Posted: 11/22/2012 | Last updated: November 24, 2012 at 01:53 PM
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – After a dramatic last-second loss to La Salle, the Lehigh women’s basketball team will be looking to bounce back against Wagner on Friday when it takes on the Seahawks at 4 p.m. on the campus of Monmouth University before hosting the Hawks on Sunday at 2 p.m. as a part of the Thanksgiving Challenge. Lehigh will be in search of its fifth-consecutive win over Wagner, a streak that dates back to the 1997-98 season.
Trailing by two and 11 seconds on the clock, La Salle pushed the ball quickly up the floor and Brittany Williams knocked down a three-pointer with six seconds to go to give the Explorers a one-point victory over the Mountain Hawks on Tuesday afternoon. Lehigh trailed by as many as 10 in the first half, but battled back to eventually take several second half leads, as the score changed six times and was tied six more in the final 20 minutes of Tuesday’s tilt. Freshman Kerry Kinek was sensational yet again, dropping 17 points and blocking five shots, while senior Kelly Peterson also played tremendously, adding 12 points and a career-high eight rebounds.
Lehigh (1-2) is shooting 34.3 percent from the floor as a team, averaging 52.7 points per game. The Mountain Hawks have struggled from beyond the arc, shooting just 17.8 percent, but have knocked down 36 free throws (12.0 per game) at a 66.7 percent clip. Lehigh is averaging 4.7 blocks per game and its 14 blocks are second in the Patriot League behind only Lafayette (29) in total blocks, showcasing the Mountain Hawks’ presence in the paint. Kinek has been responsible for seven of those 14 blocks, five of which coming in her last game against La Salle.
The Mountain Hawks own a 4-2 record all-time against the Seahawks. Wagner took the first two meetings, including a win during Lehigh’s 1996-97 campaign, the year the Mountain Hawks won their first Patriot League Championship and advanced to the NCAA Tournament. Since then, Lehigh has won four-straight games against Seahawks, including one in each of the past three seasons.
Last season, Lehigh dropped Wagner 63-44 as Peterson and Sarah Pearce combined for 24 points (12 each) to lead the team to victory. The Mountain Hawks held Wagner to just 16 points on 22.2 percent shooting in the first half, while Lehigh shot a 36.1 percent clip in the second half for the 19-point win.
Wagner will enter Friday’s game 1-2 coming off a 65-39 loss to Pittsburgh on Tuesday. The Seahawks went into halftime trailing by just nine, but the Panthers allowed just 17 second half points, while putting up 34 of their own for the 26-point win. Senior Veronick Fournier led Wagner with 11 points on 5-of-10 shooting from the field, while sophomore Stephanie Blais grabbed seven boards and blocked two shots.
Senior Marie-Laurence Archambault and Chanez Robinson lead the Seahawks as each averages 12.0 points per game. Wagner has also gotten production from Blais who averages 10.3 ppg and is tied with Fournier for a team-best 5.0 rebounds per game. Archambault is shooting 45.0 percent from beyond the arc and 87.5 percent from the free throw line.
Wagner is shooting 38.1 percent as a team from the field and 32.2 percent from beyond the arc. Turnovers have been the downfall for the Seahawks, as they average 17.3 per game with 52 on the season. Wagner has been balanced with its scoring, tallying 81 points in both the first and second half thus far this season.
After Friday’s game, Lehigh will continue the Thanksgiving Challenge on its home court when the Mountain Hawks will welcome Monmouth University into Stabler Arena on Sunday, November 25 for a 2 p.m. tip-off.
Lehigh is 1-5 against Monmouth all-time, but the last two contests between the two institutions have been decided by a combined nine points. Lehigh fell to the Hawks last season 75-73 as it was unable to convert for the tie or the win in the final nine seconds. Four players reached double figures including Kelly Peterson (12) and Hilary Weaver (13), but unfortunately Lehigh suffered the loss.
Prior to last year’s game, the last time Lehigh and Monmouth faced off was on November 29, 2006 when the Hawks escaped with a 72-65 overtime victory on their home court.
Monmouth will take on Lafayette on Friday night before traveling to Bethlehem to take on the Mountain Hawks on Sunday. The Hawks will enter Friday’s game 0-2 on the season coming off a 77-51 loss to Gonzaga in Spokane, Wash. last Sunday. Senior Alysha Womak scored 21 points in 22 minutes, but the Bulldogs shot 51.7 percent from the field and 50.0 percent from behind the arc to sink the Hawks and improve to 4-0 on the season.
The Hawks are led by Womak as she is averaging 23.0 points through her first two games of the 2012-13 season. The next leading scorer for Monmouth is senior Carly Thibault who is averaging 6.5 ppg, while fellow senior Abigail Martin is the leading rebounder with 7.5 boards per game thus far. Chevannah Paalvast is the set-up player as the junior has six assists and nine rebounds this season.
Monmouth is shooting 35.9 percent from the field and 19.4 percent from beyond the arc, while the Hawks are shooting at a 63.3 percent clip from the charity stripe. The Hawks have had trouble scoring early as opponents are outscoring Monmouth 72-51 in the first half of its first two games.
After this weekend’s games, Lehigh will travel to Villanova on November 29 and Loyola, Md. on December 3 before returning home to face Fairfield on December 6. All three games are scheduled to tip-off at 7 p.m.
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Date:
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November 23, 2012
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Opponent:
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Wagner Seahawks
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Tip-off:
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4:00 PM
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Arena/Capacity:
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Multipurpose Activity Center/4,100
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Location:
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West Long Branch, N.J.
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Lehigh’s Record:
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1-2 overall, 0-0 Patriot League
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Wagner’s Record:
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1-2 overall, 0-0 NEC
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Series:
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Lehigh leads, 4-2
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Radio:
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Live on WLVR 91.3 and Lehighsports.com with Matt Markus Pregame coverage gets underway at 3:45 PM
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Television:
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None
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Internet Video:
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Behind Enemy Lines:
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Date:
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November 25, 2012
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Opponent:
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Monmouth Hawks
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Tip-off:
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2:00 PM
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Arena/Capacity:
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Stabler Arena/5,600
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Location:
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Bethlehem, Pa.
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Lehigh’s Record:
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1-2 overall, 0-0 Patriot League
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Monmouth’s Record:
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0-3 overall, 0-0 NEC
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Series:
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Monmouth leads, 5-1
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Radio:
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Live on WLVR 91.3 and Lehighsports.com with Matt Markus Pregame coverage gets underway at 1:45 PM
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Television:
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None
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Internet Video:
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Behind Enemy Lines:
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