| Matchup |
Merrimack (0-0) vs.
Georgian Court (0-0) // Caldwell (0-0) |
| Date/Time |
Saturday, Nov. 11, 2017 (4 pm) // Sunday, Nov. 12, 2017 (1 pm) |
| Venue |
GCU Wellness Center // Lakewood, N.J. |
| Multimedia |
Live Stats // Video (GCU) // Twitter // Instagram |
NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – The Merrimack College women's basketball program opens the 2017-18 season this weekend in Lakewood, N.J., where the Warriors will compete at the GCU Invitational against the host Lions of Georgian Court University and Caldwell University. Merrimack takes on Georgian Court tomorrow afternoon at 4 p.m. followed by its matchup with the Cougars at 1 p.m. on Sunday.
What's Noteworthy:
- Entering her seventh year at the helm of the Warriors, Monique LeBlanc returns to the sidelines for the Navy and Gold coming off a 13-win campaign and a return trip to the Northeast-10 Conference Championship. LeBlanc enters the year with 74 career wins over the last six seasons
- Senior captain Cecilia Reyes (Lawrence, Mass.) and junior Lindsay Werner (Groton, Mass.) return to lead a deep core of guards for the Warriors. Werner averaged a career-high 8.5 points per game last season, hitting a personal best 55 three-points, which ranked second on the team. She shot 34.4 percent from distance on the year, while she also broke the program's single-game record with nine triples against UMass last year
- Junior Karlee Alves (Ellington, Conn.) expects to step into a full-time starting role after notching 18 starts over 28 appearances last season. A trio of sophomores including Emily Houle (Attleboro, Mass.), Giulia Orlando (Haverhill, Mass.) and Alyssa Torres (Bohemia, N.Y.) all expect to be regular contributors for the Warriors
- Sophomore Denia Davis-Stewart (Dorchester, Mass.) along with classmate Kathryn Roberts (Grand Terrace, Calif.) return as post players for the Warriors. Davis-Stewart emerged as one of the top freshmen in the Northeast-10 Conference in 2016-17, earning all-rookie status after leading the league in blocked shots (79) and ranking as Merrimack's leader in rebounding
- Three freshmen join the Warriors this winter, and all three expect to step in as immediate contributors. Rookies Alyssa Casey (Andover, Mass.) and Mayson Kimball (Webster, N.H.) are versatile players who can play on the block or on the wing, while freshman guard Marissa Gattuso (Woburn, Mass.) will see minutes in the Warriors' back court
The Opponents:
- The Lions won five games last season, enduring a 19-game CACC record of 3-16. The Lions lost 10 straight before closing the season with a pair of victories, seeing one student-athlete earn all-league honors
- Caldwell returns as one of the top teams in the region, winning 25 games last season and qualifying for the NCAA Tournament as the fourth seed in the East Region
- Kristen Drogsler returns for her senior season after winning CACC Player of the Year as a junior. She was a D2CCA First Team All-American, averaging nearly 20 points per game and breaking the program record with 83 three-pointers last year
The Series:
- Merrimack lost to Georgian Court last season at the GCU Invite, but did not play Caldwell. Saturday will be the second all-time meeting between the Warriors and Lions
- The Navy and Gold will play Caldwell for the first time in 14 years on Sunday afternoon. The Warriors bested the Cougars in the only previous meeting, 81-41, in 2003
Up Next
The Warriors begin NE10 play on Wednesday night when Merrimack travels to Assumption to face the Greyhounds at 5:30 p.m. in Worcester, Mass.
