CAMBRIDGE, Mass.-- University of Vermont senior guard Courtnay Pilypaitis (Ottawa, Ontario/St. Peter) captured this week's America East Player of the Week award, while University of Hartford guard Alex Hall (Pembroke, N.H./Pembroke Academy) was tabbed the league's Rookie of the Week. Both players led their teams to huge wins last week, leading to votes in national polls.
Pilypaitis scored a season-high 36 points, grabbed five rebounds and matched her career highs in three-pointers (5) and steals (7) to lead Vermont past Boston College on Sunday. It was the most points an America East player has scored since Pilypaitis notched 40 in January 2008. The senior shot 55 percent from both the floor (11-for-20) and three-point range (5-for-9) and hit nine of her 10 free-throw attempts. This is the first weekly honor of the season for Pilypaitis. Vermont is now 3-0 on the season and 2-0 against teams from the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Hall lit up her home Granite State for 20 points against Dartmouth on Sunday afternoon, finishing 9-for-20 from the field, including a pair of three-pointers. For the week she averaged 10.7 points, 3.3 rebounds, one assist and 1.3 steals per game in three contests, including Hartford's upset of #19 Louisville. Hall shot 36.1 percent from the field (13-for-26), including 45 percent against Dartmouth. She has started all four games this season for the Hawks and is the team's third-leading scorer with 9.3 points per game.
Honor Roll
The best of the rest last week....
Andrea Holmes, Binghamton
28 ppg, 5 apg, 4 spg, 3 rpg
Diana Delva, Hartford
13 ppg, 9 rpg, 2 bpg, 55.6 FG %
Caroline Sterwart, Boston U.
11 ppg, 8.5 rpg, 1.5 spg, 55.6 FG %
Poll Position
In the week 1 ESPN/USA Today Division I Top-25 Poll released last week, both Vermont and Hartford are receiving votes. The Hawks, receiving one vote, also received a vote in the preseason poll, while the Catamounts, recipients of two votes, are receiving their first votes since December 30, 2002 when they were receiving four votes in the coaches' poll.
Hartford Downs Ranked Foe Once Again
In what is becoming a common occurance, Hartford defeated a ranked opponent when the Hawks upended #19/23 Louisville, 62-50 Tuesday night at Chase Arena. It was the fifth straight season Hartford has defeated a team ranked nationally. Below is a breakdown of those victories.
November 17, 2009 62-50, #19/23 Louisville
November 21, 2008 53-51, #5/6 Duke
December 22, 2007 54-51, #23 Michigan State
December 2, 2006 60-43, #23/22 BYU
March 19, 2006 64-58, #23 Temple
TV Record
America East is a perfect 3-0 so far in televised games this season, including a 2-0 record last week. Hartford won its season opener against Quinnipiac on New England Sports Network (NESN) and then upset ranked Louisville live on the Connecticut Sports Network (CTSN). Boston University picked up its first win of the season with a defeat of Rhode Island at Case Gym, also on NESN. The next televised game features Temple at Hartford Saturday, November 28 on CTSN at 2 p.m.
Dead River Returns
University of Maine will hold its 17th annual Dead River Company Classic this week in what is the longest running regular season tournament hosted by an America East school. Initiated in 1993-94 under head coach Joanne Palombo-McCallie, the Dead River Company Classic is always held early in the season and attracts prominent programs such as Florida, Oklahoma State, Wisconsin, Georgia and Clemson. This year's participants are Holy Cross, Penn State and Buffalo.
Returning Champs Are Back At It
Eight months removed from their America East Championship in March, Vermont is back to doing what they've been doing best--winning. The Catamounts opened the season winning the tournament title at the Sheraton Raleigh Wolfpack Invitational hosted by NC State. UVM beat the MAC's Western Michigan by a 79-65 score Friday night, then beat host NC State, 52-47, on Saturday night. Senior guards May Kotsopoulos (Waterloo, Ontario/Waterloo Collegiate) and Courtnay Pilypaitis (Ottawa, Ontario/St. Peter's) were both named to the all-tournament team, with Kotsopoulos earning MVP honors.
Good Start
Through the first 27 games of the season, America East squads are 12-15 (.444) against a challenging schedule. Those victories includes multiple wins over teams from the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) and Atlantic-10, which both finished above the America East as conferences in last year's RPI. The league also has multiple wins against the Northeast Conference. At this point last year, the league had a winning percentage of .321.
