2007-08 Southern Connecticut
State University Women's Basketball
Game 28 • March 2, 2008
Northeast-10 Championships • First Round
Pleasantville, N.Y.
SCSU (14-13, 10-12 NE-10) vs.
Pace (11-16, 10-12 NE-10)
2 p.m. • Goldstein Fitness Center

Radio: WSIN Radio 1590 AM
Internet: www.wsinradio.org
Play-by-Play: Shaun McGrath
Color: Ron Ragozzino


View full game notes (.pdf).


SECOND SEASON
The regular season behind them, the Southern Connecticut State University women's basketball team heads to Pace on Sunday for the first round of the Northeast-10 Conference Championships. The two clubs finished with identical conference records, but Pace held the tiebreaker and earned the eighth seed and a home game, while the Owls took the ninth seed. The two teams split their pair of regular season games, with each squad winning on the road.

LAST TIME OUT
Senior forward Kate Lynch scored 15 points and became the program's all-time leading scorer on Tuesday night, but SCSU was defeated by Bentley, 82-61, in Northeast-10 Conference play at Dana Center. Erica Kirwan led all scorers and five Bentley players in double figures with 25 points.

SCOUTING THE SETTERS
Picked to finish eighth in the Northeast-10, that's exactly where Pace ended up, as the Setters won their final two games and six of their last eight to make a late-season surge to a first-round home game. Most recently, Taylor Losey scored 21 points to lead three Setters in double figures as Pace defeated Assumption at home, 61-55, on Tuesday night. Stephanie Rossmy posted a double-double for Pace with 12 points and a game-high 18 rebounds. On the season, Stephanie Klingele (14.6 points per game) and Losey (12.6) are both averaging double figures, while Rossmy leads the team with 5.8 rebounds per game.

PREVIOUSLY AGAINST PACE -- PART I
Senior forward Kate Lynch scored 19 points and added eight rebounds on Dec. 21 to lead No. 10 nationally ranked SCSU to a 73-61 victory over Pace at Goldstein Fitness Center. Senior forward Rochelle Johnson tied her career high with 12 points for SCSU. Stephanie Klingele led Pace with 15 points.

PREVIOUSLY AGAINST PACE -- PART II
A layup by Stephanie Rossmy with less than a minute to play gave Pace the lead for good as they defeated SCSU, 78-77 at Moore Fieldhouse on Feb. 13. SCSU senior forward Kate Lynch led all scorers with 25 points and added 10 rebounds for her fifth double-double of the season. Taylor Losey led four Pace players in double figures with 21 points.

ALONE AT THE TOP
With a three-pointer from the right wing with 4:02 to play in the first half at Bentley on Feb. 26, senior forward Kate Lynch pushed her career point total to 1,741, tying Kristen Breen (1995-99) for SCSU's all-time scoring lead. Lynch would make the record her own 1:35 later when she hit a step-back jumper from just inside the arc on the left wing. Lynch currently has 1,748 career points.

INTO THE RECORD BOOKS
Two SCSU seniors put their names in the record books on Feb. 23 at St. Rose. Guard Michelle Martinik played in the 126th game of her career, which established a new program record. Martinik has played in every game of her career at SCSU. Also in the game, forward Kate Lynch made her 628th career field goal to set a new SCSU record.

OWLS ON THE HONOR ROLL
Senior forward Kate Lynch was named to the Northeast-10 Conference Honor Roll for the week ending on Feb. 24. It was the 12th honor roll selection of the season for Lynch. In all, the Owls have had 20 honor roll selections so far this season.

TWICE IS NICE
The week ending on Feb. 17 marked the second time this season senior forward Kate Lynch has collected Northeast-10 Conference Player of the Week honors. Lynch posted a double-double in each of SCSU's two contests on the week and averaged 22.5 points, 12.5 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 3.5 steals per game.

DOUBLING UP
Senior forward Kate Lynch posted her sixth double-double of the season, as well as her third in as many games, at Bryant on Feb. 16 with 20 points and a career-high 15 rebounds. In the same game, senior forward Rochelle Johnson tallied her second double-double of the season with 10 points and 10 rebounds. The Owls now have 10 double-doubles on the season.

GOING WHERE NO ONE HAS GONE BEFORE
The fifth rebound by senior forward Kate Lynch on Feb. 13 against Pace was the 600th of her career, making her the first player in SCSU history to score 1,600 career points and grab 600 career rebounds.

CLEANING THE GLASS
Senior forward Rochelle Johnson grabbed a game-high seven rebounds at Merrimack on Feb. 5 to vault herself onto SCSU's top-10 all-time rebounding list. Currently with 584 rebounds, Johnson sits 10th on the all-time list. Also in the Top-10 is fellow senior Kate Lynch, who sits in fifth with 635 rebounds.

