Central Women Welcome Mercyhurst On Saturday

The Central Connecticut State women's basketball team (1-13, 0-1 NEC) play the middle game of a three-game homestand on Saturday afternoon at 1:00 p.m. when Northeast Conference newcomers, the Lakers of Mercyhurst University (3-9, 0-1 NEC) come to Detrick Gymnasium.  The Blue Devils will be looking to snap a six-game losing streak and get back in the win column after Central fell at home to Thursday to St. Francis University, 79-63.  Mercyhurst fell at Stonehill on Thursday, 72-54, in the program's inaugural NEC outing.

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Saturday will be the first-ever meeting on the hardwood for the women's basketball programs at Mercyhurst and Central Connecticut State.

A LOOK BACK AT THE NEC OPENER:

• CCSU opened Northeast Conference play on Thursday afternoon with a 79-63 loss against the visiting Red Flash of Saint Francis University.  The Red Flash shot a season-best 58.6 percent from the floor, as they connected on 34-of-58 field goals, and they dominated play inside, as 46 of their points came from within the paint.  Amaya Williams led the Blue Devils with a career-high 17 points off the Central bench, and she was joined in double figures by Belle Lanpher and Alonna Sellers, who each had 12 points on the day. Sellers finished with her third double-double of the season, as she finished with a team-high 10 rebounds.  

SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION:

•    The Lakers of Mercyhurst University, located in Erie, Pennsylvania,  are in their first season of playing at the NCAA Division 1 level and in the Northeast Conference, as the institution transitions from the NCAA Division II level and the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference.  Mercyhurst's three wins this season have all come against non-Division I opponents in Davis & Elkins College, 67-51, Bryant & Stratton (Syracuse), 109-43, and Allegheny College, 71-52.  The Lakers fell at Stonehill in their last outing on Thursday night, 72-54,
•    Mercyhurst was slotted in an eighth place tie with fellow conference newcomer Chicago State in this year's preseason NEC Women's Basketball Coaches' Poll.
•    Junior Bailey Kuhns leads the team in both scoring and rebounding averaging 20.3 points and 4.9 rebounds per game.  Against Stonehill on Thursday, Kuhns netted a game-high 27 points.  She is joined in double figures by classmate Jenna Van Schaik who is averaging 12.4 points per outing.
•   As a team, the Lakers are averaging 65.4 points and 31.5 rebounds per contest, and they are allowing the opposition 68.3 points per game plus opponents are pulling down an average of 36.4 rebounds per game.
•   Mercyhurst is led by head coach Brooklyn Kohlheim, who is in her sixth season as the Lakers' leader.  Last year, the team went 18-10 overall and 14-8 in the PSAC in the program's final D-II campaign.

THIS AND THAT:

•  CCSU's number two ranking in the Preseason Northeast Conference Coaches' Poll is the highest ranking in program history.
•  With her 12 points against Saint Francis on Thursday, graduate student Belle Lanpher has moved into ninth place on CCSU's all-time scoring list with 1135 total points.  Belle also had a team-high five assists on Thursday and went 4-for-4 from the foul line.  So far in her four games played this season, Lanpher is averaging 18.5 points per game, and she has gone 15-of-16 from the free throw stripe (93.8%).
•   Classmate Meghan Kenefick is averaging 9.1 points per contest.  Meghan, who is averaging 4.6 boards per games, enters Saturday's game with a career total of 495 rebounds, just five shy of 500.
•   Freshman Dagny Slomack is third on this season's CCSU scoring list averaging 8.8 points per game.
•   Fellow freshman Selina Monestime is next in scoring averaging at 8.0 points per game, and she is second on the Blue Devils in rebounding grabbing and average of 5.1 per game.
•    Junior Alonna Sellers leads CCSU on the boards so far in 2024-25 averaging 6.8 rebounds per game.  Sellers is also averaging 7.8 points per outing, and she notched her third double-double of the 2024-25 season with 12 points and 10 rebounds on Thursday.
•    CCSU guard Amaya Williams scored a career-high 17 points in a reserve role on Thursday against Saint Francis that topped her previous career best of 16 points that came versus Wagner on January 21, 2023.  On Thursday, Williams was red-hot going 6-of-9 from the floor, including knocking down 4-of-5 from three-point range.
•    As a team, the Blue Devils are averaging 54.5 points per game and allowing the opposition to score an average of 69.9 points per outing.  On the glass, Central is pulling down an average of 33.9 rebounds per game; while the opposition is averaging 40.4 rebounds per contest.

UP NEXT:

•   The Blue Devils wrap up their three-game homestand to open NEC action next Thursday, January 9 when the Sharks of Long Island University come to town.  Game time versus the LIU is set for 7:00 p.m.  Mercyhurst heads back to Erie to host LeMoyne next Thursday at 6:00 p.m.