Women's Basketball Travels to Iona on Wednesday

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Bronx, N.Y. – The Fordham women's basketball team (6-2, 1-0 A-10) is looking to extend its three-game winning streak at Iona (4-4, 1-1 MAAC) on Wednesday afternoon at 4 p.m.
 
Last Time Out vs. Boston College
Junior forward G'mrice Davis notched a career-high 22 points on a career-best nine field goals, despite missing out on a fourth double-double with nine rebounds, as the Rams defeated visiting Boston College, 56-49, on Sunday afternoon. It was the second straight 20-point performance by a Ram after Danielle Burns tallied 22 against Duquesne in Thursday night's A-10 opener. Redshirt freshman Kate Kreslina added 13 points on 4-of-6 shooting, including a career-high 3-of-4 makes from downtown over a team-high 35 minutes.
 
Davis impressively scored Fordham's first 10 points over the first half of the first quarter. Boston College briefly tied the game up, 2-2, on a jumper by Martina Mosetti but Davis and the Rams soon retook the lead and never relinquished it from that point on. Fordham outscored the Eagles, 16-10, in the opening stanza, and, 29-20, at the halftime break. Boston College attempted to chip away at the deficit but contributions from Tiffany Suarez (four points) and Mary Goulding (two points) off the bench kept the visitors at bay. Suarez even found Hannah Missry on a cross-court pass that led to Missry's lone three-pointer on the afternoon to extend the lead to nine heading into the break. It also extended a streak for the senior of having at least one three in every game thus far, and 12 straight dating back to last season.
 
At the break, Fordham had committed a season-low two turnovers and would eventually finish with seven, the first single digit turnover game this season. Davis and Kreslina made up 11 of the team's 13 third quarter points as the Eagles slightly outscored the hosts, 15-13, but committed five turnovers, as well. The Eagles finished the period on a 6-2 run that extended into the fourth quarter when Mariella Fasoula hit a layup to bring the deficit down to five, 42-37. Boston College got within five on four occasions in the stanza but couldn't get beyond that. Danielle Burns, who had been held scoreless over the first three frames, came alive with some timely shots to keep the Eagles from getting too close. With the lead at five and 30 seconds to play, Kreslina found Davis wide open and streaking to the basket on an inbounds pass to give the junior her new career-highs and the Rams the eventual seven-point cushion.
 
Series History vs. Iona
The Rams hold a 24-19 advantage all-time over the Gaels since 1973, when Fordham won a 25-18 contest in the Bronx. In New Rochelle, the Rams hold a slight 10-9 lead in the all-time series, as opposed to a 12-9 record in the Rose Hill Gym. The two schools have met just once in the last five years, a 72-51 Fordham loss in the Bronx on November 14, 2014. There have only been six games since 2000 and Iona has taken five of them. Fordham's lone win came at home in 2009, 70-64.
 
Scouting the Gaels
The Gaels are 4-4 heading into Wednesday's contest and recently began MAAC conference play, going 1-1 over the weekend. Iona defeated Manhattan at home, 70-53, but lost at Fairfield two days later, 68-59. Fordham is the first of three straight nonconference opponents before Iona begins conference play for good. The Gaels are led by Alexis Lewis' 18.3 points per game average, followed by Marina Lizarazu's 15.1 and Karynda DuPree's 10.5. Lewis and DuPree are the team's top rebounders, as well, with 8.5 and 7.4, respectively, plus outstanding defensive numbers to begin the season. Lewis has a team-high five blocks and 12 steals, Lizarazu is tops with 15 steals, and DuPree tops with 17 blocks to go with seven steals. Nationally, Lewis is one of the top scorers in the country, while DuPree is one of the better shot blockers. Lizarazu's 37.9 minutes player per game is one of the highest numbers in all of Division I. The Rams will have a tough time contending with the Gaels on the glass as their opponents rank inside the top-40 in that category.
 
Gaitley Hits 100
With the win over Little Rock, Stephanie Gaitley has reached 100 wins with the Fordham program. This marks 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. 12 more wins and Gaitley will 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 568-336 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 160 with the win over Grambling State but needs 81 more to break Joe McKeown's all-time record of 240.
 
