Sports News: Spring 2008

Monday, March 3, 2008

MORAVIAN SELECTED TO 2008 ECAC DIVISION III SOUTH TOURNAMENT;
FIFTH-SEEDED GREYHOUNDS TO TRAVEL TO WASHINGTON & JEFFERSON ON MARCH 5TH

CAPE COD, MA --- The Moravian College women’s basketball team will make its making its sixth straight postseason appearance beyond the conference tournament as the Greyhounds have been seeded fifth in the 2008 Eastern College Athletic Conference Division IIII Southern Basketball Championships.  Moravian will travel to fourth seed Washington & Jefferson College on Wednesday, March 5th for a 7:00 p.m. tip-off in Washington, Pennsylvania. Click here for the full bracket of the ECAC Southern Championships.

The tournament will continue with the semifinals on Saturday, March 8th and the championship game on Sunday, March 9th at the highest remaining seed.  Wednesday’s other first round games will have top seed Gwynedd-Mercy College hosting eighth-seed Lake Eric College, second seeded University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg hosting seventh seed Misericordia University and third seeded Lebanon Valley College playing six-seed Dickinson College.  The Moravian at Washington Jefferson winner will play the winner of Gwynedd-Mercy versus Lake Erie game.  The winners of the other quarterfinals will meet in the other semifinal game.

The Greyhounds are 16-10 overall this season and will be making their 11th appearance in the ECAC Tournament.  Moravian has won ECAC Championships in 1987 and 2007 and has a 10-8 all-time record in ECAC games. Moravian lost in the ECAC Southern Championship game in 2005 and the semifinals in 2003 and 2004.  The Greyhounds fell to Juniata College, 61-59, in the Landmark Conference Semifinals last Wednesday.

Moravian head coach Mary Beth Spirk has the Greyhounds in the playoffs for the 18th time in her 20 years as head coach.  Spirk, who has an overall record of 388-187, has the Greyhounds looking to repeat as the ECAC Southern Championships. Moravian has been the runner-up in the ECAC Southern Tournament five times other times. Coach Spirk and the rest of her staff were honored as the inaugural Landmark Conference Coaching Staff of the Year last week.

Sophomore guard Jessica Foran (Annandale, NJ/Rutgers Prep HS) leads a trio of Moravian players in double figures.  Foran, who missed five games early in the season due to an injury in the season opener, is netting 12.8 points per game to go along with 57 rebounds, 31 steals, 30 assists and 11 three-pointers.  Sophomore guard Kate Harrison (Cold Spring Harbor, NY/Cold Spring Harbor HS), who was named to the Landmark All-Conference Second Team, is netting in 11.6 points per game to go along with 4.3 rebounds per contest, 53 assists, 30 steals and 16 blocked shots. Sophomore forward Alyssa Bisci (Easton, PA/Easton HS), who missed four games with an injury that occurred in the season opener, is averaging 11.0 per contest to go along with 6.0 rebounds per game, 26 steals, 24 assists and four blocked shots, and she was named to the Landmark All-Conference Second Team. 

Sophomore forward Kirsty Stearns (East Norwich, NY/Oyster Bay HS) is averaging 9.9 points per contest and leads Moravian on the boards with 177 for an average of 7.1 rebounds per outing.  Stearns also has 31 steals, a team high 28 blocked shots and 20 assists this season.  Foran, Bisci and Stearns are a combined 265 of 296 at the foul line this season (89.5 percent) and ranked in the top 14 in the nation.  Moravian is ranked eighth in the nation this week in free throw percentage at 75.9 percent.  The Greyhounds are 489 of 644 at the foul line and have made 47 more free throws than their opponents have attempted.

Sophomore guard Amanda Brown (Schuylkill Haven, PA/Schuylkill Haven HS) is averaging 9.8 points per outing with 41 rebounds, 52 assists, 29 steals and a team high 53 three-pointers while freshman guard/forward Emily Smith (East Stroudsburg, PA/East Stroudsburg South HS), who has missed three games this season due to injury, is contributing 8.0 points per game.  Smith has added 74 rebounds, 24 assists, 43 steals, four blocked shots and ten three-pointers in her first collegiate season. 

Sophomore forward Lauren Fornazor (Rivervale, NJ/Pascack Valley HS) is scoring 4.3 points per outing to go along with 97 rebounds, 35 steals, five blocked shots and 12 assists.  Senior guard LaToya Blake (Allentown, PA/Dieruff HS) leads the team with 74 steals and 63 assists to go along with 110 rebounds, nine blocked shots, six three-pointers and an average of 3.6 points per game.

Senior guard Megan Kocon (Bethlehem, PA/Liberty HS) has contributed 22 points, nine assists, six boards and four steals this season while freshman center Amie Ballo (Andes, NY/Andes Central HS) has 28 points, 50 rebounds, five blocked shots and two steals off of the bench.  Freshman guard Jennie Miller (Lewisburg, PA/Lewisburg HS) has added 17 points, six rebounds, five assists and three steals this season while freshman guard Erin Bradley (Fairfield, NJ/West Essex HS) has six rebounds and three points in limited action.  Freshman guard Angel Genther (Cherry Hill, NJ/Cherry Hill West HS) has two rebounds and a point this winter.

Gwynedd-Mercy enters the tournament with an overall record of 21-5, and the Griffins posted a 15-1 mark in Pennsylvania Athletic Conference action.  Gwynedd-Mercy was knocked out of the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference Tournament in the championship with a 74-72 loss to Cabrini College.  The Griffins are making their first-ever trip to the ECAC South Championships.

Pitt-Greensburg is playing in the ECAC Tournament for third time and won the title in 2006.  The Panthers enter the tournament with an overall record of 22-6 overall record and a 14-4 slate in the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference.  Pitt-Greensburg lost to Medaille (NY) College, 69-55 in the AMCC championship game.

Lebanon Valley enters the ECAC Southern Championships with an overall record of 22-5.  The Flying Dutchmen were 6-4 in the Commonwealth Conference and fell to Messiah College in the conference championship game, 54-47.  Lebanon Valley is making its sixth ECAC Tournament appearance and won the title in 2003.

Washington & Jefferson, which lost to Westminster College 82-77 in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference semifinals, enters the tournament at 20-7 overall.  The Presidents, who are making their fourth ECAC Tournament appearance and won the Southern title in 1994 with a 87-73 win over Moravian in Bethlehem, were 11-3 in Presidents’ Athletic Conference action. 

Dickinson is a member of the Centennial Conference.  The Red Devils have an overall record of 16-9 and were 14-4 in conference action, losing to Muhlenberg College, 54-47, in the Centennial Conference Semifinals.  Dickinson is making its firth appearance in the ECAC Tournament and won the title in 1983

Misericordia is also a member of the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference and was 19-8 overall.  The Cougars had a record of 13-3 in conference action and lost to Cabrini, 57-49 in the conference tournament semifinals.  Misericordia is making its for ECAC Tournament appearance.

Lake Erie had an overall record of 16-10, and the Storm was 14-4 in Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference action.  Lake Erie was knocked out of the AMCC Tournament in the semifinals with a 74-63 loss to Pitt-Greensburg.  Lake Erie is making its first appearance in the ECAC Tournament.