Jan. 19, 2001
Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader
Game 17: vs. Pennsylvania
Jan. 20, 2001 * A.P. Kirby Sports Center (3,500) * 1:00 p.m.
SERIES HISTORY: Lafayette's game vs. Pennsylvania is the 25th meeting between the two programs. The Leopards currently hold a 13-11 edge in the all-time series dating back to their first meeting with the Quakers on March 2, 1977, an 87-48 Lafayette win.
LAST MEETING: Lafayette fell to Penn in the hallowed Palestra in Philadelphia on Jan. 24, 2000, as the nation's second leading scorer, Quaker Diana Caramanico, scored 25 points en route to the 79-62 victory. Jennifer Bayer recorded her sixth double-double in eight games as she recorded 20 points and 10 boards against the Ivy League opponents.
NEXT UP:The Leopards return to Patriot League action on Jan. 24 when they host Army. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:45 p.m. in the first game of a doubleheader.
THE COACHES: Leopard Head Coach Pat Fisher (East Stroudsburg '60) is the winningest coach in the history of Lafayette College basketball. She has led the program to a 292-275 mark (.515) since arriving on College Hill. She earned East Coast Conference (ECC) Coach of the Year honors three times, while leading the Leopards to conference titles in 1984-85 and 1986-87. Fisher is assisted by LaRonda Murphy (Saginaw Valley State '91), Dean Dedopoulos (North Adams State '79) and Val Davis (Kutztown '83).
Heading up the Pennsylvania program in her second season of coaching is Kelly Greenberg (LaSalle '89). Greenberg led the Quakers to a record of 18-10 last season and a second place finish in the Ivy League. She is helped out on the Penn bench by assistant coaches Dayna Smith (Rhode Island '96) and Joe McGeever (Temple '71).
LAFAYETTE VS. THE IVY LEAGUE: Pennsylvania is the third and final Ivy League opponent on Lafayette's schedule this season. The Leopards are 1-1against Ivy League teams this season, beating Princeton 58-48 on Dec. 6 at home and losing at Yale, 76-61, on Dec. 8. Lafayette holds a slight edge in games against the Ivies, compiling a record of 43-42 (.506) since the program's establishment in 1972. The Leopards also hold a 19-17 edge over their Ivy counterparts when play on College Hill. Lafayette versus the Ivy League schools:
Brown ........2-1 Cornell .......6-4 Harvard ..........1-0 Princeton .....14-13 Columbia ...0-0 Dartmouth ..2-4 Pennsylvania ..13-11 Yale .............5-8
IN SEARCH OF A "W": Lafayette is currently on a seven game slide, last recording a win on Dec. 10 against Air Force at home. The Leopards are looking to snap that streak as they face Penn, a team that they have not beaten since an 81-69 victory at Kirby on Jan. 18, 1999. Five current Leopards remain from that 1998-99 squad, including senior point guard Christel Rocha, who scored 15-points in the second half of the Penn game to help Lafayette overcome an eight-point halftime Quaker advantage for the win. The other Leopards remaining from the 1998-99 team are juniors Elise Palac and Christina LiVecchi and their classmates and co-captains Samaiyah Council and Laurie Infantino
THE BAYER NECESSITIES: Sophomore center Jennifer Bayer has established herself as one of the most consistent performers in the Patriot League this season, making her a target for opponents inside the paint. The 6-1 sophomore, however, was held to just four points in Lafayette's game against Navy on Wednesday. It was only the fourth time all season that the Lowell, Ind., native did not score in double figures. As of the latest Patriot League standings, Bayer is seventh in the league in scoring (13.5 ppg), second in rebounding (8.6 rpg), first in field goal percentage (.557), tied for first in offensive rebounding (3.12/game) and fourth in defensive rebounding (5.44).
PHENOMENAL FITZPATRICK: Freshman forward Colleen Fitzpatrick has emerged as a major contributor for the Leopards this season. The 5-11 Springfield, Pa., native is third on the team in scoring (7.3 ppg) and second in rebounding (5.6 rpg). Fitzpatrick has been in the Lafayette starting lineup eight times this season and averages 25.4 minutes per game. She grabbed a career-high 11 rebounds in the league opener vs. Lehigh and went 8-of-12 from the free throw line. Fitzpatrick ranks 14th in the Patriot League in rebounding, eighth in offensive boards and 15th in defensive boards.
