CAMBRIDGE, Mass.-- University at Albany senior Cassandra Callaway (Bayonne, N.J./Bayonne) was the top scorer for the Great Danes during a 1-1 week and earned her first career America East Player of the Week. The Rookie of the Week goes to a Catamount for the third straight week after guard Shavonne White (Aurora, Colo./Cherry Creek) more than tripled her season scoring output in one game.
Callaway averaged 18 points, 2.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 2.5 steals per game while hitting 7-of-14 three-point attempts. She shot 40.7 percent (11-for-27) from the floor overall in the two games.
The five-foot-seven guard had a career day in Saturday's win over cross-town rival Siena. Scoring a career-high 24 points - all in the second half - Callaway helped Albany extend a 28-20 halftime lead into a dominant 72-48 victory. She finished the game going 7-for-7 from the foul line and 3-for-5 from long range, and also compiled three assists, two steals and two rebounds.
Earlier in the week at Long Island, Callaway netted 12 points, hitting four shots from beyond the three-point arc, and recorded three rebounds, three steals and two assists.
This season Callaway is averaging a career-best 12.4 points per game and ranks 10th in the conference. She also ranks fourth in America East with 90.5 percent free-throw shooting and eighth with 2.6 assists per game.
White is the latest Catamount rookie to step up and the third straight Vermont freshman to earn Rookie of the Week. White came off the bench to explode for a game-high 23 points at Northeastern Thursday. Entering the game, the five-foot-eight guard had totaled seven points in her first seven games. White shot 50 percent (9-for-18) from the field, including 45.4 percent (5-of-11) from three-point range in the offensive outburst. She also finished the game with five rebounds and an assist in 25 minutes.
Progress Report
The conference stands at 32-33 (.492) this season. RPIratings.com released its first RPI Report of the season today where America East is ranked 12th out of 33 conferences. Hartford (29) and UMBC (97) are among the top 100, while Stony Brook (157) has faced the fourth-toughest schedule in the nation.
Conference Rankings America East Teams
1. Big 12 29. Hartford (5-3)
2. Big Ten 97. UMBC (3-4)
3. Big East 125. Albany (4-4)
4. Pac-12 157. Stony Brook (1-5)
5. SEC 158. New Hampshire (3-3)
6. ACC 168. Binghamton (4-3)
7. Colonial 246. Vermont (6-2)
8. West Coast 281. Boston U. (3-4)
9. Atlantic 10 315. Maine (2-5)
10. Big Sky
11. Summit
12. America East
13. Missouri Valley
14. Northeast
15. Mid-American
Against The Best
Among the league's first 65 games, 22 have been against teams that advanced to a 2011 postseason tournament. America East is 8-14 against those teams. Six of those wins have been against Postseason WNIT teams, while Hartford's win over Central Florida on Sat. Nov. 26 marked a win over an NCAA Tournament participant.
Join The Club
Sat. Dec. 3 marked a special day for three players who all reached the 1,000 point milestone within hours of one another. New Hampshire senior Denise Beliveau first hit the mark against Holy Cross, followed by UMBC senior Erin Brown against Princeton. Boston U. junior Chantell Alford tallied her 1,000th career point in the first half against West Virginia. Alford is the first junior to accomplish the feat since UMBC's Michelle Kurowski and Binghamton's Andrea Holmes each scored their 1,000th points last January. The league now has six active 1,000-point scorers, the highest number of active members since there were 10 during the 2009-10 season.
TV Guide
There are three regionally-televised games coming up this week. Wednesday's Hofstra at Hartford contest will be aired live on Connecticut Public Television's new 24-hour sports network, CPTV Sports. The next night, Stony Brook will host Long Island University live on Cablevision. Rounding out this week's slate is Maine at UMass on Sunday at 1p on WBIN-TV in the Boston and Manchester area. America East teams are 4-0 this year in televised games.
Going National
The America East announced a national broadcast package last week that made league history. First, a five-year deal with ESPN includes a minimum of 47 national appearances for the league's men's and women's basketball programs on ESPN platforms, the most in conference history. The package includes seven women's hoops games on ESPN3, including the America East Championship semifinals and final. The league also signed a contract with CBS Sports Network, putting five America East basketball games on national television. A February 19 matchup between UMBC and Hartford at Chase Family Arena will mark the first-ever nationally televised conference women's basketball game.
