LORETTO, Pa. – Saint Francis University women's basketball returns to the court on Saturday against LIU for a 4 p.m. tip-off. Both teams are seeking their first win of the season.
 
Saint Francis Quick Hits
» Jada Dapaa continues to climb the NCAA Division I leaderboards with 9.6 rebounds per game that ranks 39th. She recorded her seventh-career double-double and third of the season on Thursday against St. Francis Brooklyn.
» Kaitlyn Maxwell recorded her fifth game with 15 or more points this season and improved her season average to 8.7 points per game. She is shooting 44.4 percent from three-point, which is top-10 in the Northeast Conference.
» Sam Miller tied her season-high with 10 points against St. Francis Brooklyn, her second double-digit scoring game this season.
 
Scouting LIU
The Sharks enter Saturday's game with an 0-11 record and 0-3 conference record, two of the conference losses were due to COVID protocol forfeits. LIU has an overtime loss to NJIT, one-point loss to Vermont, three-point loss to Army and nine-point loss to Manhattan. All other games were double-digit losses, which included a 92-41 defeat at Pitt. Freshman guard Emaia O'Brien has 9.1 points per game on 42 percent shooting from three-point territory. O'Brien earned three Rookie of the Week honors this season, her last on Dec. 20. Redshirt junior Kennedy Taylor has a team-high 1.5 steals per game that ranks top-10 in the Northeast Conference. Freshman Tayra Eke is second in the conference with 1.9 blocks per game.
 
Last Time Out
The Red Flash dropped their return home in over a month 70-60 to St. Francis Brooklyn. Saint Francis trailed by four points at the end of the first quarter and seven points at halftime. Midway through the third quarter, the Terriers took control of the game with an 8-0 run that guided them to a 58-46 lead after three quarters. Saint Francis was only able to cut the deficit to single-digits one time before the final buzzer. Jada Dapaa recorded her third double-double of the season with a career-high 17 points. Sam Miller tied her season-high with 10 points and Maria McConnell scored a career-high five. St. Francis Brooklyn's Nevena Dimitrijevic had a game-high 18 points.
 
Since 2020 vs. LIU
The Red Flash and Sharks are tied 2-2 since the 2019-20 season. LIU took the first two contests and scored 71 points in both games. Saint Francis responded with two wins during the 2020-21 season and won both games by four points, 76-72 and 66-62. In the last matchup, Sam Miller (12), Lili Benzel (10) and Jenna Mastellone (10) all scored in double digits. Mastellone also had a career-high nine rebounds in the game.
 
Around the NEC
One women's basketball game, Sacred Heart vs. Central Connecticut, was cancelled on Thursday due to COVID protocols within the Central Connecticut program. The status of Saturday's game between Central Connecticut and Merrimack is yet to be determined. Due to the forfeit by Central Connecticut, Sacred Heart moved to 3-0, while Wagner defeated Bryant 68-52 and Fairleigh Dickinson defeated Merrimack 76-65 in double overtime to also remaining undefeated in conference play. Wagner and Sacred Heart will play on Saturday at 2 p.m. in a battle for the top spot in the conference standings. After a COVID pause, preseason favorite Mount St. Mary's earned their first conference win with a 70-54 victory over LIU. With their losses, LIU and Saint Francis are the last remaining winless in conference play and will face off on Saturday.
 
Dapaa Achieved 500 Career Rebounds Milestone
Forward Jada Dapaa eclipsed the 500 career rebounds mark with her third-quarter board against Fairleigh Dickinson on Dec. 31. She finished the game with one additional rebound that put her career total at 501. She will need 598 rebounds to enter Saint Francis' top-15 all-time rankings. At the time of her 500th board, she had a 9.5 rebounds per game average with 16 regular season games remaining, barring any cancellations.
 
Mastellone Named a Northeast Conference Prime Performer
Guard Jenna Mastellone earned the first weekly honor of her career when she was named a Northeast Conference prime Performer on Dec. 27. She recorded a game-high 16 points on 6-of-9 shooting at Jacksonville State. The performance pushed her to 11th in the NEC with a 44.9 shooting percentage through non-conference play. Her six converted field goals were tied for her career-high that she set in 2020 against Merrimack.
 
The NEC Announces an Expansion of 2022 Tournament
The Northeast Conference announced a one-time expansion of the 2022 NEC Men's and Women's Tournament to include all-nine eligible teams on Dec. 23. The vote will maintain the league's current cancellation and forfeit policy. The policy is as follows:

• If a team is unable to compete due to COVID-19 related issues, the NEC contest will not be rescheduled and will be considered a forfeit. For purposes of conference regular season standings and tiebreakers, a forfeit will count as an NEC win for the team that was cleared to compete, and a loss for the team that could not compete.
• If two opponents are unable to compete due to COVID-19 issues, both teams shall be deemed to have forfeited and each team will be charged with a loss.
• As per NCAA policy, a COVID-19 related forfeit will not change a team's official won-lost record, nor will it impact statistics or coaching records.
• In the event of a forfeit during an NEC championship game, the bracket will not be modified and the team cleared to compete will advance

 
Melendez Rounds Out the Red Flash Coaching Staff
Tayra Melendez was hired as an assistant coach to round out head coach Keila Whittington's coaching staff. Melendez is part of the Puerto Rican National Team since 2014 and was one of 12 players selected to represent Puerto Rico at the summer 2020 Olympics. She played professionally in the PR-Baloncesto Superior Nacional Femenino, where she was a two-time league champion, two-time Defensive Player of the League and one-time Finals MVP. Melendez joins the Red Flash after she spent two seasons with Bryant as the director of operations.
 