Star Tracker
Throughout the season, we will track the statistics of the five players named to the preseason all-conference team by the coaches.
Player, Team Key Stats
E. Beverly, UH 11.5 ppg, 10 rpg, 2.5 bpg
C. Pilypaitis, UVM 24 ppg, 6 rpg, 4.3 apg, 4.7 spg
M. Kotsopoulos, UVM 23 ppg, 1.7 spg, .500 FG%
C. Cassidy, UMBC 13 ppg, 3.3 apg, 2.3 3FG
D. Delva, UH 12.8 ppg, 9 rpg, .514 FG%
Back In The Game
The 2008 Rookie of the Year Denise Beliveau (Framingham, Mass./Framingham) of University of New Hampshire is back for her sophomore season after a season-long hiatus due to injury. Out to prove that the time away from the court won't cause a sophomore slump, the 5-foot-11 forward powered the Wildcats to a season-opening win over St. Joseph's with 21 points, nine rebounds and two assists. As a rookie she averaged 10 points, 6.2 rebounds, two assists and two steals per game.
Raining Three's
Vermont's Courtnay Pilypaitis is well on her way to etching her name all over the Vermont and America East record books, and last Friday night was no exception. Pilypaitis became the school's all-time leader in three-pointers, surpassing Lori Taylor '98 with three made three's against Western Michigan. The senior guard also surpassed Taylor for seventh all-time in America East history. Adding six more since then for 201 in her career, she is just seven shy of cracking the top-fve all-time in conference history by tying 2009 Boston U. grad Kristi Dini's 208 three-pointers.
Helping Hand
Pilypaitis is also just two assists shy of breaking into the top-five in career helpers. Two more assists would tie the senior with Maine's Cindy Blodgett '98, current head coach of the Black Bears. Blodgett was most known for her scoring, but she also finished her career with 487 assists.
Class Act
Vermont's May Kotsopoulos, a business administration major with a GPA of 3.67, was named one of 30 candidates for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Women's Basketball Award. She is the two-time Women's Basketball Scholar-Athlete and was the team MVP for the America East champion Catamounts. Kotosopoulos is the second straight Catamount to be selected as a candidate for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Women's Basketball Award. Former standout Amy Rosenkrantz '09 earned the honor last season.
Wooden Award
University of Hartford's Erica Beverly (Bridgeport, Conn./Kolbe Cathedral) was named a preseason candidate for the John R. Wooden Award, the most prestigious award in college basketball. Beverly was one of 31 candidates announced over the summer. These players and others who excel throughout the season will be evaluated and considered for December’s midseason list and the official ballot released in March. She finished her junior year averaging 11.1 ppg and led the team at 7.2 rpg, while being named to the America East All-Conference First Team and to the All-Defensive Team. She also led the team in blocked shots with 61, on the way becoming the school’s all-time shot blocker. Beverly also finished second on the team with 68 assists.
Good Things Come In TV Packages
During the regular season, America East, in partnership with ESPN Regional Television, will produce 14 games, which will be distributed among regional sports networks and local carriers. Eric Frede returns as the play-by-play announcer for America East basketball. Frank Sullivan, who coached in the ranks for 33 years, returns for his third season as men’s basketball color analyst. Leah Secondo, a veteran of America East television productions, is the color analyst for women’s basketball games.
The conference television slate begins Jan. 2 when Stony Brook battles Boston University on MSG and NESN at Case Gym, site of last year’s four-overtime thriller between the two schools. In women’s action, Vermont will host Hartford on Jan. 26 on NESN in a rematch of a 2009 semifinal game.
Both America East Championship games will be aired live on Saturday, March 13. The men’s title bout will take place at 12 p.m. on ESPN2, marking the 23nd straight year the conference championship has been nationally televised. The women’s championship contest will be televised on Comcast Sports Net at 8 p.m. All four semifinal contests will be aired regionally on Sunday, March 7 from Hartford’s Chase Arena, site of the 2010 America East Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championship Presented by Newman's Own.
As result of a partnership with Pack Network, each of the conference-produced games will also be streamed and available for free at AmericaEast.tv, the league’s new home for live webcasts. First-round and quarterfinal action from the America East Men’s & Women’s Championship will also be aired on the new site.
