,000
Senior guard Hannah Missry looks set to become the 19th member of the 1,000 point club in Fordham program history, needing 48 points to get there. She is currently averaging 6.5 points per game. Missry is already the program's leading three-point shooter, having passed Heather Donlon's long-standing record of 233 last season, with 259 career makes through 106 appearances (101 starts). At her current pace this season, she would surpass 1,000 points against Richmond at home on January 11.
 
Kreslina Named A-10 Rookie of the Week
Redshirt freshman Kate Kreslina was named the Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week last Monday afternoon, the first honor of her young career. The Latvian guard averaged 12.5 points against Iona and Princetn, including a career-high 19 points on 6-of-9 shooting in the close win over the Tigers on Saturday. The freshman hit several big shots in the fourth quarter, from the field and the line.
 
The Bronx is Our House
With the 63-60 comeback win over Manhattan on Saturday, the Rams moved to 7-1 this season in the Bronx, as opposed to an 0-2 record on the road and 1-1 on neutral sites. Fordham began this season with six straight home victories before falling to St. John's last Tuesday night.
 
Defense, Defense, Defense
Since the start of the 2013-14 season, Fordham has held its opponents to less than 50 points 33 times resulting in 33 victories. Overall under Gaitley, Fordham is 43-4 in such instances and have now won 35 straight with the most recent win over Boston College, limiting the Eagles to 49 points. The Rams are 3-0 this season holding opponents under 50 points (and 4-0 holding them at 51 and under).
 
Defense Part Deux
Through 12 games this season, Fordham's defense has limited opposing scoring to just 56.7 points per contest, ranking 45th in the country. Part of that is due to the Rams' stingy perimeter D that has held opponents to just 26.4% (43-for-163) shooting from beyond the arc, currently situated at 30th nationally. Recently, Princeton's solid three-point shooting offense was held to just 3-of-14 shooting from behind the arc, while St. John's shot just 3-of-8 from deep. However, Manhattan sank 7-of-19 threes on Saturday, the most that Fordham has allowed so far this season.
 
Three and D
The Rams are 8-4 so far through their first 12 games and a big reason for their success has been the team's success around the perimeter on both sides of the ball. Fordham is 70th in the country in three-point attempts (231) and 103rd in makes (70) while playing terrific defense along the perimeter that has led to teams shooting just 26.4% from deep.
 
Leading the A-10
The Rams currently lead the conference in three categories: free throw percentage (78.0%), scoring defense (56.7), and three-point defense (26.4%). The Rams are also third in rebounding defense (34.9) and fourth in threes/game (5.8). On the individual level, G'mrice Davis leads the league in defensive rebounds per game (9.4) and boards per game with 12.3. Hannah Missry's 1.7 threes per game average is also fifth-most in the conference.
 
Davis Boarding with the Best
G'mrice Davis has been a force on the glass this season, putting up career numbers across the board that has her near the top of Division I's rebounding lists (as of 12/20/16): Davis' 9.4 defensive rebounds per game are third-most in the nation, her 147 total rebounds rank third, and her 12.3 rebounding average is fourth. Washington's Chantel Osahor ranks above her with 156 total rebounds over 11 games (14.2) this season. Additionally, her five double-doubles in nine games rank 28th in the country.
 
It Takes Two to... Rebound at a Historic Rate
Anne Gregory ('80) is one of the NCAA's all-time best rebounders. She is the only Ram in school history to average 10 or more rebounds over a single season and she did it all four of her years in the Bronx. Her lowest total, 12.4, came in 1979-80 during her senior year. G'mrice Davis' 12.3 boards/game average ranks just beneath that mark through 12 games. She's at the very least on pace to become just the second Ram to ever grab double figure rebounds per contest over a season. Samantha Clark averaged 9.6 last year, the fifth-highest clip ever.
 
Actively One of the Best from Deep
Hannah Missry has amassed 259 three-pointers in her career in the Bronx and is fifth among active players in Division I for all-time downtown makes. She is 11 behind Kelsey Plum of Washington and 21 away from Boston College's Kelly Hughes, who the Rams recently held 0-of-2 from downtown this season. Junior guard Kelsey Mitchell of Ohio State is tops with an absurd 295 three-pointers in just 82 games. Missry has struggled with her shot over the past two games, going 0-for-7 from downtown against St. John's and Manhattan, the first games without a three since February 21, 2016, against Saint Louis, and, incredibly, just the 10th and 11th times in her entire Fordham career that she hasn't recorded at least one long-range make.
 
100 Starts
Missry made the 100th start of her career in her 105th appearance on Tuesday night against St. John's. She was, however, held scoreless for just the sixth time in her entire Fordham career.
 
109 Straight For Burns
Senior Danielle Burns played in her 100th straight game in maroon and white against Little Rock. Burns hasn't missed a single contest since arriving in the Bronx, making 109 consecutive appearances and 57 starts, including 34 straight. Fellow seniors Hannah Missry and Danielle Padovano recently hit the century mark against Grambling State and Princeton, respectively.
 
78 To Go
Missry is 78 three-pointers away from breaking Jessica Jenkins' all-time Atlantic 10 record of 338 threes set at St. Bonaventure from 2009-12. Missry recently moved into sole possession of ninth place, passing Amra Mehmedic (Saint Joseph's 2001-04) and Erin Shields (Saint Joseph's 2011-14), with one made three-pointer at Iona. Missry has averaged 79.7 three's over her three seasons in the Bronx.
 
Career-Highs for G'mrice
The junior forward is playing the most minutes of her career this season and is putting up terrific numbers. Davis has set three new career-highs in rebounds, first with 15 at #1 Notre Dame, then 17 against Texas Tech, including seven on the offensive glass, and finally 21 against Grambling State, one of the top single-game numbers in A-10 history. Following the Battle of the Bronx, Davis has now set two new scoring career-highs, as well, first with 22 points against Boston College and now 24 against the Jaspers. At Iona, Davis played the entire 40 minutes for the first time in her career.
 