SNAPPING THE STREAK
SCSU broke their three-game losing skid with authority against St. Rose on Jan. 30. Senior forward Kate Lynch came within shouting distance of a quadruple-double, as she filled out the stats shee with 24 points, seven steals, six rebounds and a career-high six assists. Senior guard Kaylie Schiavetta matched her career best with 17 points as four Owls scored in double figures in an 84-65 victory.

LOW POST, HIGH POINTS
A pair of SCSU senior forwards saw offensive success in the Jan. 26 loss to Southern New Hampshire. Kate Lynch tallied 23 points and 11 rebounds to post her third double-double of the season. Rochelle Johnson obliterated her previous career high of 14 points as she matched Lynch with 23 points of her own.

GETTING IT DONE OFF THE COURT
Senior guard Michelle Martinik was named to the Northeast-10 Conference Women's Basketball All-Academic First Team, as announced by the conference office on Jan. 23. Through the fall semester, the Monroe, Conn. native held a 3.48 grade-point average as an elementary education-mathematics major.

NOT FOR LACK OF EFFORT
Senior forward Kate Lynch racked up numbers in multiple categories while leading SCSU in their loss at Stonehill on Jan. 22. The Rumford, R.I. native led the Owls with 16 points, grabbed eight rebounds, recorded seven steals, dished out five assists and blocked two shots. SCSU spread the scoring on the evening as junior guard Lexi Allen (15 points), sophomore forward Jacqueline Johannes (12) and senior forward Rochelle Johnson (12) joined Lynch to make it a quartet of Owls in double figures.

WE DON'T LET JUST ANYONE IN HERE
Senior forward Kate Lynch joined yet another exclusive club on Jan. 12 when she recorded her 1,500th career point in SCSU's 58-56 win over American International. Lynch notched a game-high 25 points on the afternoon and became only the second player in school history to amass 1,500 career points and 500 career rebounds. Debbie Petrasek is the only other member of the 1,500/500 club, as she tallied 1,683 points to go with 596 rebounds from 1989 through 1994.

ALSO PAYING MEMBERSHIP DUES
Senior forward Rochelle Johnson joined a club of her own on Jan. 12 against AIC. Johnson hauled down six rebounds and became the 12th player in school history to record 500 career rebounds. Johnson and Lynch join Alma Dixon and Cindy Beaudreau as the only SCSU tandem to notch 500 career rebounds each while playing all four years together.

DEFENSIVE LOCKDOWN
The Owls put on a defensive show in the second half on Jan. 10 when they held Le Moyne without a field goal over the first 16:07 of the stanza and limited the Dolphins to just 10 points in the half on their way to picking up a 57-33 victory. The 10 points narrowly missed the NCAA Division II record for fewest points allowed in a half (seven). Le Moyne shot just 3-for-24 (12.5%) from the floor in the second half.

TEN SPOT
Sophomore forward Jacqueline Johannes came off the bench to grab a career-high 10 rebounds in just 24 minutes against Le Moyne on Jan. 10 and narrowly missed her first career double-double as she finished with eight points. The performance earned the Southbury, Conn. native her first career start two days later against American International.

TAKING CARE OF THE BASKETBALL
SCSU currently leads the Northeast-10 in both turnover margin (+5.93 per game) and assists-to-turnover ratio (0.96). The Owls are led in the ball-control department by freshman guard Logan Lentz, who ranks fourth in the conference in assist/turnover ratio (1.53) and ninth in assists per game (3.52), and by senior forward Kate Lynch, who is second in the conference in steals per game (2.96).

SCORING IN BUNCHES
The Owls currently lead the Northeast-10 in scoring offense. SCSU is averaging 73.0 points per game, 1.1 points more than Franklin Pierce (71.9 points per game).

LEADING THE WAY
Senior forward Kate Lynch leads the Owls in a plethora of statistical categories this season, including scoring (22.3 points per game) and rebounding (7.1 per game). In addition, she ranks first in minutes (34.0 per game), field goals (203), three-point field goal percentage (.371), free throws (159) and steals (80).

THAT'S WHY THEY CALL THEM “FREE” THROWS
Senior forward Kate Lynch currently holds a career free-throw percentage of .800 (397-for-496). If maintained, that figure will put Lynch in the SCSU record books for highest career free-throw percentage, topping Amy Staniszewski, who connected to the tune of .783 (166-for-212) from the charity stripe from 1984 through 1986. Most recently, Lynch went 5-for-6 from the free-throw line at Bentley on Feb. 26.