America East Women's Basketball
TV Package
Jan. 25 Boston U. at UMBC (ESPN3)
Feb. 1 Vermont at Boston U. (ESPN3)
Feb. 11 Binghamton at Hartford (ESPN3)
Feb. 19 UMBC at Hartford (CBS Sports Network)
Feb. 25 Boston U. at Hartford (ESPN3)
March 4 America East Semifinals (ESPN3)
TBD America East Championship (ESPN3)
Instant Classic
The Catamounts have made an instant turnaround this season with a 6-2 start after opening 2010-11 with 15 straight losses. Vermont has already surpassed last season's win total and has captured two in-season tournaments. Vermont won its own annual TD Bank Classic, winning the tournament for the seventh time overall and first time since 2007. Also making a great first impression in 2011-12 are six newcomers who have all made an appearance this season, including starters Niki Taylor and Shanai Heber. The newcomers have accounted for 49.1 percent of Vermont's league-leading 65.6 points per game this season.
Raining Three's
Boston University put up a three-point show on Tues., Nov. 22 against Northeastern, netting 15 three-point field goals. The 15 treys is the third-highest single-game total for an America East team, and the most since the Terriers hit a school-record 16 during the 2008 America East tournament. Six different Terriers hit three-point shots against the Huskies, including Chantell Alford's five and Alex Young's four, while the team went 15-for-31.
Buzzer Beaters
There were several clutch game-winning and game-tying buckets during the week of Nov. 21. New Hampshire sophomore Kelsey Hogan tipped in a missed three-pointer with one-tenth of a second left on the clock to give the Wildcats a 63-62 win at Cornell on Tues., Nov. 22... Stony Brook junior Dani Klupenger nailed the game-winning three-pointer with 14 seconds left on the clock on Wed., Nov. 23 against Robert Morris. It gave the Seawolves their first win of the season and handed the Colonials their first loss... With 19 seconds left in regulation, Black Bear sophomore Ashleigh Roberts tied the Dead River Company Classic championship game against Brown on Nov. 26 at 56-56 with a layup and forced overtime.
Flying High
America East teams have been able to put up big numbers on the scoreboard already this season. After only recording four 80+ point games all of last season, including once in a three overtime thriller, squads have posted 80 or more points three times in 2011-12. Albany tallied 81 points on Nov. 13 against LaSalle, while both Binghamton and Vermont reached 80 points in games earlier this season.
20-20 Vision
Albany junior forward Julie Forster's 26-point, 20-rebound performance against La Salle on Nov. 13 wasn't only a career game, but it was one of the conference's top individual efforts of the decade. It was the first 20+ point, 20+ rebound game since two-time America East Player of the Year Heather Ernest (Maine '04) recorded 21 points and 21 rebounds at New Hampshire on Jan. 14, 2001.
Fast Start
America East teams went 11-3 in the first 14 games of the season for a .785 winning percentage. The league stood at 3-11 (.214) through the first 14 games of the 2010-11 season.
Preseason WNIT
Hartford advanced to the Preseason WNIT semifinals, joining Top-25 foes #1 Baylor, #2 Notre Dame and #22 UCLA as the final four teams. The Hawks fell to the Fighting Irish in South Bend, however junior forward Ruthanne Doherty earned one of just six spots on the all-tournament team. Doherty averaged 15.5 points and 5.3 rebounds in the three games. Baylor defeated Notre Dame to win the Preseason WNIT Championship.
Coaching Debuts
Opening weekend marked the debut of two head coaches at their current institutions. Richard Barron and the Black Bears opened up with a loss at Central Connecticut, but the team gave Coach Barron his first win as Maine head coach with a victory at Rhode Island on Nov. 13. The Nov. 11 season-opener at Fairfield was Beth O'Boyle's first at the helm of the Seawolves. O'Boyle earned her first win as Stony Brook head coach on Nov. 23 at home against Robert Morris.
Sophomore Coaches
The 2011-12 season also marks the second season at the helm for three other America East head coaches. Albany's Katie Abrahamson-Henderson, New Hampshire's Maureen Magarity and Vermont's Lori Gear McBride enter their second campaign at their current schools.
1,000 Strong
On Sun., Nov. 13, Boston U. senior guard Alex Young joined the 1,000 career-point club with a 12-point effort against UMass. Young, who has since increased her career total to 1,060 points, joined UMBC's Michelle Kurowski (1,355) and Binghamton's Andrea Holmes (1,188).
Senior C.L.A.S.S.
A pair of America East women's basketball senior standouts are candidates for the 2011-12 Lowe's Senior CLASS Award. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence – community, classroom, character and competition. UMBC guard Michelle Kurowski and University of New Hampshire forward Denise Beliveau, both all-conference honorees, each earned the preseason recognition announced on Fri., Nov. 4. An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School®, the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.