Coming To A TV Near You
America East will produce four episodes of America East On Campus, a 30-minute magazine show devoted to showcasing the conference’s best and brightest student-athletes. The fifth-year show, which will air on regional sports networks including NESN beginning in January, is hosted by Frede, who produces the show along with his Cod Rock Media Productions partner, Dan Hannigan.
A Return To Familiar Ground
For the first time in the league’s history, the 2010 America East Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships will be held in a combined tournament format at the University of Hartford’s 3,508-seat Chase Arena in West Hartford, Conn. March 4-7, 2010. The first, quarterfinal and semifinal rounds for both the men and women will be held at the combined tournament, while the title games will both be held the following weekend at the site of highest seeds remaining.
Both first round games will be held Thursday, March 4, while the women’s quarterfinals will follow on Friday, March 5. The men’s quarterfinals will be scheduled for Saturday, March 6 and both the men’s and women’s semifinal tilts will take place Sunday, March 7. The highest seeds remaining in both the men’s and women’s tournament will host the championship games on Saturday, March 13.
Newman's Own Signs Title Sponsorship
The America East Conference, the University of Hartford and Newman's Own, Inc. announced at this year's Media Day that Newman's Own, Inc. will serve as the title sponsor of the 2010 America East Men's and Women's Basketball Championship. The Championship trio of America East, University of Hartford and Newman's Own, Inc. will announce a plan later this year that will further cultivate the principles of community service, education and leadership among students from the nine conference campuses.
ALBANY GREAT DANES (1-1, 0-0 AE)
UAlbany won its only game this week at New Jersey Tech by a 52-49 score on Thursday, Nov. 19 at the Fleisher Athletic Center… The Great Danes led from wire to wire, but had to hold off a late comeback by the Highlanders after holding a commanding 36-20 lead midway through the second half… The bench played a key role in the outcome… Newcomer Melia Basavand (Glendale, Calif./Glendale/Pasadena City) hit two free throws to put the Great Danes ahead by three with 19 seconds left, and Julie Forster (Huntington, N.Y./Huntington) iced the win by sinking a pair of free throws with seven seconds remaining after grabbing a rebound off a missed three-point attempt which would have tied the game… Forster finished with eight points and a team-high nine rebounds, while Charity Iromunaya (Lincoln, Neb./Lincoln Northeast) led the team in scoring with 12 points to go along with seven boards… The Great Danes return seven letterwinners and have brought in six newcomers who are expected to contribute immediately… The squad is extremely young with 10 of the 13 players in the freshman and sophomore class… Highlighted by Keyana Williams (Kingston, N.Y./Kingston), the incoming class was ranked the best among the nine America East Conference schools by All-Star Girls Report… UAlbany plays three games this week… After facing St. Francis, N.Y. in their home opener on Monday, Nov. 23, the Great Danes visit Hofstra on Wednesday, Nov. 25 and host Cornell on Sunday, Nov. 29.
BINGHAMTON BEARCATS (0-2, 0-0 AE)
Sophomore point guard Andrea Holmes (Memphis, Tenn./Mitchell) drained a career-high eight three pointers and scored 28 points in Binghamton's game at Syracuse on Sunday. In the process, she tied the school record with eight three pointers, which was set by Bess Greenberg against Yale on Jan. 2, 2001. The previous record during Binghamton’s Division I era was 7, by Rebecka Lindgren against Winthrop on Nov. 17, 1006. In addition, Holmes added five assists, four steals and three rebounds against the Orange. She has now scored 20 or more points four times in her career ... Binghamton’s 14 three-point field goals against Syracuse tied the school record set against Philadelphia College in the ECAC Division II title game on March 12, 2000. The previous record during the program’s nine year NCAA Division I era was 12 against New Hampshire on Jan. 9, 2008.