STILL DOMINATING THE BOARDS: Despite Lafayette's recent troubles in coming up with a victory, the squad is still leading the league in rebounding defense, holding its opponents to 34.3 boards per contest. The Leopards are second in rebounding margin with an edge of +3.4. Helping the cause is Jennifer Bayer's 8.6 per game average and Colleen Fitzpatrick's 5.6 mark. The Leopards are currently third in the league in scoring defense, allowing 66.8 points per game, third in offensive rebounds with 14.12 per game and fourth in rebounding offense, averaging 37.8 per game.
THE PENNSYLVANIA QUAKERS: The Quakers visit College Hill this season with an overall record of 8-5 and an Ivy League mark of 2-0. The team is 5-2 on the road this season, beating non-league opponents Lehigh, Siena and Albany and Ivy Leaguers Cornell and Columbia on their foes' home courts.
Penn is led on both ends of the floor again this season by senior forward Diana Caramanico who currently ranks eighth in the NCAA in scoring this season with 22.1 points per game and fifth in rebounding with 11.8 per outing. Also averaging in double digits this season for the Quakers is senior guard Erin Ladley with 12.8 ppg. Freshman guard Jewel Clark is fourth on the team in scoring with 9.2 ppg behind Caramanico, Ladley and junior Julie Epton (9.9 ppg).
LIVECCHI RESPONDS: Junior forward Christina LiVecchi has been shuffled between the starting lineup and the bench throughout the season due to the Leopards' lack of consistent scorers inside. The 6-1 Haddonfield, N.J., native, has started eight of Lafayette's 16 games this season, splitting playing time at the power forward position with freshman Colleen Fitzpatrick. LiVecchi, however, responded to her critics with a team-high 11points on Wednesday at Navy. The 1998-99 Patriot League All-Rookie selection and leading shot blocker last season is currently sixth in the league in blocked shots, recording seven so far on the season.
LAFAYETTE LEADS THE NATION -- AGAIN: For the second straight year, the Lafayette College women's basketball program is ranked first in the nation as one of 11 Division I institutions to graduate all women's basketball players in the latest NCAA Graduation Rates Report. The latest report is for student-athletes who entered from 1990 to 1993, and Lafayette's women's basketball graduation rate was a perfect 100 percent.
ROJAHN INJURY UPDATE: Elizabeth Rojahn, Lafayette's second-leading scorer last season, has not been able to dress for a game yet this season due to a lower back injury suffered in mid-September. The 5-10 forward started all of the Leopards' 29 contests last season, averaging 11.3 points and 3.9 rebounds as a freshman. Rojahn is currently listed as day-to-day and will not compete against Pennsylvania.
2000-01 CAPTAINS: Samaiyah Council and Laurie Infantino have been named the captains of the 2000-01 Lafayette women's basketball team. Selected by their teammates, Council and Infantino will provide the team with leadership and experience both on and off the court this season. Council will watch over the backcourt this season as a point guard while Infantino will take charge of the frontcourt as a 5-11 junior forward.
LAFAYETTE IN YOUR LIVING ROOM: The Lafayette College women's basketball team will see at least 12 contests hit the television airwaves this season. The Lafayette Sports Network will air games to more than 5.2 million viewers in the Lehigh Valley, central New Jersey, New York City and Boston. Locally, the telecasts will be aired on RCN TV-4 and WBPH-TV 60, and will cover the entire Lehigh Valley as well as Hunterdon, Morris, Somerset, Mercer and Warren counties in New Jersey.
LEOPARDS WALK ON AIR-WAVES: Lafayette's women's basketball team boasts the largest commercial radio package in the Patriot League this season, seeing at least 12 of its contests take to the airwaves of WEST-AM Stereo 1400. Both of the Leopards' home and away regular season league contests against Lehigh, Bucknell, Navy, Holy Cross and Army will be broadcast by the voice of Lafayette Athletics Dick Hammer, one of the most highly-respected radio broadcasters in the Northeast. Broadcasts will begin approximately five minutes before tip-off while coverage of the Patriot League tournament will also be accessible to the listening public. All of the Leopards' radio broadcasts will be available live on the web at www.lafayette.edu.
LEOPARDS PROWL THE WEB: Check out the latest information on all Lafayette sports on the web:
www.lafayette.edu
You can find press releases, game notes, schedules, rosters, players features, photos, fan polls, box scores, up-to-date season statistics and much more. Also, a journal by junior Christina LiVecchi is featured on the site. The web is updated within an hour of each contest.
In addition, you can receive a daily e-mail update by e-mailing krewsonp@mail.lafayette.edu and requesting your e-mail address be added to the daily update list.