568 and Counting
Stephanie Gaitley, among active coaches, has the 21st-most career wins in Division I, with 568 after Sunday's win over Boston College. All-time, the 31-year veteran coach is 42nd.
 
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 eight games this season, Fordham's defense has limited opposing scoring to just 56.4 points per contest, ranking 49th in the country. Part of that is due to the Rams' stingy perimeter D that has held opponents to just 25% shooting from beyond the arc, currently situated within the top-20 nationally at 19.
 
100 Straight For Burns
Senior Danielle Burns played in her 100th straight game in maroon and white on Saturday against Little Rock. Burns hasn't missed a single contest since arriving in the Bronx, making 52 starts. Fellow senior Hannah Missry recently hit the century mark on Sunday against the Tigers, while Danielle Padovano needs three appearances to reach the same milestone.
 
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 12/5/16): Davis' nine defensive rebounds per game are third-most in the nation, her 94 total rebounds rank sixth, and her 11.8 rebounding average is also sixth overall. Additionally, her three double-doubles in six games rank 47th in the country.
 
Actively One of the Best from Deep
Hannah Missry has amassed 256 three-pointers in her career in the Bronx and is joint-fourth among active players in Division I for all-time downtown makes alongside Washington's Kelsey Plum, who has the same mark in nine more contests. The duo are two ahead of Hannah Plybon of Akron but 18 below Boston College's Kelly Hughes, who has reached that mark in just 99 games. Hughes, however, was held to just two fruitless attempts from deep on Sunday by Fordham's top-notch perimeter defense.
 
Missry Breaks Out
Senior guard Hannah Missry had struggled over her first three games this season before Albany, scoring 12 points on 4-of-17 from the field. Against the Great Danes, Missry bested her career-high for minutes played by four, with 47, and poured in 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting, including a 5-of-9 clip from beyond the arc. Missry also matched her career-high with three assists. After being held to just five points against Texas Tech, Missry exploded in the second quarter versus Grambling State, hitting 5-of-5 shots, 3-of-3 from downtown, for 13 of her 15 points in the win.  She was instrumental in the team's big win over Duquesne on Thursday, hitting 4-of-6 long-range attempts. She is averaging 2.1 long-range makes per contest, second-most in the A-10.
 
81 To Go
Missry is 81 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 the all-time top-10, in a three-way tie with Amra Mehmedic (Saint Joseph's 2001-04) and Erin Shields (Saint Joseph's 2011-14) for ninth-most in league history, with 256. Missry has averaged 79.7 three's over her three seasons in the Bronx and if she keeps up her current career pace, would finish within the top-three all-time.
 
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 on Friday night, including seven on the offensive glass, and finally 21 against Grambling State, one of the top single-game numbers in A-10 history. Against Boston College on Sunday, Davis scored a career-high 22 points on a career-best nine field goals. She missed out on a double-double by one rebound, though, and has two nine-rebound games and one nine-point game that were that close to three more double-doubles.
 
Fordham's Charity
Fordham is 17th in the country thus far with a 78.2% 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 on Sunday against the Eagles.
 
Fomina Helping Off the Bench
The Latvian junior guard has come off the bench this season in all eight contests and she has helped facilitate while on the court. Fomina has tallied at least one assist in every single game thus far this season and has also chipped in 2.0 boards per game.
 
Career Numbers Watch
- Hannah Missry is 57 points away from 1,000
- Hannah Missry is three starts away from 100
- G'mrice Davis is five minutes away from 1,500
- G'mrice Davis is two offensive rebounds away from 125
- G'mrice Davis is 26 points away from 600
- G'mrice Davis is 22 rebounds away from 500
- Danielle Padovano is three appearances away from 100 games played
- Danielle Padovano is 60 minutes away from 1,500
- Danielle Padovano is five three-pointers away from 50
- Danielle Padovano is 12 assists away from 75
- Asnate Fomina is three assists away from 100
- Asnate Fomina is 41 minutes away from 1,000
- Lauren Holden is one minute away from 1,000
- Lauren Holden is one start away from 25
- Lauren Holden is five three-pointers away from 50
- Lauren Holden is eight assists away from 75
 
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 six remaining out-of-conference match-ups within the Rose Hill Gym 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 begins a six-game nonconference homestand on Saturday against Princeton at 2 p.m.