#16 MOUNT ST. MARY'S (16-12) VS. #16 LONGWOOD (21-11)
NCAA FIRST FOUR
Thursday, March 17^th | 7 p.m.
Raleigh, N.C. | Reynolds Coliseum   
 
GAME NOTES | ESPN2 | NCAA TOURNAMENT PAGE
 
EMMITSBURG, Md. (March 16, 2022) – The 2022 NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament expanded to 68 teams for the first time ever, adding a First Four to their edition of March Madness. Mount St. Mary's gets to take part in this historic venture, challenging Longwood in a battle of 16 seeds.  
 
Placed in the Bridgeport Regional, the Mountaineers and Lancers join Howard and Incarnate Word as the 16 seeds in this inaugural opening round. Missouri State, Florida State, Dayton and DePaul compile the rest of the First Four field.
 
THE MATCHUP
 
Fellow members of the Mason-Dixon Conference in the 1980s, Mount St. Mary's and Longwood met 11 times in the past, with most games taking place between 1985-88. In that span, the Mount posted eight consecutive victories to boost the series record to 8-3.
 
The teams reunited for two meetings in the late 2000s. Longwood won both games, with a 58-54 win in 2009 serving as the most recent contest.
 
MOUNTAINEER REPORT
 
Riding a season long six-game win streak, Mount St. Mary's blazed through the Northeast Conference Tournament as the #3 seed, defeating Saint Francis U, Wagner, and Bryant in the tournament to advance to March Madness for the second straight year. The 2020-21 team entered the bubble in San Antonio as a #15 seed and faced Maryland, falling in the first round, 98-45.
 
Key to the team's run is defense. Since a loss to SFU on January 29^th, the Mount clamped down on their opponents, limiting all of them to 60 points or less. During this win streak opponents were held back with more intense fervor, scoring an average of 47 points per game. This began on February 24^th with a 63-40 win over Sacred Heart and bookended by Sunday's 62-40 triumph over Bryant.
 
An injury to Aryna Taylor during the semifinal game pushed the number of available players to seven. Everyone played a role in the title game, registering at least three points, one rebound and a steal. Sophomores Jessica Tomasetti and Jada Lee either set or tied their career highs for minutes played. Michaela Harrison provided the offensive spark with a game-high 17 points. Rebounds were more even in distribution, led by Isabella Hunt with six.
 
As for the entire season, Kendall Bresee led the team – and all the NEC at regular season's end – in points per game. Entering Thursday, she averages 14.7 a contest and also leads the team in rebounds (7.4 RPG), assists (3.9) and blocks (26). Harrison's NEC Tournament MVP effort pushed her career total to 1,400, cracking the top-10 program scoring list. The senior's 267 triples already stand 30 ahead of Myriam Baccouche, the previous record holder.
 
SCOUTING THE LANCERS
 
Longwood heads south of the Virginia line to their neighboring state as a first-time participant. The Lancers spearheaded their way through the Big South, building a 15-3 conference mark to set up a near dominant tournament run. After a nine point squeaker over Hampton, they overwhelmed UNC Asheville and Campbell to reach this point.
 
Potent on offense, the Lancers average 71.5 points per game and have three players averaging double figures. Kyla McMakin leads the bunch at 18.2 points, and fellow double-digit tallier Akila Smith takes charge on the glass with 7.8 rebounds a contest.
 
The sides share two common opponents this year. Both lost to Big Ten powerhouse Maryland by comfortable margins. Longwood played Saint Francis U in the non-conference schedule, defeating the Red Flash 63-54 on November 20^th.
 
LOOKING AHEAD
 
The winner of this game takes on #1 seed N.C. State at 2 p.m. Saturday (Mar. 19) in Raleigh.