MISS AMERICA
An All-America selection a year ago, senior forward Kate Lynch has prominently positioned herself among the nation's best again this season. Through Feb. 24, Lynch was fourth in the nation in scoring (22.5 points per game) and 28th in steals per game (3.0).

CLASS OF THE CONFERENCE
Senior forward Kate Lynch currently ranks among the top 10 players in the Northeast-10 in six statistical categories. Through Feb. 22, the Rumford, R.I. native leads the conference in points per game (22.3), ranks second in steals per game (2.96), third in offensive rebounds per game (2.96), fifth in minutes per game (34.04), seventh in three-point field-goal percentage (.371) and 10th in rebounds per game (7.1).

RO-JECTED
Senior forward Rochelle Johnson entered SCSU's Jan. 22 game at Stonehill with 78 career blocks, two behind Jenese Wilcox for the most blocked shots in school history. Johnson collected her second block of the game and tied the record when she sent back a Kristen McWhirter jumper with 17:13 to play in the second half. Just 36 seconds later, Johnson made the record her own when she swatted a jump shot by Bethany Tighe. Since then, Johnson has blocked 11 more shots to tally 92 for her career.

RENEWING OLD ACQUAINTANCES...
SCSU's game against Delta State on Jan. 1 marked the first meeting between the two programs since they clashed in the Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) Tournament at the end of the 1976-77 season. The Owls are now winless in four tries all-time against the Lady Statesmen.

... AND MAKING NEW ONES
The very next day, Jan. 2, SCSU tipped off against West Florida for the first time ever. The Argonauts became the 147th unique opponent in SCSU history as well as the 121st different program to suffer at least one defeat by the Owls.

NICE TO MEET YOU
SCSU's 79-67 victory over Clayton State on Dec. 16 marked the first ever meeting between the two programs. In fact, it was the first time the Owls had ever faced any of the teams currently in the Peach Belt Conference. Clayton State became the 146th unique opponent in SCSU history as well as the 120th different program to suffer a defeat at the hands of the Owls.

REACHING MILESTONES
A trio of SCSU seniors reached significant career milestones against Clayton State on Dec. 16. With 11:09 remaining in the first half, guard Kaylie Schiavetta dished out her 100th career assist as she set up a layup by Rochelle Johnson. Schiavetta recorded 18 of her assists over her freshman and junior campaigns at Massachusetts. With 4:33 remaining in the game, guard Michelle Martinik knocked down her 100th career three-pointer. Finally, on a free throw with 3:06 remaining, Kate Lynch became the sixth player in SCSU history to record her 1,400th career point.

HAVE A DAY
Senior guard Kaylie Schiavetta set a pair of career highs in SCSU's 79-67 victory over Clayton State on Dec. 16. The Northport, N.Y. native scored 17 points to bump up her career high for the third time this season and the second time in as many games. Schiavetta also collected a career-high rebounds, eclipsing her previous high of four, which she had accomplished twice before.

ELITE COMPANY
With a free throw with 3:06 remaining against Clayton State on Dec. 16, senior forward Kate Lynch became the fourth player in SCSU history to notch 1,400 career points. She is only the second player in program annals to tally 1,400 career points and 500 career rebounds, joining Debbie Petrasek, who racked up 1,683 points and 596 rebounds from 1989 through 1994.

SHE'S ALL OVER THE PLACE
Senior guard Michelle Martinik really filled out the stats sheet in SCSU's 83-58 victory over Merrimack on Dec. 14. The Monroe, Conn. native scored 11 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and dished out nine assists, narrowly missing her first career triple-double. Martinik also collected two steals, shot 6-for-9 from the foul line and hit a three-pointer on the evening.

RALLYING POINT
At Massachusetts-Lowell on Dec. 6, SCSU recorded its largest comeback win of the season after trailing the River Hawks by 13 points with 13 minutes to play in the first half. From that point, the Owls went on a 28-8 run over the remainder of the half to take a lead they would not relinquish as they went on to a 75-61 victory.

MULTI-PRONGED ATTACK
Six Owls scored in double figures in SCSU's 106-40 victory over Felician on Dec. 3. Senior forward Kate Lynch led all scorers with 27 and sophomore forward Sarah Houseknecht tied her career high with 15 points. Also in double digits were senior guard Michelle Martinik (18 points), junior guard Lexi Allen (11), senior guard Kaylie Schiavetta (10) and senior forward Rochelle Johnson (10).

