Women’s Basketball Celebrates Seniors Saturday during "Pack The Mack" Game vs. Bentley

Matchup	Merrimack (18-8, 11-8 NE10) vs. #14/16 Bentley (24-2, 18-1 NE10)
Date/Time	Saturday, Feb. 23, 2019 // 1:00 p.m.
Venue	Hammel Court // North Andover, Mass. (Tickets)
Multimedia	Live Stats // Watch // Twitter // Instagram

NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – The Merrimack College women's basketball team will be celebrating Senior Day when they host No. 14/16 Bentley University on Saturday afternoon. Tip-off is scheduled for 1 p.m. with a pregame ceremony right before tip to celebrate the careers of seniors Karlee Alves, Lexi Martin and Lindsay Werner.

Merrimack clinched a playoff berth with their win over Stonehill on Wednesday. The team is currently in fourth place in the Northeast Division but only trail Saint Anselm and Stonehill by just one game with two games to go in the regular season for a chance to jump into the top three in the Northeast Division. The Warriors are currently in position to host a playoff game next Friday night but with a strong finish to the season, they could earn a bye to the quarterfinals.

Promotions:

• In addition to Senior Day, Saturday will be the Warriors' "Pack The Mack" game. The first 250 students in attendance will receive a free white t-shirt in an effort to white-out Hammel Court for Saturday's rivalry showdown with the Falcons
• One t-shirt will be distributed per Mack Card, and available while supplies last. The t-shirts are provided by Cedar's, a proud sponsor of Merrimack Athletics

Five Things to Know:

• The Warriors secured a playoff berth with an important win over Stonehill on Wednesday night. The Merrimack offense caught fire in the third quarter and outscored the Skyhawks, 27-10, in that frame and never looked back. The offense was led by Werner who had a season-high 29 points on 11-of-19 shooting. Junior Denia Davis-Stewart turned in her 13^th double-double and fourth straight overall with 18 points and 12 boards. Sophomore Alyssa Casey also scored in double figures for the 15^th time this season.
• With the win on Wednesday, Merrimack enters Saturday with 18 wins on the season, which set the record for the most in the eight-year tenure of head coach Monique LeBlanc. Merrimack has also set the record for the most wins for the program in a season since 2004-05, a year that saw the program reach the Final Four for the second straight season
• In her senior season, Alves is averaging 2.96 steals per game which is good enough for third in the NE10 and 16^th in the country. Davis-Stewart is averaging 3.5 blocks per game which leads the NE10 and ranks seventh in the country.
• Merrimack's offense continues to lead the NE10, averaging 74.6 points per game. That average currently matches the 2003-04 Warriors as the top scoring offense in school history. Merrimack also leads the NE10 in 3-pointers made (224), which ranks 11^th nationwide. Four Warriors have hit at least 40 3-pointers this year led by Werner's 64. Freshman Kate Mager boasts 55 makes, the most of any rookie in the NE10
• Bentley enters Saturday's tilt on an 11-game winning streak, and have already clinched the top overall seed in the NE10 Championship. The Falcons boast a well-rounded offensive attack with five players averaging at least 9.8 PPG. The attack is led by senior Victoria Lux who averages 11.4 PPG and 6.9 RPG. Bentley also owns an aggressive defense that has held opponents to 36 percent shooting and 31.2 percent shooting from behind the arc.

Record Watch

• All-Time Scoring – Werner currently sits 16^th in school history in scoring, and needs 53 points over the final few games of the season to finish her career inside the top 15 all-time. She also sits on 184 career 3-pointers, needing five more to tie the school record
• Single-Season Assists – Alves saw her nation-leading assist total reach 209 on Wednesday. The floor general needs 10 more to move into the top 15 in NE10 history in single-season assists
• Team Records – In addition to a potential new single-season scoring mark, Merrimack is hitting 3-pointers at a school-record pace. The Warriors are currently making 36 percent of their treys, which is on track to break the 03-04 percentage (34.7) as the best in school history

February Flashback:

• The Falcons took the first game of the season series back in December with a close 62-57 win.
• Three Warriors scored in double figures, led by Davis-Stewart who had 13 points and 12 rebounds. Werner, 14, and sophomore Mayson Kimball, 12, were the other two Warriors to score in double figures.
• The Falcons deployed a balanced offense attacked that saw four players score in double figures with sophomore Katie Meriggioli leading the way with 15 points. Junior Monica Viapiano chipped in with 14 points and seven boards.

Scouting the Opposition

Merrimack (18-8, 11-8 NE10)	Stat Category	#14/16 Bentley (24-2, 18-1 NE10)
74.6	Points Per Game	73.1
64.1	Points Allowed Per Game	58.3
.439	Field Goal Percentage	.435
.360	Three-Point FG Percentage	.392
39.7	Rebounds Per Game	41.8
Lindsay Werner (16.7 ppg­)	Points Leader	Victoria Lux (11.4 ppg)
Denia Davis-Stewart (11.0 rpg)	Rebounds Leader	Lux (6.9 rpg)
Karlee Alves (8.0 apg)	Assists Leader	Amy McConnell (4.5 apg)
Alves (3.0 spg)	Steals Leader	Megan Lewis (1.4 spg)
Davis-Stewart (3.5 bpg)	Blocks Leader	Lux (0.8 bpg)

 
Up Next:
The Warriors travel to Saint Michael's College on Tuesday, February 26 for a 5:30 tip. The contest will mark the end of the regular season for the Warriors, with the program potentially beginning postseason play on Friday, March 1, or Sunday, March 3, depending on where they finish in the division.