BOSTON UNIVERSITY TERRIERS (1-3, 0-0 AE)
The Boston University women's basketball team opened Case Gym last Wednesday with a 47-35 victory over Rhode Island on NESN, as a well-balanced scoring attack and a strong defensive effort held URI to just .296 from the floor. At halftime, BU's backcourt allowed just nine points from the Rams and the Terriers have now won 26 of their last 27 home games at The Roof. A few days later, the Terriers travel to New York to take on St. John's; however, they came away with an 80-63 loss. In the game, sophomore Caroline Stewart (Topsfield, Mass./Masconomet Regional) earned her first career start and came through with a 14-point, 10-rebound performance - her first collegiate double-double. Sophomore Alex Young (Hickory, N.C./St. Stephen's) recorded a game-high 18 points, while senior Aly Hinton (Richboro, Pa./Council Rock) and freshman Caitlynn Moran (Hopewell Junction, N.Y./John Jay) added 11 points apiece. BU will host cross-town rival Northeastern on Tuesday (Nov. 24) at 7 p.m.
HARTFORD HAWKS (3-1 0-0 AE)
Hartford finished a three-game week with a 2-1 overall record, opening the week in impressive fashion, upsetting the Louisville Cardinals at Chase Arena at the Reich Family Pavilion on Tuesday night … Against Louisville, Hartford forced 25 turnovers, had 13 steals and eight assists to go along with a 36.4 percent effort from the floor and a 45-36 advantage on the boards earning a 12-point upset over the #19/23 Cardinals … The Hawks were led by three players who all finished with 14 points, Erica Beverly (Bridgeport, Conn./Kolbe Cathedral), Diana Delva (Stamford, Conn./Westhill) and Ilciia Mathis (Hamden, Conn./Hill Regional Career) … Beverly completed her second-straight double double leading the Hawks with 11 rebounds … Hartford then took to the road for a pair of games, dropping the first at Providence, 66-59, before rebounding with a 70-41 rout of Dartmouth on Sunday … Against the Friars, Delva led the Hawks with 13 points, the only player in double figures … In the week’s finale, freshman Alex Hall (Pembroke, N.H./Pembroke Academy) lit up her home state for 20 points against the Big Green … The rookie guard finished 9-of-20 from the field, while grabbing four rebounds, a steal and passing for two assists … Delva also led Hartford against Dartmouth, finishing with her first double double of the season with 12 points and 11 rebounds … The Hawks will play just one game in the week ahead, a home contest against the Temple Owls on Saturday, November 28 at 2 p.m.
MAINE BLACK BEARS (1-2, 0-0 AE)
Maine traveled for two games this weekend…On Tuesday they were defeated, 72-56, at Harvard and then dropped a tough decision on Saturday afternoon at NJIT, 63-50…Samantha Wheeler (Derry, N.H./Timberlane Regional) led the way for the Black Bears with 15 points and eight rebounds…Wheeler picked up a couple of milestones at Harvard as she recorded her 100th career rebound and her 50th career field goal as a Black Bear… Kristin Baker (Bingham, Maine/Upper Kennebec Valley) recorded her 100th career field goal in her time at Maine on Tuesday at Harvard…Baker came back on Saturday and led the Black Bears with 13 points, including the 300th of her career… Her 13 points on Saturday marked the 13th time in her career that she recorded double-figures in scoring in a game for the Black Bears… Freshman Corinne Wellington (Rochester, N.Y./Wilson Magnet) dropped a career-high nine points and picked up two more career highs in rebounds (4) and blocks (3)… Fellow freshman Katelyn Vanderhoff (Lititz, Pa./Lancaster Mennonite) picked up a career-high five steals for the Black Bears on Saturday in Newark, N.J… Sophomore Brittany Williams (Rochester, N.Y./Churchville-Chili) has been a spark off the bench for the Black Bears, recording at least seven points off the bench in the last two games while averaging 21 minutes per game for Maine… The Black Bears return home on Friday as they host their annual Dead River Company Classic tournament against Holy Cross on Friday and then either Penn State or Buffalo on Saturday.
UMBC RETRIEVERS (1-2, 0-0 AE)
UMBC dropped its first road game, 77-55, at Saint Joseph’s on Nov. 21… Sophomore guard Katie Brooks (Maryville, Tenn./Heritage) finished one rebound shy of a double-double, as she tallied team highs with 12 points and nine boards… Senior guard Carlee Cassidy (Syracuse, N.Y./Westhill) and sophomore forward Erin Brown (Bethesda, Md./Walt Whitman) also scored 12 points each… Cassidy ranks sixth all-time at UMBC with 1,267 career points, just seven shy of joining the top five, and she is tied for 44th in America East history… Cassidy and Kurowski have posted the second- and third-best career free throw percentages in UMBC history at .817 and .796, respectively… Cassidy made seven foul shots against the Hawks and now ranks second all-time with 296 free throws made in her career… Junior guard Michele Brokans (Lansdale, Pa./Lansdale Catholic) moved into UMBC’s all-time top 15 with 184 career assists… The Retrievers travel to cross-town rival Towson on Tuesday, then head to Bucknell on Sunday.
