GARDEN CITY, N.Y. – Saint Anselm College (21-7), the No. 3 seed, will look to defend its 2019 NCAA Division II East Region Women's Basketball Championship this Friday, Mar. 13, taking on sixth-seeded Le Moyne at 12 p.m. in the East Region Quarterfinals hosted by Adelphi University. 

The seven-game, eight-team regional championship will be played at Adelphi within the Center for Recreation and Sport. The championship will be hosted with limited spectators - only those individuals named on a pass list will be admitted to the venue. For more information, click here.

LINK: NCAA Division II Women's Basketball East Regional Tournament Central
LINK: 2020 Division II Women's Basketball Championship Official Bracket
LINK: NCAA Division II Women's Basketball Championship Program

LIVE VIDEO: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/adelphi/
LIVE STATS: https://aupanthers.com/sidearmstats/wbball/summary

PDF: Saint Anselm Game Notes

Saint Anselm is making its ninth appearance in the NCAA Division II Championship since becoming a varsity program in 1976. Winning their first regional championship last season after toppling three higher-seeded teams, the Hawks followed up a sensational 2019 season with its second consecutive 20-win campaign.

The Hawks made their first NE10 title game appearance in 22 seasons on Sunday, falling to No. 25-ranked Stonehill by an 80-61 margin in Merkert Gym. In the NE10 Semifinals, Saint Anselm turned away the No. 8-ranked team in NCAA Division II, Adelphi, to earn a spot in the league championship.

Le Moyne was toppled by Saint Anselm in the East Region title game last year and once again during the regular season. The Hawks journeyed to Syracuse, N.Y. on Saturday, Jan. 25 with the visitors coming away with a 75-70 victory.

LAST TIME OUT: Saint Anselm posted an 80-61 loss to Stonehill College on Sunday in the Northeast-10 Conference championship game.

Senior Shannon Ryan (Plattsburgh, N.Y.) scored 22 points with 13 rebounds for Saint Anselm and was joined on the NE10 All-Championship Team by junior Peyton Steinman (Pittsfield, Mass.). The third-year Hawks guard recorded 18 points with six rebounds, two blocks and two assists.

Senior Sara Messler (Durham, N.H.) had six points and five rebounds for the Hawks, setting the program record for career games played on Sunday, playing in her 118th career game on the Hilltop. Kathleen Shippee '95 and Katie Qualter '97 were the previous record-holders, seeing action in 117 games in their Hilltop careers.

Across three NE10 postseason games, Ryan averaged 24 points and 16.3 rebounds per game, producing 35 points with 19 rebounds at No. 8 Adelphi in the NE10 Semifinals on Thursday. Steinman logged 18.7 points and six rebounds, never finishing with less than 18 points for the Hawks.

The Hawks opened up a lead of seven points only seven minutes into the game, but Stonehill, ranked 25th in NCAA Division II in both the national coaches and media polls, forged ahead with a dominant 31-8 scoring run. Saint Anselm committed 11 first-half turnovers as the Skyhawks headed into halftime with a 41-25 lead, shooting 50% while keeping the Hawks to just 10 made field goals on 27 attempts.

Stonehill slightly outscored the Hawks in the second half, 39-36, but the big second quarter for the hosts was the difference-maker in the game. The Skyhawks maintained at least a 16-point lead throughout the remaining 20 minutes of the game, capturing the program's first NE10 title since 2008.

