Women's Basketball Hosts Hofstra in Home Opener Friday Night

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Bronx, N.Y. – The Rams (1-1) will finally g et the home portion of their schedule started this Friday night against visiting Hofstra (2-3). Tip-off on ESPN+ and WFUV is set for 7 p.m. All ways to follow along with the action are above.
 
50^th Anniversary
This campaign is the 50^th varsity season for the Fordham women's basketball program and Fordham Athletics will be celebrating all five decades throughout the year! See this release for more information, and check out the influential 1970's All-Decade Team!
 
Fordham WBB Virtual Gameday Experience
With the unfortunate reality that our RAMily won't be allowed to be there live in the Rose Hill Gym or supporting us on the road for the foreseeable future, Fordham Athletics is proud to announce virtual gameday experiences for nine select contests, home and away! Read all about it and register HERE. Tomorrow's game against Hofstra will be the FIRST virtual gameday for either basketball program so be sure to be part of all the fun!
 
Last Time Out
The Rams were unable to stave off a torrid second-half Quinnipiac rally, falling by four points on the road nearly two weeks ago. Anna DeWolfe scored 21 points and Kaitlyn Downey double-doubled again with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Read all about it HERE.
 
Series History vs. Hofstra
This will be the 25th all-time meeting between the two schools since 1972, a 38-33 Pride victory in Hempstead. Five contests later and the Rams, led by freshmen Anne Gregory and Mary Ann Bilotti, plus sophomore Mary Hayes, had their largest margin of victory that still remains today, an 81-23 win in the Bronx. Fordham is 10-2 all-time at home against Hofstra, including a 60-46 victory in the most recent game on November 21, 2014. Senior Emily Tapio and junior Samantha Clark combined for 29 points, 13 rebounds, 7 assists, and 4 steals in that one.
 
Downey Named Atlantic 10 Player of the Week
Though DeWolfe also had a fair shout, it was Downey who claimed her first-ever Atlantic 10 award, deservedly so after a 16-point, 20-rebound double-double at Stony Brook. The 20 boards were tied for the seventh-most in a road or neutral contest and joint-11th in any game, while she became just the seventh Ram to ever reach 20 rebounds in a game.
 
Hungry Like DeWolfe
Sophomore captain Anna DeWolfe has now enjoyed two standout season-opening performances in her brief Fordham career. After bursting onto the collegiate scene by nearly triple-doubling against #16 Notre Dame last year (10 points, 9 rebounds, 9 assists) in front of a record sold out Rose Hill Gym, she one-upped herself with 25 points on an efficient 47.6% shooting on the road at Stony Brook. The Cumberland, Maine native is the team's returning leading scorer, averaging 12.6 points per game on 42.4% shooting overall, highest among starters, 31.5% from deep, with 3.7 rebounds, 74 assists, and 31 steals over 36.0 minutes per contest. DeWolfe earned three A-10 Rookie of the Week honors and was named to the All-Rookie team at years' end. She led all freshmen nationally with 1,152 minutes played, ranked 13th overall, and just played her ninth full 40 minutes at Stony Brook.
 
Chairwoman of the Boards
Downey became the seventh Ram to ever reach 20 rebounds in a single contest and she finds herself tied for tops in the nation, alongside LIU's Kiara Bell, with 15.0 per game. Downey is behind Bell by 1.0 defensive board (13 to 12) in the country, as well. The Hastings-on-Hudson, N.Y. native upped her rebounding average between her freshman and sophomore years from 3.7 to 5.7. A starter in 62 of a possibly 68 games, never missing a contest, Downey is now 11 boards away from 350 for her career.
 
Nationally Speaking 
It's never too early to take a look at where Fordham and its players stand on the national landscape. Per-game statistics take on even more significance this year during the ongoing pandemic. That said, the Rams are currently 24th nationally in three-point percentage (41.0%) and 53rd in long-range makes per contest (8.0), ranked first and second in the A-10, respectivey. The Rams defense, holding opponents to 60.0 points per game, rank 71st and second in the league, and are committing just 9.0 fouls per contest, ranked 48th overall.
 
At the individual level, DeWolfe's 23.0 points per game ranks 20th in the country. Her 50.0% three-point average sits 41st, while her 36.3 minutes ranks 64th. Sarah Karpell is 26th at 38.4 minutes played per game. Downey's 46.2% three-point shooting mark is 88th, while her 3.0 makes per game rank 39th.
 
This Is Our House
Since Gaitley took over before the 2011-12 season, the Rams hold a 113-31 (78.5%) record at home across 144 contests. Over the last four seasons, the Rams are 57-11 in the Rose Hill Gym, including a 27-5 mark in conference play and three straight Holiday Classic crowns. After starting last year with two losses at home, Fordham rattled off 14 straight wins, a run they now carry into the new season.
 
Atlantic 10 Preseason Poll
The Rams were predicted to finish in a tie for fourth in the annual A-10 preseason coaches poll. On the individual side, senior Kendell Heremaia was predicted to improve from last year's Third Team All-Conference selection to this year's Second Team, while sophomore captain Anna DeWolfe was viewed the same way, but from the All-Rookie team to the Third Team.
 
Class of 2025
Head coach Stephanie Gaitley announced her four-player 2021 recruiting class last month, saying "we are super excited about this class… we really believe this group could leave a special mark on our program." The class is comprised of 5'10 guard Colleen McQuillen (Cresskill, N.J.), 6'2 forward Millie Prior (New South Wales, Australia), 5'9 guard Sophia Sabino (Rumson, N.J.), and 5'10 guard Lexie Tarul (Bronx, N.Y.).
 
Up Next
Fordham hosts Fairleigh Dickinson in its home opener next Tuesday evening. This will be the first-ever meeting between Coach Gaitley and her longtime associate head coach Angelika Szumilo, now at the helm of the Knights program and assisted by four-year starter Lauren Holden. Tip-off from the Rose Hill Gym is set for 7 p.m. on ESPN+ and WFUV.