Women's Basketball at Saint Louis Sunday

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Game Notes
 
St. Louis, Mo. – The Rams (6-3, 3-2) will play at Saint Louis (2-0, 0-0) after all, following the announcement several weeks ago that the previously scheduled 1/14 contest had been postponed due to a positive COVID-19 test within the Billikens program. However, with the team cleared to return to action and Dayton now having to pause all activities due to a positive test, the two schools will play on Sunday at 2 p.m. ET.
 
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, plus check out the influential 1970's All-Decade Team and high-scoring 1980'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 select contests, home and away! Read all about it and register HERE.
 
We have had a big turnout for our first two Virtual Gamedays (Hofstra and George Washington) and our next TWO come next weekend - BOTH home games! will be Make sure to register at the link above to participate!
 
Last Time Out
Fordham's second-half struggles at Massachusetts led to squandering a halftime lead and a close six-point loss despite 21 point from Anna DeWolfe and big rebounding performances from Megan Jonassen and Kaitlyn Downey. Read all about it HERE.
 
Series History vs. Saint Louis
The Rams hold a 10-11 all-time record against the Billikens since the latter joined the Atlantic 10 in 2006. Fordham has struggled on the road against its rival, winning just three times in 10 contests at Chaifetz Arena, including last year's 59-49 loss, but have a chance to even the series up once again. Last January 23rd, the Rams were victorious at home, 66-54.
 
Hungry Like DeWolfe
Sophomore captain Anna DeWolfe is 18th in all of Division I in scoring with 22.4 points per game through nine contests. The Cumberland, Maine native has recorded games of 20 or more points seven times, including a career-high 34 points against Hofstra, crossing the 500-point threshold for her career against Albany. She continues to impress for the Rams ever since her collegiate debut - nearly triple-doubling against #16 Notre Dame in last year's season opener (10 points, 9 rebounds, 9 assists) in front of a record sold out Rose Hill Gym.
 
DeWolfe is shooting 43.7% from the floor and 39.3% from deep and leads the team with 28 assists and 13 steals. A three-time A-10 Rookie of the Week honoree and a member of the All-Rookie team, she was named to the preseason Third Team this Fall by the league's coaches. DeWolfe led all freshmen nationally last year with 1,152 minutes played, ranked 13th overall, and is back up to 13th among her peers this year with 38.2 minutes per contest.
 
Chairwomen of the Boards
Fordham has been beastly on the boards to begin the year, averaging 40.0 per contest and with the 19th-highest rebounding margin in the country (10.9), holding opponents just 29.1 boards. The Rams have grabbed 112-of-360 rebounds on the offensive glass, or 31.1%, and have five players with at least 11 offensive boards, led by junior Megan Jonassen's 38 (out of 72) and junior Kaitlyn Downey (14). They are joined by Katie McLoughlin (13), Matilda Flood (11), and Sarah Karpell (11). Downey is 13th in the country with 11.2 rebounds per game and third overall with 9.6 defensive boards per game. Heremaia and Jonassen are each within the top-250 with just over seven boards per game, as well. For their careers, Jonassen (151-of-274) and McLoughlin (27-of-44) have more offensive rebounds than defensive.
 
Lucky Number Seven
Senior Kendell Heremaia has racked up 844 points, 559 rebounds, 219 assists, and 97 steals during her Fordham career to-date. That puts her in some illustrious company among Rams that have reached the 800-point, 500-rebound, 200-assist, 100-steal plateaus, which Heremaia will cross soon with her 100th steal. Only six others have done it, most recently Samantha Clark ('16), but also featuring Becky Peters ('12) and Abigail Corning ('14) that have played under Coach Gaitley. Among that group, Heremaia has the fewest points but the fifth-most rebound and fourth-most assists already.
 
Kene From Distance
Heremaia is also climbing up the all-time three-point shooting categories at Fordham, entering the all-time top-10 for makes and percentage. Against UMass, the New Zealand international became the 10th Ram to reach 150 career three-pointers, while also jumping into a tie for 10th with a 35.0% rate from behind the arc. She could potentially join the top-10 for career rebounds, too, as she is 144 away from passing Abigail Corning.
 
Nationally Speaking (as of 1/15)
Per-game statistics take on even more significance this year during the ongoing pandemic. That said, the Rams are 19th in the country in rebounding margin (+10.9), 22nd in scoring defense (55.2), 16th in three-point percentage (38.5%), 29th in threes per game (8.6), and 53rd with 77 long-range makes. They are also 70th with a team-wide 36.8% field goal percentage.  
 
At the individual level, DeWolfe's 22.4 points per game ranks 18th in the country. She is 31st in attempts (167), 43rd in makes (73), and 13th in minutes played (38.2). Downey is third in the nation with 9.4 defensive rebounds per game and 14th with 11.2 overall per contest. Megan Jonassen is 18th overall and tops in the A-10 with 4.2 offensive rebounds per game, as well.
 
Deeper Dive Into Games Won
In five wins so far this year, the Rams are outscoring opponents 64.0-49.2, a whopping 14.8-point disparity. Fordham is shooting 43.9% from the floor as a group and 41.4% from behind the arc, while holding opponents to marks of 34.2% and 32.0%, respectively. On the glass, Fordham has a 38.5-27.3 advantage. Anna DeWolfe leads the way with 24.3 points on 49.1% shooting overall and 44.7% from downtown, with a team-high 23 assists and 10 steals. Kendell Heremaia is next up with 12.8 points and 8.0 rebounds, plus 18 assists, while shooting 42.9% overall. Downey is averaging 12.2 rebounds per contest to go with 7.8 points, while Megan Jonassen is chipping in 6.7 points and 6.3 rebounds.
 
DeWolfe Named Atlantic 10 Player of the Week
Anna DeWolfe was named the Atlantic 10 Player of the Week during halftime of the Davidson game, the first time she's won the honor in her career. She earned it by scoring a career-high 34 points against Hofstra on December 18.
 
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.
 
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 returns to the Rose Hill Gym for a pair of contests next weekend, first hosting St. Bonaventure on Friday, January 22, and then Duquesne on Sunday, January 24. Both games will tip off at 2 p.m. on ESPN+ and WFUV.