Women's Basketball Set for Opener at Hofstra
The Central Connecticut women's basketball team will open its eighth season under head coach Beryl Piper on Friday night.
The Central Connecticut women's basketball team opens the 2014-15 season against CAA member Hofstra at the David S. Mack Sports and Exhibition Complex in Hempstead, NY, on Friday night. It will be the first game of the season for both squads; tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m. The teams met last season in New Britain with Nicole Ferguson hitting a game-winning jumper at the final buzzer.
Series History • This is 13th meeting in the all-time series between these programs. The series is even at 6-6, but the Blue Devils won last season's meeting, 64-62, in New Britain on a long two-point jump shot at the buzzer by Nicole Ferguson. Prior to last season's contest these programs met at Hofstra in December 2011. Hofstra won that game 67-60. Prior to that Hofstra and CCSU played in the 2005-06 and 2006-07 seasons.
The Roster • The Blue Devil roster will feature nine returning players for the 2014-15 season. All nine saw game action during the 2013-14 campaign. The squad will also feature four new faces as head coach Beryl Piper and the Blue Devils welcome four freshmen. The 13 player roster will feature two seniors, three juniors, three sophomores, one redshirt freshman and four true freshmen.
Piper Tops The List • Beryl Piper begins her eighth season as the head coach of the CCSU women's basketball program as the winningest Division I coach in the history of the program. Piper's 93 wins are tops during CCSU's Division I era, as is her career winning percentage.
Double-Digit Victories • With 11 wins last season CCSU has posted double-digit wins in six straight seasons for the first time in program history. The 2012-13 team's 16 wins gave the Blue Devils five straight double-digit win seasons for the first time in the Division I era. The program also had a five-year run at the Division II level between 1975 and 1980.
Wolosik Returns • Freshman Lauren Wolosik received a redshirt last season after suffering a season ending injury in mid-November. The Pittsburgh native had played in all three games for the Blue Devils before her injury and was named Choice Hotels/Northeast Conference Rookie of the Week on Nov. 18, after posting a career-high 15 points in a victory over Rhode Island.
Watras' Shot at 1,000 Points • Senior Kaley Watras enters her senior year with 694 career points, if she averages 10.6 points per game, and plays in all 29 games, she will reach the 1,000 point milestone by the end of the regular season.
'14 Seniors Moving On • The Blue Devils graduated four seniors from last year's squad: Lauren Arbogast, Jessica Babe, Brooke Bailey and Jaleen Thomas. All four student-athletes were frequent starters for the Blue Devils and ranked third, first, fourth and eighth in minutes played last season.
2014-15 Non-Conference Schedule • The Blue Devils will play an 11-game non-conference schedule prior to the NEC slate this season. The Blue Devils will play teams from six different conferences...Five of the opponents (Hartford, New Hampshire, UMass Lowell, Vermont, Maine) are from the America East...Two (Fordham, Rhode Island) are from the Atlantic 10...Siena from the MAAC...Syracuse from the ACC...Hofstra from the CAA...Army of the Patriot League. Of that group, Syracuse, Army and Fordham all reached the NCAA Tournament last season.