Lowe’s, an official Corporate Partner of the NCAA, will announce the women’s Senior CLASS Award® winner during the NCAA Women’s Final Four®, which will be held April 1 and 3 in Denver. The 30 candidates will be narrowed to 10 finalists midway through the regular season, and those 10 names will be placed on the official ballot.
Team Notebooks:
Albany (4-4, 0-0 AE) split two games in non-conference action on the week... The Great Danes fell to Long Island 64-52 on Wednesday, before defeating cross-town rival Siena 72-48 on Saturday... With the win over the Saints, Albany claimed the Albany Cup for the second straight season, the first time the Great Danes have won the annual rivalry game in consecutive years... Senior guard Cassandra Callaway (Bayonne, N.J./Bayonne) led Albany on the week, averaging 18.0 points over the two games... Callaway netted a career-high 24 points against Siena - all in the second half - nailing three three-pointers and going 7-of-7 from the free throw line... Junior guard Ebone Henry (San Diego, Calif./Mater Dei Catholic) filled the boxscore against Siena, recording her second straight double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds, and also adding seven assists, three steals and a block. She also netted 12 points and grabbed 12 boards versus Long Island... Junior forward Julie Forster (Huntington, N.Y./Huntington) also recorded a double-double, her fourth of the season, scoring 14 points and pulling down 10 caroms... Albany has just one game this week, hosting Niagara on Tuesday at 7 p.m.
Binghamton (4-3, 0-0 AE) split two games last week, winning on the road at Cornell on Wednesday, and falling to St. Bonaventure at the Events Center on Saturday... Senior point guard Andrea Holmes (Memphis, Tenn./Mitchell) is currently tied for eighth place all-time in scoring with 1,188 career points. She is tied with Laine Kurpniece (2004-08)... Senior forward Viive Rebane (Talinn, Estonia/Audantes) now has 721 career rebounds, which moves her into fourth place all time in Binghamton program history. Against Cornell on Nov. 30, she passed Melissa DiPaola, who had 706 rebounds from 1989-93.
Boston U. (3-4, 0-0 AE) fell in two road contests last week... The Terriers faced West Virginia for the first time in program history on Saturday... On Wednesday, Boston U. out-scored Harvard in the first half 30-29... Junior guard Chantell Alford (West Haven, Conn./Wilbur Cross) is the second player this year to reach 1,000 career points. She reached the mark in the first half against the Mountaineers, finishing with a game-high-tying 17 points... Senior Alex Young (Hickey, N.C./St. Stephen's) accomplished the feat earlier this season at UMass on Nov. 13.
The Hawks (5-3, 0-0 AE) dropped a pair of non-conference matches to Empire State opponents Marist (51-57) and St. John's (45-70) this past week... The losses are the first back-to-back losses for the Hawks this season... Junior Ruthanne Doherty (Richmond, Va./L.C. Bird) led the Hawks over the two games, averaging 13.5 points and 9.5 rebounds combined. Doherty also finished the week shooting 46.2 percent from the field (12-of-26)... In the first game of the week, Doherty put up her third double-double of the season with 17 points and 12 rebounds in the loss at Marist. She followed that up with 10 points and seven boards in the loss at St. John's... Classmate Daphne Elliott (Fairfield, Conn./Fairfield Warde) finished the week second on the team, averaging 11.5 points, while shooting 7-of-16 for 43.8 percent... Elliott led the Hawks in scoring at St. John's, finishing with 12 points on 4-of-8 from the field... The Hawks return to West Hartford for a pair of home games, the first of which welcomes Hofstra to The Chase Family Arena on Wednesday at 7 p.m.
Maine (3-5, 0-0 AE) went 1-2 over the week as it defeated Maine Maritime Academy 73-37 on Tuesday before dropping its games at the Navy Classic against George Washington and Navy... Against Maine Maritime, the Black Bears picked up their biggest regular-season victory in terms of margin of defeat since they downed Robert Morris by 42, 96-54, on Dec. 29, 2002... The Black Bears had one of its best Novembers in sometime as they finished the month at 3-3 while averaging 60.2 points per game and owning a scoring margin of +5.7 over the competition. It was Maine's best November since it went 5-1 in 2006. At that point, it was the first time that Maine had been at .500, not counting 1-1, since the 2006 season when on Feb. 27, 2007 it was 13-13 overall... Samantha Baranowski (Stanhope, N.J./Lenape Valley Regional) averaged 11 points and 6.5 rebounds at the Navy Classic, earning her a spot on the Navy Classic All-Tournament Team... Freshman Amber Dillon (Brookline, Mass.) started her first six games at Maine. She is the first student-athlete to start her first five career games since Missy Traversi started her first five in 2002-03. However, Traversi did not get the start in game six... The Black Bears host James Madison on Thursday, Dec. 8 before traveling to battle UMass on Sunday, Dec. 11.