GRAND THEFT BASKETBALL
SCSU recorded a season-high 23 steals against Felician on Dec. 3, which led to 57 points off of turnovers for the Owls. Senior forward Kate Lynch led the way with eight steals. On the season, SCSU is second in the Northeast-10 with 11.44 steals per game. Lynch is second in the conference with 2.96 steals per game.

WELCOME ABOARD
With a jump shot with 5:30 remaining in the game against Felician on Dec. 3, freshman guard Katie Spydell notched her first career field goal for the Owls. Just 1:06 later, she would follow that up with her first career three-point field goal to set a new career high with five points.

HANGING A HUNDRED
SCSU's 106-40 victory over Felician on Dec. 3 marked the first time the Owls had reached the 100-point plateau since Nov. 18, 1995, when they posted a 101-77 victory at Molloy. It was the first time SCSU had scored 100 points at home since Feb. 27, 1979, when they defeated Northeastern 100-62. The 106 points was the most scored by an SCSU team since the 1973-74 season, when they twice posted 109 points in 109-41 and 109-27 victories over Rhode Island and Connecticut, respectively.

DISHING IT OUT
Freshman guard Logan Lentz handed out a career-high nine assists against Southern New Hampshire on Jan. 26. Lentz leads the Owls in assists on the season with 95 (3.52 per game). Senior guard Michelle Martinik (89 assists, 3.30 per game) and senior forward Kate Lynch (70 assists, 2.59 per game) are also both averaging over two assists per game. As a team, SCSU is dishing out 15.44 assists per game, good for fourth in the Northeast-10.

DUAL HONORS
SCSU picked up a pair of Northeast-10 Conference awards for the week ending on Dec. 1. Senior forward Kate Lynch averaged 27 points and 8.5 rebounds over two games to earn Player of the Week honors and freshman forward Logan Lentz garnered Freshman of the Week accolades as she averaged 5.5 points, four assists, 2.5 rebounds and 2.5 steals over the week's pair of games.

RAINING THREES
Senior guard Michelle Martinik knocked down a team season-high five three-point field goals on her way to a career-best 19 points against Le Moyne on Nov. 28. On the season, Martinik leads the Owls with 52 three-point field goals in 153 attempts from behind the arc (.340). She is currently tied for fourth in the Northeast-10 in three-point field goals per game (1.93).

LUCKY NUMBERS?
SCSU's 84-61 victory over St. Michael's on Dec. 1 marked the second consecutive game in which the Owls scored 84 points, as well as the second contest in a row in which senior guard Michelle Martinik scored 19 points (her career high). Martinik also scored 19 on Nov. 28 as SCSU won 84-52 at Le Moyne.

CENTURY CLUB
Senior forwards Kate Lynch and Rochelle Johnson each played in their 100th career game at SCSU on Nov. 20 against Bentley. Both forwards have played in every Owls game since their freshman season of 2004-05, when they each missed two contests.

PICKING UP WHERE SHE LEFT OFF
Senior forward Kate Lynch posted All-American numbers as a junior in 2006-07 and got the 2007-08 season started in much the same manner. Lynch poured in a game-high 22 points, snagged four rebounds, dished out a game-high five assists, garnered two steals and recorded a block in SCSU's season-opening, 92-71 win over St. Anselm on Nov. 17.

CAREER HIGHS ALL AROUND
Four Owls set or matched career highs in SCSU's season-opening, 92-71 victory over St. Anselm on Nov. 17. Junior guard Lexi Allen more than doubled her previous career high as she scored 20 points. The Southbury, Conn. native also matched career bests with five rebounds and three assists. Sophomore forward Jacqueline Johannes more than tripled her previous career high with 15 points and grabbed a career-best eight rebounds as well. Senior forward Kate Lynch matched her career high with five assists. Sophomore forward Sarah Houseknecht set new career bests with 15 points and five rebounds. The Olean, N.Y. native also matched a career high by dishing out one assist.

SPREADING THE WEALTH
In their season-opener agaisnt St. Anselm on Nov. 17, the Owls showed they could still score from a number of angles despite losing four of their top six leading scorers from a year ago. Kate Lynch (22 points), Lexi Allen (20), Sarah Houseknecht (15) and Jacqueline Johannes (15) all scored in double figures in SCSU's 92-71 victory.

NEWCOMER FITS RIGHT IN
Freshman guard Logan Lentz wasted no time making herself at home on the court for SCSU. The Chambersburg, Pa. native tallied six points, five rebounds, two assists and a steal while starting and playing 29 minutes in her collegiate debut against St. Anselm on Nov. 17.