NEW HAMPSHIRE (2-1, 0-0 AE)
Last time out the University of New Hampshire
women's basketball team earned its second win of the year against an Atlantic-10
team with a 58-57 victory over UMass on Friday night at Lundholm Gymnasium ...
Three Wildcats scored in double-figures, with Candace Williams (Norfolk, Mass.) leading the way with 17 points,
while Denise Beliveau (Framingham,
Mass.) and Jill McDonald (Middlebury,
Vt.) tallied 15 and 10 points, respectively ... The 'Cats compiled a
season-high 13 steals in the contest, on their way to forcing a season best 27
turnovers ... UNH shot 44 percent (11-25) in the second half, outscoring the
Minutewomen 32-22 in the stanza ... In UNH's previous outing, the Wildcats fell
to No. 21 Maryland, 63-43, on Nov. 16 at the Comcast Center ... Amy Simpson
(Waterford, Conn.) scored 11 points and tallied seven assists in the contest
... The Terrapins set the tone early in the contest as they started off the
game with a 20-9 run ... The Wildcats scratched their way right back into the
action as they answered Maryland's run with an 11-3 scoring stretch, cutting
the home team's lead down to just three points, with the score set at 23-20 at
4:21 ... Maryland closed out the half with a 26-20 advantage ... Maryland took
control in the second stanza, leading by as many as 22 points and finishing out
the night with a 7-2 run to secure the win ... Lauren Wells (West Chester, Pa.) finished with nine points, three
assists and two boards ... Diamon Beckford (Philadelpia, Pa.) notched seven
points, seven rebounds and one block.
STONY BROOK SEAWOLVES (0-3, 0-0 AE)
Stony Brook took to the road for the first time in the 2009-10 season and dropped its contest with Robert Morris, 61-43… Junior Kirsten Jeter (Elmont, N.Y.) scored a game-high 15 points while also grabbing six rebounds… Senior Crystal Rushin (Valley Stream, N.Y.) gave the Seawolves 20 productive minutes off the bench, scoring nine points on 3-5 shooting and pulling down seven boards… While the Seawolves did shoot a season-best 82.6% (19-23) from the free throw line, they connected on a season-low 22% of their field goal attempts… SBU looks to jump into the win column this week with a pair of home games… Stony Brook will host Sacred Heart on Tuesday and then Air Force on Friday night.
VERMONT CATAMOUNTS (3-0, 0-0 AE)
Vermont earned its second straight victory over an ACC opponent with a convincing 84-65 victory at Boston College on Sunday... The win was the second overall against the Eagles and the first time the Catamounts have defeated BC on its home court. Senior Courtnay Pilypaitis (Ottawa, Ontario/St. Peter) poured in a season-high 36 points and added five rebounds. She matched her career-highs in three-pointers (5) and steals (7)... Classmate May Kotsopoulos (Waterloo, Ontario/Waterloo Collegiate) added 22 points and was 14-for-15 from the free throw line... Freshman Lauren Buschmann (St. Catharines, Ontario/Governor Simcoe) came off the bench to contribute eight points and six rebounds in 19 minutes and Sofia Iwobi (Fairfield, Iowa/Maharishi School) chipped in 10 points... Vermont went 31-for-34 from the charity stripe and forced the Eagles into 24 turnovers, which translated to 33 points for the Catamounts. UVM is 3-0 to start the season for the first time under head coach Sharon Dawley and the first time since the 2002-03 campaign... Vermont returns to action on Wednesday (Nov. 25) when it hosts Dartmouth at 7 p.m. The game will pit Dawley against her former mentor Chris Weilgus for the third straight year. Dawley was an assistant and associate head coach at Dartmouth for 10 seasons prior to coming to UVM. Last year UVM needed triple-overtime to get past the Big Green at Patrick Gymnasium, it was the first-ever triple-overtime game in UVM history.