Women's Basketball Back on the Road at Southern New Hampshire on Saturday
Game Notes (PDF)
The Particulars:
The Merrimack women's basketball team travels to Manchester on Saturday to play the Southern New Hampshire Penmen for their fifth straight road conference game. The Warriors are coming off of a 60-40 loss at Saint Michael's while Southern New Hampshire is coming off of a 76-66 win at Stonehill.
About Merrimack:
The Warriors are led by Genn Roy who is averaging a team-high 16.5 points and 3.1 rebounds per contest so far this year. Roy is coming off of a 11 point performance against Saint Michael's. Kelly Schatzlein is second on the team in scoring averaging 16.0 points and 10.6 rebounds per contest. Schatzlein is coming off of an 11 point and three rebound performance on Tuesday night in the Warriors loss to Saint Michael's.The freshman guard duo of Chloe Rothman and Allison Wagner have performed well so far averaging 6.3 points per contest each.
About The Competition:
The Penmen enter Saturday's contest with a 6-2 (4-2 NE-10) record after winning their last contest at Stonehill 76-66. Southern New Hampshire is led offensively by Sloane Sorrell who is averaging 11.5 points and 7.4 rebounds per game. Michelle DeRoma is averaging 10.5 points and 2.5 assists per game so far this season.
All-Time Series:
The Warriors are 26-18 all-time against Southern New Hampshire including splitting two games last season.
Last game (Merrimack 40 - Saint Michael's 60):
The Merrimack women's basketball team traveled to Saint Michael's on Tuesday night and were defeated 60-40. Gennifer Roy scored a game-high 11 points while Kelly Schatzlein added 11 points and three rebounds. Jaclyn Lyons played well off the bench scoring six points and recording two steals. The Warriors were unable to keep the Purple Knights off the glass as they racked up 24 offensive rebounds.
1,154 and counting:
Senior guard Gennifer Roy put together another steady performance on Tuesday as she scored a team-high 11 points on 5-10 from the field. With her performance on Tuesday, Roy moved into 11th place on the all-time scoring list with 1,154 career points. Roy is just 7 points shy of entering the top ten on the Merrimack womens basketball scoring charts. The senior has led the team in scoring five times this season. Roy is averaging a team-best 16.5 points and 3.1 rebounds per game this year.
Schatzlein Leads warriors with five double-doubles:
Junior forward Kelly Schatzlein had a quiet night on the glass for the Warriors on Tuesday as she recorded only four rebounds in the loss. Schatzlein finished the game with 11 points on 4-11 from the field and 3-4 from the free throw line to go along with four blocks, three steals and two assists. Schatzlein is second in the conference in field goal percentage at 60.7 percent and third in the conference in rebounds per game with 10.6 per game. Schatzlein is now averaging a double-double with 16.0 points, 10.6 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per contest. Schatzlein has racked up a team-high five double-doubles through eight games this year and has led the team in rebounding in all eight games.
Allowing offensive rebounds were key in warriors loss:
One of the biggest problems for the Warriors team all year is rebounding the ball and giving up second chance points. The Warriors were unable to fix these problems on Tuesday night as they were downed 60-40. The Warriors were out rebounded 50-26 for the game inclduding 24 offensive rebounds for the Purple Knights compared to 3 for the Warriors. Saint Michael's took the 24 offensive rebounds and turned them into 18 second chance points. Merrimack was only able to come up with four second chance points with their three offensive boards.
Equal scoring across the board not enough:
The Warriors had seven players score atleast two points on Tuesday night but it was not enough as they were only able to produce 40 points against St. Mike's. Genn Roy and Kelly Schatzlein led the way for the Warriors scoring 11 points each. Jaclyn Lyons came off the bench and produce six points on 3-7 from the field. Allison Wagner continued her solid shooting from three point range with one three pointer and five total points. Chloe Rothman chipped in with three points while Angie Michalski and Melissa Miller each scored two.
Points in the paint favored St. Mike's:
Saint Michael's completed dominated the Warriors inside the paint on Tuesday night, giving them the 20 point victory. The Purple Knights racked up 26 points inside the paint while Merrimack was only able to produce 14. Nicole Adach led the way for the Purple Knights inside the paint as she racked up 12 paint points and drew four fouls which led to six points for Saint Michael's. Kelly Schatzlein led the Warriors in points in the paint as she racked up eight points.
Merrimack's New Head Coach Monique LeBlanc:
Monique LeBlanc is enterng her first season as head coach of the Merrimack Warriors. LeBlanc brings over seven years of division I coaching experience to North Andover. LeBlanc spent the last three seasons as assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at Northern Arizona University. LeBlanc also served as the teams academic mentor, Northern Arizona had a team GPA of 3.4 in 2010, which ranked 13th among all division I women's basketball programs. LeBlanc also spent three seasons as an assistant coach at her alma mater Bucknell where her team captured the Patriot league title in 2007 and 2008 and earned a NCAA Tournament Berth in 2008. LeBlanc was a two year captain of the Bisons as a player.