Playing without three starters due to various injuries, UMBC (3-4, 0-0 AE) fell to Princeton 56-41 on Saturday in its only game last week… Senior forward Erin Brown (Bethesda, Md./Walt Whitman) scored her 1,000th career point, the 18th Retriever ever to reach the milestone. She joins classmate Michelle Kurowski (Hicksville, N.Y./Hicksville) in the 1,000-point/500-rebound club, just the second set of teammates in UMBC’s Division I era to achieve both marks, and they are two of 12 Retrievers ever… Brown scored a game-high 19 points against Princeton, while Kurowski added 13… Making her first career start, junior forward Kim Browning (Mechanicsville, Va./Hanover) recorded a game-best nine rebounds… The Retrievers shot below 30 percent for the second straight game, but unlike previous games, the nation’s ninth-best foul shooting team connected on just 11 of 20 free throws against the Tigers… The 41 points scored were also a season low… Brown leads the Retrievers with 15.0 ppg and 7.1 rpg this season… The Retrievers have a busy upcoming week before breaking for exams… They conclude a three-game homestand against UMES on Tuesday and George Mason on Thursday, then visit mid-major power Hampton on Saturday.
UNH (3-3, 0-0 AE) split a pair of games last week, picking up a road win over intrastate rival Dartmouth before falling at home to Holy Cross... Senior Denise Beliveau (Framingham, Mass.) averaged 15 points and 10.5 rebounds on the week, and became the 16th player in program history to record 1,000 career points on her first basket against Holy Cross... UNH opened the week with a 58-53 victory over Dartmouth, improving to 3-1 on the road this season. Beliveau led the way with 15 points and 13 rebounds for her third double-double of the season and also added five steals. Sophomores Sarah-Marie Frankenberger (Gross Gerau, Germany) and Bridgette McKnight (Norristown, Pa.) both enjoyed career nights, scoring 14 and 10, respectively. Frankenberger shot 6-of-13 from the floor, while McKnight shot 4-of-8 and also added seven rebounds and four steals. The Wildcats recorded a season-best 15 steals in the contest... Against Holy Cross, three players scored in double-figures as Beliveau led the way with 15 points and five steals for the second straight game. Junior Cari Reed (Oswego, N.Y.) netted 12 points in the contest, including a pair of three-pointers, while sophomore Kelsey Hogan (Nashua, N.H.) finished with 11 points on 4-of-9 shooting and added four assists... The Wildcats host of pair of games next week, taking on Harvard on Dec. 6 (7 p.m.) before facing Manhattan on Dec. 9 at 7 p.m.
The Seawolves (1-5, 0-0 AE) fell at Sacred Heart 55-33 in their only game of the week... Stony Brook leads the America East in scoring defense at 55.4 points per game... Stony Brook has held its opponents to just 48.6 points per game in the five games other than the Ohio State game when it gave up 84 points... Junior Gerda Gatling (Woodbridge, Va.) tied a career high with 10 points in addition to grabbing six rebounds in 25 minutes off the bench on Wednesday against Sacred Heart... Junior Jessica Previlon (Brooklyn, N.Y.) had nine rebounds against Sacred Heart and has led SBU in rebounding four times... The Seawolves will play three games this week including Thursday at home against LIU, which will be one of three Stony Brook games that can be watched on Cablevision 118... The Seawolves open the week at Rider and close the week on Sunday against A-10 opponent Fordham.
Vermont (6-2, 0-0 AE) suffered a 78-62 loss at Northeastern... Freshman Shavonne White (Aurora, Colo./Cherry Creek) came off the bench to explode for a game-high 23 points. She entered the game with seven total points on the season in six games. White drained five three-pointers and added five rebounds in 25 minutes... Classmate Kayla Burchill (Portland, Maine/Deering) also sank five three-pointers against Northeastern and has made 10 three-pointers in the last two games... Senior Lauren Buschmann (St. Catherines, Ontario/Governor Simcoe) added her third double-double of the season against the Huskies, scoring 14 points and adding 10 rebounds... Vermont continues an eight-game road swing on Wednesday (Dec. 7) when it faces Brown at 5 p.m. in Providence, R.I.