SFU GAME NOTESLIVE STATSLIVE VIDEO (NEC FRONT ROW)LIVE AUDIO (WWGE)LORETTO, PA- Saint Francis women's basketball heads back to the Cambria County War Memorial when they host the Pitt-Johnstown Mountain Cats on Saturday at 3:30 p.m..
This is the second-straight year the women's basketball team will play at the War Memorial. Last season, the Red Flash dropped a 76-62 decision to Bowling Green. This is the third-straight year that Saint Francis will play at the War Memorial, as they pay homage to their home stadium through much of the 50s and 60s. This will be the first double-header as the women will take the floor after the 1 p.m. men's game against Duquesne.
ABOUT THE FLASHThe Red Flash are looking to end a four-game losing streak and hope that a return to the Keystone state is what the doctor ordered. SFU has dropped four-straight on the road, the latest a 91-65 contest at Ohio University last Sunday.
Jessica Kovatch (Phillipsburg, N.J./Phillipsburg) continues to lead the Flash, winning her third-straight Northeast Conference Rookie of the Week. She is averaging 21.7 points per game, a mark that is 14th in the nation and tops amongst NCAA freshman.
Halee Adams (Hollidaysburg, Pa./Bishop Guilfoyle) led the Flash on Sunday with 13 points and continues her sharp shooting, she is hitting on better than 50 percent from the field and from three.
ABOUT UPJThe Mountain Cats are coming off a big overtime PSAC win against Mansfield, outlasting the Mountaineers 90-81 in overtime...UPJ was picked to finish seventh in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Western Division ...Jasmine Harper was named to the pre-season All-PSAC team and paces UPJ with nearly 15 points and eight rebounds per game ...Oliva McCabe is the other force on the block for the Mountain Cats, joining Harper in double figures with 13 points per game, she also averages nearly 10 rebounds a contest ...Leah Hansen sets the table for UPJ, leading the team at over 5 assists per game and better than a 2/1 assist to turnover ratio ...The Mountain Cats average about seven threes per game but are shooting at just over 29 percent from three
ABOUT THE MATCHUPUPJ has dominated the series, historically. The Mountain Cats have won eight of the 10 all-time meetings between the schools. The teams met annually from 1974 to 1979 and again in 1984 and 1985. Saint Francis won the first meeting 59-20 in 1974 but have lost the last seven matchups.
KILLER KOVATCHIn addition to leading the Flash, the NEC and NCAA freshman in scoring, Kovatch continues to shine in other national categories as well. She currently ranks in the national top-10 in three pointers made and threes per game, hitting 3.71 per contest and 26 on the season, both easily leading the NEC. Defensively, she ranks 44th in steals with 21, an average of 3 per game, good for second in the NEC.
BLOCK PARTYSaint Francis is currently ninth in the nation and tops in the NEC in blocked shots per game, averaging 6.1 per contest.
Cydney Smith (Port Tobacco, Md./St. Mary's Ryken) leads the way with 10 blocks on the year followed by
Samiah Bethel (Jacksonville, Fla./Potter's House Christian Academy) (8) and
Brielle Ward (Baltimore, Md./Western (Hampton U)) (7).
FOLLOW ALONGTomorrow's game will be broadcasted on the SFU Flagship station WWGE with Curt Lowe and
Bernie Jubeck on the call. Their audio will be simulcasted on NEC Front Row's coverage of the game.
LOOKING AHEADThe Red Flash head back on the road next week, traveling to West Virginia to take on the Marshall Thundering Herd at noon on Thursday in Huntingdon. The team will then fly down to Gainesville, Floriday to take on the Gators on Sunday and either Eastern Kentucky or NC State on Monday.