LIGHTING IT UP
The 92 points scored by the Owls on Nov. 17 agaisnt St. Anselm was the most points scored by an SCSU team since Nov. 15, 2003 when they defeated Green Mountain 92-29 in their season-opener. The previous time the Owls had scored more than 92 was on Jan. 29, 2000, when they defeated Franklin Pierce 94-64. SCSU would surpass this point total on Dec. 3, when they defeated Felician 106-40.

OPENING ON A GOOD NOTE
With their 92-71, season-opening win over St. Anselm on Nov. 17, the Owls have now won their last eight season openers. SCSU has not lost the first game of the season since the 1999-2000 campaign, which they began with a 64-58 loss to Assumption. The Owls also won eight consecutive season openers from 1977 through 1984.

HASN'T LOST A STEP
Junior guard Lexi Allen returned to the floor in an SCSU uniform for the first time in over a year on Nov. 6 for an exhibition at Connecticut. Allen, who missed all of 2006-07 due to injury, showed she had not lost her touch over the layoff. The Southbury, Conn. native played every minute of the game against the Huskies, scored a team-high 19 points and grabbed five rebounds. In her first regular season game back in the lineup, Allen notched a career-high 20 points and matched her career highs in both rebounds (five) and assists (three).

PROTECTING THE HOUSE
The Owls are 60-7 at the Moore Fieldhouse dating back to the beginning of the 2004-05 season, including perfect 15-0 regular season home campaigns in 2006-07 and 2004-05. The Owls are 11-1 in postseason play at Moore Fieldhouse over the past two seasons. SCSU is currently 8-5 on the home hardwood in 2007-08.

FAMILIAR FACES
Senior guard Michelle Martinik has played in every game during her SCSU career (127 games over three seasons) and is now the program's all-time leader in that department. Senior forwards Kate Lynch and Rochelle Johnson have both played in every Owls game since missing two contests each in their freshman campaigns (126 career games played for each).

BEGINNING WITH THE BEST
The Owls got a tune-up for the defense of their national championship by traveling up I-91 to the Hartford Civic Center and visiting Division I preseason No. 2 nationally ranked Connecticut in an exhibition game on Nov. 6. SCSU fell 119-58, but several Owls had solid outings. Junior guard Lexi Allen led the way with a team-best 19 points to go with five rebounds. Senior forward Kate Lynch finished right behind Allen with 16 points and four rebounds of her own. Sophomore forward Jacqueline Johannes made it a trio of Owls in double figures with 10 points and a team-high seven rebounds.

PICKED A PAIR OF SECONDS
SCSU was selected second in a pair of preseason polls to start the year. The Owls received 12 first place votes and were picked second behind only North Dakota (12 first place votes) in the USA Today/ESPN Division II Coaches poll, as selected by the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA). SCSU was also picked second in the Northeast-10 Conference Coaches Poll and received four first place votes. Bentley garnered five first place votes and was selected as the conference's preseason favorite.

DEFENDING THE CROWN
SCSU will look to defend last season's NCAA National Championship in 2007-08. The last Division II team to repeat as national champion was California Polytechnic-Pomona who successfully defended their 2000-01 title in 2001-02.

FANCYING A FOUR-PEAT
The Owls will be looking for their fourth consecutive Northeast-10 Conference regular season championship in 2007-08. After sharing the title with Merrimack in 2004-05, SCSU won the league outright in both 2005-06 and 2006-07. The only other team to win four NE-10 regular season championships in a row was Bentley, who rattled off six consecutive titles from 1995-96 through 2000-01 as well as a conference-record seven championships in a row from 1987-88 through 1993-94.

TIC-TAC-TOE
SCSU is also the two-time defending champion of the Northeast-10 Conference Tournament and will be looking for their third title in a row this season. Bentley is also the only squad to win three consecutive NE-10 Tournament titles. The Falcons captured a conference-record four consecutive titles from 1998 through 2001 and also won the tournament three straight times from 1992 through 1994.

FILLING THE HOLES
SCSU will need some new faces to step up in the scoring department in 2007-08. The Owls have lost four of their top six scorers from a year ago. However, the club does return its top scorer from last season, senior forward Kate Lynch (18.0 points per game in 2006-07).

UNDER NEW LEADERSHIP
The 2007-08 campaign marks head coach Meghan Brown's first season at the helm for the Owls. A four-year player at St. John's, SCSU is the first head-coaching position held by Brown. After beginning her coaching career as a volunteer assistant at SCSU in 1996-97, Brown has made stops as an assistant at Lynn, Kentucky, Eastern Kentucky, Miami and, most recently, Yale.

ON DECK
The winner of Sunday's game travels to Stonehill for the quarterfinal round of the Northeast-10 Conference Championships on Tuesday night. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Merkert Gymnasium in North Easton, Mass.