Dapaa Named a Northeast Conference Prime Performer
Jada Dapaa earned the first weekly honor for the Red Flash this season when she was selected as an NEC Prime Performer on Dec. 6. The senior grabbed 26 rebounds in two games against La Salle and Bucknell and recorded a double-double against La Salle. The selection was the second weekly honor of Dapaa's career, her first a Prime Performer selection on Feb. 8, 2021. 
 
The Red Flash Welcome Five Players in 2022 Signing Class
Saint Francis adds five players, guards Katie Ambrose, Semaya Turner and Destini Ward and forwards Jade Campbell and Julianna Gibson, in the 2022 signing class. Ambose accumulated 1,222 points, 665 assists, 428 rebounds and 363 steals in her first three seasons. In 64 career games, Turner amassed 584 points, 501 rebounds, 119 steals and 99 blocks. Ward is a two-time Baltimore County All-Division Team selection. Campbell has over 700 points in her career and has a single-game high of 33 points and 23 rebounds. Lastly, Gibson scored 79 points and grabbed 79 rebounds in 13 games during her junior season.
 
"We found five players who will fill in the gaps, along with the players we have returning next season," said head coach Keila Whittington. "Each player brings passion and a love for the game, athleticism, and a desire to join a program that works hard to fight for and win championships."
 
Red Flash Picked Third in NEC Preseason Poll
Saint Francis was picked to finish third in the 2021-22 NEC Women's Basketball Preseason Poll. The Red Flash trail Mount St. Mary's, unanimously selected to win the conference, and Wagner. Sacred Heart and Fairleigh Dickinson rounded out the top-five voting. Mount St. Mary's won the NEC in 2020-21 after defeating Wagner, 70-38.
 
Dapaa, McLemore Named Team Captains
Seniors Jada Dapaa and Jordan McLemore were named captains, selected by their teammates. Both will serve as captain for the first time, McLemore serving her captaincy in her first season with the Red Flash. "We opened up voting this year to our players," said head coach Keila Whittington. "She [McLemore] earned that respect from the work she put in during the summer."
 
2021-22 Non-Conference Schedule Highlighted by Two Power Five Opponents
The Red Flash non-conference schedule features marquee matchups against Georgia and West Virginia. Georgia finished the 2020-21 season ranked 10th, while West Virginia finished 17th in the Associated Press Poll. MAC opponents Toledo and Kent State and AAC opponent Temple join the group of notable non-conference opponents.
 
Taylor Returns to Saint Francis as Assistant Coach
Former Red Flash forward Brooklyn Taylor rejoined the program as an assistant coach in May 2021. She previously spent the past three seasons with Akron and two seasons at Mercer after her 2016 graduation from Saint Francis. As a player, Taylor appeared in 70 games across four seasons with the Red Flash.
 
Brown Named to Red Flash Coaching Staff
Assistant coach Erika Brown joined the Red Flash staff in May 2021 after previously coaching at Harcum College, Stony Brook and Florida International. During her time with Stony Brook in 2019-20, she assisted a team that went 28-3 and won the America East Championship. They were poised for a NCAA Tournament run before it was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As a player at Delaware, Brown ranked 10th in program history with 1,402 career points.
 
The Red Flash Return Two Starters, Three Others with Saint Francis Starting Experience
Kaitlyn Maxwell and Lili Benzel return after starting 22 and 18 games, respectively. Jenna Mastellone (six), Jada Dapaa (three) and Sam Miller (one) also bring starting experience to the 2021-22 season. Benzel, Mastellone and Dapaa all averaged more than 22 minutes per game. Dapaa led the team with 8.6 rebounds-per-game, which ranked second in the NEC. Benzel had an NEC-leading 48 made three-point shots and team-leading 36.1 percent from three. She has a chance to reach the Saint Francis top-10 rankings in just three seasons with the team. Mastellone's 105-career appearances with Saint Francis is 47 more than second-most on the team (Dapaa, 58). Maxwell and Miller will fill larger roles with three key departures after averaging 18.6 and 15.8 minutes-per-game, respectively.
 
Five Newcomers Added
The Red Flash welcomed five new members, one transfer, Jordan McLemore, and four freshman, Layla Laws, Maria McConnell, Adison Novosel and Nyla Rozier. McLemore, a senior, comes from Hartford where she was fifth in the America East with 95 assists in 2019-20. The four freshman all stand 5-foot-11 or taller and have two forwards and two guards. McConnell grew up in Nanty Glo, Pa. and played basketball at Blacklick Valley, 20 minutes away from Saint Francis.
 
Next
Saint Francis returns home on Saturday, Jan. 15 to face Merrimack for a 4 p.m. tip-off. The matchup will be the fourth all-time meeting between the programs.