Women's Basketball Faces Albany Pharmacy in Crucial HVIAC Showdown

ALBANY, N.Y. – Following two straight losses, the St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) women's basketball team (14-9, 4-0 HVIAC) will look to recover when they travel to the state capital for a crucial conference matchup as they take on Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (HVIAC) foe Albany Pharmacy Saturday afternoon as part of a doubleheader with the men's team. Tip time for the women's game is at 1:00 p.m.

Game Information

Opponent: Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (11-7, 3-1 HVIAC)
Date/Time: Saturday, February 14th • 1:00 p.m.

Location: Albany, N.Y.
Arena: Albert M. White Gymnasium

Quick Links

St. Joseph's (Bklyn): Roster | Schedule | Statistics | Misc. Stats
Albany Pharmacy: Roster | Schedule | Statistics

Storylines

• The game is the 20th matchup between the two schools, with St. Joseph's owning an 11-8 advantage including winning the last two.
• With a win, the first-place Lady Bears will move to 5-0 in the HVIAC and extend their lead in the conference to a game and a half in the standings.
• The Lady Bears will look to grab their 15th win on the season, and it would mark the third straight season notching 15 or more victories.
• Senior Taylor Raccuglia has had a great second half of the 2014-15 campaign, and now leads the balanced Lady Bears in points per game for the first time this season with 12.9 (ninth in the HVIAC). Following a 21-point performance against Brooklyn, she has tallied 20 or more points in six games this season.
• Samantha Retas is tied for second with 12.5 points per game, and leads the Lady Bears with 12.8 rebounds per contest. Her 11 double-doubles this season is ranked second in the conference.
• Freshman Destiny Marino is second on the team with 12.5 points and 7.4 boards per contest. She also leads the HVIAC with 4.4 assists per game.
• Albany Pharmacy is looking to snap a three-game losing streak. The Panthers can knot up the HVIAC standings with a win, creating a potential three-way tie with St. Joseph's and Berkeley (N.Y.)
• The Panthers have two players in the HVIAC top-ten for points per game. Alexa Schooley ranks eighth scoring 13.9 points per game, while Taylor Sullivan is tied for ninth (along with St. Joseph's Raccuglia) with 12.9 points per contest.

Series History

St. Joseph's holds an 11-8 edge in the all-time series that goes back to 1996, with the Lady Bears winning the last two games including a win in the 2012-13 HVWAC Championship.

Last Meeting

The Lady Bears got four starters scoring in double figures as they defeated the Panthers, 67-48, on February 1, 2014.

Megan Moran led the balanced St. Joseph's offense with 15 points, eight rebounds and four assists and Kelly McNamee added 13 points, four rebounds and four assists. Samantha Retas and Kristin D'Chiutiis also tallied 10 points apiece in the win.

The Lady Bear Facts

St. Joseph's is led this season by senior Samantha Retas. The senior is tied for second on the team with 12.5 points per game and leads with 12.8 rebounds per contest. Retas is second in the conference with 11 double-doubles on the season.

Her senior counterpart Taylor Raccuglia leads the Lady Bears with 12.9 points per game along with 7.0 rebounds per contest and dishing off 3.7 assists per game, putting herself sixth in the HVIAC. She is coming off netting a game-high 21 points for the Lady Bears in a losing effort against Brooklyn College.

Destiny Marino is tied for second on the team with 12.5 points and is second with 7.5 boards per contest. The freshman also is tied for first in the HVIAC with 4.4 assists per game, and ranks second in the conference with 44.0% shooting.

Lady Bears Last Time Out

The Lady Bears were downed on the road by borough rival Brooklyn College, 67-46, Wednesday night at the West Quad Center.

Senior Taylor Raccuglia scored a team-high 21 points to go with six assists and two steals, while Samantha Retas grabbed a team-best 12 rebounds and added six points and three blocks in a losing effort. Destiny Marino chipped in with eight points and five boards along with three assists and three steals. Brittany Cervino led the team with four assists and chipped in with five points.

Balanced Attack

St. Joseph's has great parity on their team when it comes to scoring this season. Out of the 23 contests this season, Samantha Retas and Taylor Raccuglia has each led the team in scoring seven games this season, while Destiny Marino has had the game-high in points five times in her freshman season.

On the Prowl

The Panthers are led by Alexa Schooley, who ranks eighth in the conference with 13.9 points per game and adds 7.2 rebounds and a team-best 3.5 assists per game. She is one of the top free throw shooters in the HVIAC, connecting on a conference-best 94 total free throws and shooting 72.3% from the charity stripe (second in the conference).

Taylor Sullivan is second on the team with 12.9 points per contest and grabs 7.3 rebounds as well. Megan Serley adds 11.9 points per game, which is third on Albany Pharmacy along with 3.8 rebounds. Dannie Griffin is fourth in the HVIAC with 9.8 rebounds per game and nets 8.1 points per contest.

Albany Pharmacy Last Time Out

Albany Pharmacy allowed a late second-half run to give the lead as they were edged out on the road by SUNY Canton, 57-54, Saturday night.

Taylor Sullivan led the Panthers with 11 points and four rebounds, while Dannie Griffin added 10 points and eight boards in a losing effort. Megan Serley chipped in with 10 points and Alexa Schooley contributed a game-high nine rebounds with seven points.

Next Up for the Lady Bears – Senior Night vs. New Rochelle

The Lady Bears return for their final home regular season game before the HVIAC Tournament as they face off with conference foe New Rochelle on Tuesday, February 17th celebrating Senior Night. Tip time is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.