SCOUTING SAINT ANSELM

• The top rebounding team in the Northeast-10 for the second consecutive season, the Hawks enter the 2019-20 postseason as the reigning NCAA Division II East Region Champions after toppling three-consecutive higher-seeded teams in last year's regionals, including Stonehill.
• In the most recent NCAA Division II East Region rankings, Saint Anselm maintained its spot as the No. 4-ranked program in the region, thanks to a 20-4 overall record against in-region opponents.
• The Hawks lead the conference in several rebounding categories, including rebounds per game (43.86), rebound margin (9.9), and defensive rebounds per game (30.4). Saint Anselm also averages 4.5 blocked shots per game, falling just percentage points behind Stonehill's 4.6 rejections per tilt.
• Offensively, Saint Anselm averages 73.2 points per game, ranking second in the league. The Hawks rank second in blocks per game (4.5), field goal percentage (43.8%), free throws made (266) and rebounds (1,228).
• The Hawks ranked as high as fourth in all of NCAA Division II in December, according to the D2SIDA National Media Poll. At the same time, Saint Anselm ranked sixth in the country, according to the Women's Basketball Coaches Association rankings. The Hawks have since fallen out of the national top-25 in both polls.
• Saint Anselm has earned three U.S. Basketball Writers Association National Player of the Week awards this season as Ryan picked up two of those three accolades. Steinman was recognized on the week ending Dec. 22.
• The Hawks have earned 11 weekly awards from the NE10. Ryan has secured six NE10 Player of the Week awards in 2019-20 with Steinman picking up those honors twice. Freshman Macy Spinks (Luton, England) has drawn Rookie of the Week accolades on three occasions.
• The Hawks are averaging 73.2 points per game through 28 games, the sixth-most in a single season in team history. Saint Anselm has not posted north of 70 points per game in a season since the 1994-95 campaign (76.9).
• At the free throw line, Saint Anselm has buried 76.9% of its shots, the highest mark in team history. The Hawks are shooting 43.8% from the floor to date, the seventh-best figure in team annals.
• Ryan, who became the program's all-time leading scorer late in the regular season, has averaged 23.0 points and exactly 15 rebounds per game across 28 contests as a senior. She leads all of NCAA Division II in defensive rebounds per game (11.0) and double-doubles (26) while ranking third nationally in rebounds (419) and rebounds per game (15.0).
• Across just 93 games between Boston College (four) and Saint Anselm (89), Ryan is the program's all-time career scorer, breaking the record during the regular season against Saint Michael's while finishing that day with 1,668 points. She eclipsed the previous team record of 1,652 points in 105 games set by Rachel Jackson '85 from 1981-85.
• Ryan currently boasts 1769 career points and 1,125 career rebounds, ranking atop the career point-scoring list for Saint Anselm while trailing Jackson's 1,185 career rebounds by just 60.
• With just her Saint Anselm statistics in 89 games, she leads all student-athletes in career points per game (19.9), field goals made (747), field goals attempted (1,480), rebounds per game (12.6), defensive rebounds (793), defensive rebounds per game (8.9) and offensive rebounds per game (3.7).
• Ryan set the single-season scoring record against Adelphi in the NE10 Semifinals, reaching 621 career points in just 27 games. The previous single-season record of 618 points, set by Kristen Skoglund '96, was achieved in 27 games in 1995-96. Skoglund's single-season mark of 22.9 points per contest currently stands as the all-time record; Ryan currently is at 23.0 points per contest this season with her season still in progress.
• Ryan set the single-season rebound record, doing so against New Haven in the NE10 Quarterfinals – she posted an all-time mark of 385 rebounds last season, breaking the previous record of 344 caroms by Andrea Sunday '95 in 1994-95. She has 419 caroms to her credit this year.
• Among active NCAA Division II student-athletes, Ryan ranks first in career rebounding average (12.1) and double-doubles (64). Her 1,125 career rebounds is second among active student-athletes and her 19.0 career points per game is the sixth-best figure in the country. She is one of only five active student-athletes in NCAA Division II with 1,500 career points and at least 1,000 career rebounds.
• Steinman, the league's leader in free throws made (137) and free throws attempted (171), is averaging 19.6 points per game to rank second in the league. Her 7.8 rebounds per game is the 10th-best figure as her all-around strong season has also produced the league's sixth-best free throw percentage (80.1).
• Her 137 free throws is the third-most in a single season by a Hawks student-athlete. Skoglund set the program's all-time, single-season record with 148 in 1995-96.
• Steinman is 26th among NCAA Division II student-athletes with 19.6 points per game and her 83.6% free throw percentage ranks her fourth all-time in Saint Anselm history. Her 13.5 career points per game is the team's eighth-best figure since the squad's 1976 inception.
• Junior Grace Guachione (Pittsfield, Mass.) is averaging exactly two steals per game, leading Saint Anselm and posting the fourth-best average in the NE10. She is also dishing out 3.4 helpers per tilt, ranking ninth in the league in assists per game and 10th in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.28). She is averaging a career-high 8.7 points per game, having started all 28 games to date.
• Spinks ranks seventh in the NE10 with a 1.48 assist-to-turnover ratio and her 86 assists on the year is good for 14th in the league. She is averaging 6.2 points per game in 28 contests played as a freshman, pouring home 27 three-point baskets and making all but one of her 12 free throws to date.
• Messler is pulling down 5.9 rebounds per game as a senior, a career-high figure, and her 52 assists is a personal best mark in a single season. She is scoring 7.3 points per game in her fourth and final season on the Hilltop.
• Junior Jenoyce Laniyan (Bedford, N.H.) has made a career-high 28 appearances for Saint Anselm, coming off the bench and shooting north of 44% from the field. Against New Haven in the NE10 Quarterfinals, she was responsible for a career-high 12 points and two blocks off the bench. 