Fordham's Charity
Fordham is 16th in the country thus far with a 78.0% clip from the free throw line. The Rams moved to the top of the Atlantic 10 leaderboard with a perfect 10-of-10 from the line against Boston College and have hit 128-of-164 in total from the stripe. The team's season-high came, unsurprisingly, in the double overtime win against Albany, sinking 18-of-22 freebies.
 
Fomina Facilitating Off the Bench
The Latvian junior guard is averaging 15.6 minutes off the bench in all 12 contests and is tied for the team-lead with 22 assists on the year alongside starters Danielle Burns and Lauren Holden. Fomina fell one shy of her career-high of six assists at Iona, and matched her career-high of five rebounds in the loss to Texas Tech.
 
Career Numbers Watch
- Danielle Burns is 55 points away from 700
- Danielle Burns is three field goals away from 250
- Danielle Burns is 71 minutes away from 2,500
- G'mrice Davis is 10 field goals away from 250
- G'mrice Davis is 19 rebounds away from 500
- Lauren Holden is eight points away from 300
- Lauren Holden is four field goals away from 100
- Hannah Missry is 48 points away from 1,000
- Hannah Missry is six steals away from 50
- Danielle Padovano is 31 minutes away from 1,500
- Danielle Padovano is three three-pointers away from 50
 
Fordham Debuts
Three Rams made their debuts against Furman: redshirt freshman Kate Kreslina started and tallied 10 points and eight rebounds over a team-high 35 minutes, while Mary Goulding and Anna Kelly came off the bench for four and seven points, respectively. Goulding added four rebounds, an assist and a block in 19 minutes, while Kelly added two boards, an assist, and a steal in 11 minutes. Junior transfer Tiffany Suarez made her long-awaited Fordham debut against Little Rock, tallying two points and an assist in nine fourth quarter minutes against the Trojans.
 
Five Sign NLIs in 2016-17 Recruiting Class
Coach Gaitley announced this past week the additions of five student-athletes  to national letters of intent: Halei Gillis, Kendell Heremaia, Zara Jillings, Ralene Kwiatkowski, and Vilisi Tavui. Fordham's global reach under Coach Gaitley continues with two players from North Carolina, two from New Zealand, and one from Fiji. The three international players all have experience playing within their countries' junior ranks.
 
You can read all about the five additions here.
 
Atlantic 10 Preseason Poll
The Fordham Rams were selected to finish sixth in the annual preseason coaches' poll, announced at A-10 Media Day, held in Richmond, Va., the site of the 2017 A-10 Championship. The Rams finished last season tied for sixth, with an 8-8 conference record, and reached the second round of the conference postseason. Saint Louis, who tied for last year's regular season title and reached the third round of the WNIT, garnered nine first-place votes. Dayton and last year's runner-up Duquesne tied for second in the poll with 166 points apiece, with the latter receiving three first-place votes. Two-time defending champion, George Washington, gathered the remaining two first-place votes and is predicted to finish fourth. Following the Colonials are VCU, Fordham, Richmond, and Saint Joseph's to round out the top eight. Rhode Island, St. Bonaventure, George Mason, La Salle, Davidson, and Massachusetts rounded out the preseason rankings, respectively.
 
2015-16 Season Review
The Rams finished last season 14-17 and 8-8 in conference play, defeating Massachusetts in overtime in the first round of the A-10 Championship but falling to eventual runner-up Duquesne in the next round. New Director of Player Development Samantha Clark was named Second Team All-Atlantic 10 as well as to the All-Defensive Team after a fantastic senior campaign where she led the squad with 12.5 points and 9.6 rebounds per game, also chipping in a team-high 36 blocks and 30 steals. Clark led the A-10 in minutes played per contest (37.2). Fordham will return the other four starters from last season, with three of them averaging between nine and 10 points per game. Junior G'mrice Davis tallied 9.7 points and 7.4 rebounds per contests with 10 blocks and 21 steals during a solid sophomore season, while Danielle Burns scored 9.6 points per game on 39.8% shooting from the field and led the team with 76 assists. Hannah Missry continued her volume three-point shooting and set the school record for most career long-range makes as a junior, finishing the year with 239. She has averaged 79 threes over her three seasons but will need 100 to break the A-10 career record. Sophomore Lauren Holden solidified her spot as the team's starting point guard as a freshman by averaging 6.3 points per game with 55 assists and 35% shooting from deep, good for third-best on the team. Danielle Padovano and Asnate Fomina were both vital cogs in the rotation off the bench, scoring 4.5 and 4.1 points per game, respectively, while also joining the starting lineup a combined 16 times last season.
 
Fordham WBB Ticket Plans
Two women's ticket options are available:
Flex Plan: $35 for 15 tickets
Community Partner: $100 for 50 tickets
 
With the flex plan option, fans receive 15 ticket vouchers good for use at any Fordham women's basketball game, plus a special Fordham scarf. As a community partner, you also have the opportunity to provide 50 tickets to a group of your choice.

The Rams have two remaining out-of-conference match-ups within the Rose Hill Gym (next week's Fordham Holiday Classic) and seven in Atlantic 10 play, including one nationally televised home contest – the home season finale against Dayton on February 19.
 
You can purchase single game tickets for all home contests here.
 
Up Next
Fordham hosts Buffalo, Harvard, and UNC-Asheville next week for the 10th annual Fordham Holiday Classic, starting on December 29. The Rams and Bulls will tip off at 2:30 on Thursday after the conclusion of the first contest.