Monday, February 22, 2010

MORAVIAN TO HOST SUSQUEHANNA IN LANDMARK CONFERENCE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL SEMIFINALS

BETHLEHEM, PA --- The Moravian College women’s basketball team will make its ninth straight appearance in the postseason as the Greyhounds are the top seed in the 2010 Landmark Conference Tournament and will host fourth seeded Susquehanna University a semifinal contest on Wednesday, February 24th at 7:00 p.m. in Johnston Hall.

Wednesday’s other semifinal contest will have second-seeded the University of Scranton hosting third-seed Juniata College at 5:30 p.m.  The winners of Wednesday’s semifinal games will meet on Saturday, February 27th at the highest remaining seed for the 2010 Landmark Conference Championship and the conference’s first automatic berth to the NCAA Division III National Championship Tournament.

The Greyhounds, who finished the 2009-10 regular season with an overall record of 23-2 and a 14-0 slate in the Landmark Conference regular season, the first undefeated season in either men’s or women’s basketball in the brief history of the Landmark Conference, have won 20 games for the third time in five years and the 15th time in the last 26 seasons. 

Moravian head coach Mary Beth Spirk has the Greyhounds in the playoffs for the 20th time in her 23 years as head coach.  Spirk, who has an overall record of 432-197, has the Greyhounds looking for the program’s first conference title since 1991-92.

Leading the Greyhounds is senior forward Kirsty Stearns (East Norwich, NY/Oyster Bay HS), who is averaging 11.9 points per game to go along with an average of 6.5 rebounds per contest.  Stearns also has 30 assists, 46 blocked shots and 38 steals.  Senior guard Kate Harrison (Cold Spring Harbor, NY/Cold Spring Harbor HS) is averaging 10.9 points per game and 5.5 rebounds per outing, and Harrison has added a team high 81 assists to go with a team leading 41 steals and 21 blocked shots while senior guard Jessica Foran (Annandale, NJ/Rutgers Prep HS) is contributing 10.3 points per game with 71 rebounds, 48 assists, 33 steals, five three-pointers and eight blocked shots.

The trio of Harrison, who was named the 2010 Co-Lehigh Valley Small College Women's Basketball Pete Nevins Player of the Year last Thursday, Stearns, pictured at left, and Foran are all moving up Moravian's record books.  Harrison became the 19th 1,000-point scorer in school history and currently has 1,102 points. Stearns, this week’s Landmark Conference Player of the Week, reached the 1,000-point plateau and sits at 1,080 for her career while Foran reached 1,000 points in Moravian's last game and currently has 1,064 points.  Stearns also has 625 career rebounds, which ranks ninth in school history, and she needs five rebounds to move into eighth.

Senior forward Alyssa Bisci (Easton, PA/Easton HS) is adding 9.9 points and 4.8 rebounds per game to go with 34 steals, 27 assists, five three-pointers and seven blocked shots while junior guard/forward Emily Smith (East Stroudsburg, PA/East Stroudsburg South HS), who has missed the last two games due to an injury, is putting up 8.1 points per game to go along with 95 rebounds, 32 assists, 29 steals, six three-pointers and six blocked shots.  Sophomore forward Alexandra Blair (Hellertown, PA/Bethlehem Catholic HS), pictured at right, is contributing 8.2 points and 6.2 rebounds per contest to go along with a team high and school record 68 blocked shots, 25 assists and 20 steals.  Senior guard Amanda Brown (Schuylkill Haven, PA/Schuylkill Haven HS) is netting 7.4 points per game to go along with a team high 46 three-pointers, 36 rebounds, 38 assists, 22 steals and a pair of blocked shots, and Brown is third in school history with her 185 career three-pointers.

Sophomore guard Hilary Murray (Clinton, NJ/North Hunterdon HS) is contributing 5.1 points per game to go along with 38 rebounds, 41 assists, 37 steals and 17 three-pointers so far this season while junior forward Amy Heffner (Schnecksville, PA/Parkland HS), who returned to action after missing nine games, is averaging 5.9 points per game with 59 rebounds, 16 assists, five blocked shots and seven steals.  Senior forward Alyson Steltz (Emmaus, PA/Emmaus HS) has 29 points, 18 steals, 19 assists and 27 rebounds while junior forward Amie Ballo (Andes, NY/Andes Central HS) has added 24 points, 24 rebounds and four blocked shots this year.

Freshmen guard Amanda Kreuder (Bryam, NJ/Morris Catholic HS) has contributed 34 points, 20 assists, 17 rebounds and ten steals in her first year at Moravian while sophomore guard Cassandra Phillips (Orwigsburg, PA/Nativity BVM HS) has 18 points, seven rebounds, three assists and three steals.  Junior guard Jennie Miller (Lewisburg, PA/Lewisburg HS) has 14 points, seven rebounds, two blocked shots, two assists and two steals on the year.

Susquehanna, which lost to Moravian, 70-53, in Selinsgrove on January 15th and, 72-61, in Bethlehem on February 13th during the season, finished the regular season with a 13-12 overall record and a 7-7 slate in Landmark Conference action.  The Crusaders, under the direction of fifth-year head coach Jim Reed, fell to Juniata, 67-55, this past Saturday to fall into the fourth seed.  Susquehanna has lost three straight after a six-game winning streak.