SCOUTING LE MOYNE 

• Le Moyne enters the NCAA postseason with wins in eight of its last 10 games, advancing to the NE10 Semifinals for the fourth consecutive year. The Dolphins are in search of their first victory of 2019-20 against teams in the East Region Championship (0-6).
• Le Moyne has enjoyed a 10-3 record when playing at home, but has only won eight of its 14 road contests during the season. One of those three losses came to Saint Anselm on Jan. 25 with the most recent home defeat coming at the hands of Adelphi, 67-62, at Ted Grant Court.
• The Dolphins commit the fourth-fewest turnovers in NCAA Division II, making only 340 miscues. The squad's 13.4 personal fouls per game is the sixth-best figure in the country and the team's collective assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.29 is the ninth-finest mark in the nation.
• Le Moyne connects on 37.0% of its shots from beyond the arc, leading the NE10 in that metric. McKayla Roberts, the reigning East Region Most Outstanding Player, ranks atop all NE10 student-athletes with 3.04 three-point field goals per game and her 91.0% free throw percentage not only leads the league and the East Region, but ranks fourth in the country.
• Roberts became the first student-athlete in program history to earn All-Conference honors from the NE10 in four consecutive seasons. She currently ranks second among East Region student-athletes with 5.7 assists per contest, trailing only Katie Murphy from Adelphi and her per-game average of 6.6 helpers.
• Liz Millea, a Third Team All-NE10 selection, has averaged 13.9 points per contest to date with the help of 2.39 three-point field goals per game, the conference's sixth-best figure. She is also shooting 41.5% from the floor, ranking 13th among NE10 student-athletes.
• Jenna Zimmerman has thrown up 59 rejections, ranking fourth in the region with 2.11 blocks per contest. 

NCAA POSTSEASON ALL-TIME                           

• Saint Anselm has recorded a 7-8 record (.467) in NCAA postseason play since debuting there in 1990. The Hawks have won only one East Region title, doing so last season after toppling three higher-seeded programs on the way to its first-ever Elite Eight contest.
• Saint Anselm set the initial record for highest three-point field goal percentage in one game (77.8%) that has since been matched on three other occasions. The Hawks connected on seven of their nine attempts from distance against Mass.-Lowell on Mar. 8, 1991 in First Round action.
• Le Moyne has made the NCAA tournament just three times in program history (2002, 2019, 2020), posting a 2-2 record. Both victories came in last year's East Region Championship before falling to Saint Anselm in the title bout. 

HEAD COACHES 

• Saint Anselm head coach Corey Boilard has registered a 60-29 (.674) record since joining the Hawks prior to the 2017-18 season. After a 17-win campaign in his first season, the Hawks went on to post a 22-10 record last year, winning the program's first-ever East Region Championship and a berth in the NCAA Division II Elite Eight.
• Boilard owns a 144-82 (.637) overall record between his time with the Hawks and NCAA Division III Johnson & Wales (R.I.). With the Wildcats, Boilard's teams went 62-22 (.738) overall in his last three seasons, making two NCAA Tournament appearances overall.
• Gina Castelli, a long-time Head Coach in New York State, has guided the Dolphins to a 122-80 record (.604) across seven seasons. She previously guided the Saints from Siena College (NCAA Division I) for 22 seasons, racking up a 336-296 (.532) record from 1990-2012.
• Her team posted a 26-6 record last season, recording the most single-season wins in Le Moyne history. The Dolphins also secured the Regular Season Championship in the NE10's Southwest Division, posting a 15-5 record versus league foes. 

ALL-TIME vs. LE MOYNE 

• Saint Anselm enjoys a 21-19 lead in the all-time series versus Le Moyne that dates back to Jan. 18, 1997.
• The Hawks came away with wins over Le Moyne in 13 of the first 17 meetings between both programs, but the Dolphins had strung together 12 wins in 15 games from Feb. 16, 2008 through Jan. 26, 2019.
• The Hawks have won two consecutive games against Le Moyne, posting a 63-61 win in last year's East Region title bout before securing a regular-season win against the Dolphins during the 2019-20 regular season.
• Le Moyne is 2-0 against Saint Anselm in NE10 postseason play, ending the Hawks season in 2017-18 with a convincing 77-49 victory over the Dolphins in the quarterfinal round.