MOUNT ST. MARY'S vs. LOYOLA
Friday, December 6 | 7:00 p.m.
Emmitsburg, Md. | Knott Arena
NEC FRONT ROW (Adam Pohl, PxP) | LIVE STATS | GAME NOTES
EMMITSBURG, Md. (Dec. 5, 2019) - Mount St. Mary's prepares to meet Loyola for the 41st time Friday evening, as the Mountaineers look to move to the plus side of the .500 mark for the first time this season and earn a three game win streak. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Knott Arena.
THE MATCHUP
The women's edition of the Catholic Clash began in 1974, and apart from a decade hiatus from 1996-2006, both sides have had regular meetings. Mount St. Mary's leads the overall series 25-15, but each team has had a run of success. The Mount had a 13 game win streak that lasted from 1981-91 and Loyola has won eight of 12 since Greyhounds coach Joe Logan was hired in 2005.
The Mountaineers won last season's meeting in Baltimore by a 77-67 final. Juliette Lawless led the way with 29 points and eight rebounds, and Daly Sullivan and Jatarrikah Settle had double-digit scoring efforts.
MOUNTAINEER REPORT
In each of the Mount's three victories, at least four Mountaineers posted double figures in scoring. The most recent win over Radford on November 26th saw a season-best six players with 10 or more. Aryna Taylor came off the bench with 14 points and Michaela Harrison followed with 13. Almost all Mountaineers can also be threatening from beyond the three point line, as the team records an average of 8.2 treys per game, which leads the Northeast Conference (NEC) and is 38th in the country.
Taylor was rewarded for her efforts with the NEC Rookie of the Week award on Monday (Dec. 2).
Mount St. Mary's ranks in the upper half of the NEC in both scoring offense and scoring defense. The team has also proved disciplined by ranking 29th nationally for the fewest fouls committed, and 31st in the nation with 11.2 steals per game.
SCOUTING THE GREYHOUNDS
Loyola has endured a tough start to the year with a 1-6 record. The Greyhounds' only victory is against a fellow NEC school - a road win at Fairleigh Dickinson on November 13th. Their most prolific weapon is senior Stephanie Karcz, who is averaging 12.1 rebounds, 10.4 rebounds and 5.4 steals a contest. While Karcz takes shots at a 30 percent higher rate than her next closest teammate, Loyola will also look to receive points from Delaney Connolly, who leads with 13 made triples this year. Connolly's 4.7 rebounds are second on the team behind Karcz.
LOOKING AHEAD
Mount St. Mary's will complete this brief two-game home stand Sunday (Dec. 8) against Lehigh at 1 p.m. It will be the team's last contests in Emmitsburg until conference season, as they will travel to Maryland Eastern Shore (Dec. 14) and the Anne Donovan Classic in Norfolk, Va. (Dec. 19-21) to conclude the non-conference slate.
