Feb. 21, 2012
Army vs. Holy Cross Game Notes 
WEST POINT, N.Y. - Plenty of playoff implications loom for the Army women's basketball team, which hosts Patriot League foe Holy Cross on Wednesday, Feb. 22, at 7 p.m.
GAME INFORMATION
Date - Wednesday, Feb. 22
Tip Off - 7 p.m.
Location - West Point, N.Y.
T.V. - None
Radio - None
Web - ITT Exelis Knight Vision
(audio and video)
www.goARMYsports.com
GameTracker - goARMYsports.com
Twitter Updates - @ArmyAthletics
Series - Holy Cross leads 31-18
Last Meeting - 1/25/12
Holy Cross 62, Army 59
Worcester, Mass.
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SETTING THE STAGE
With just two regular-season games remaining, Army hosts Holy Cross in a pivotal Patriot League contest on Senior Night at Christl Arena Wednesday. An Army victory over Holy Cross will clinch a home quarterfinal game for the Black Knights. At 7-5, Army enters the midweek tilt in a three-way tie with Lehigh and Navy for second place in the conference standings. Army can finish no lower than fifth, but the top four seeds claim hosting rights for the quarterfinal round of the 2012 Patriot League Tournament. Holy Cross has won its last two games and sits alone in fifth with a 6-6 record. The Crusaders edged Army 62-59 in the first meeting between the teams on Jan. 25 in Worcester, Mass. With a five-game lead in the standings, American has already claimed the regular-season Patriot League crown.
CLOSE ENCOUNTERS
It's been the story of Army's season thus far and the first Army-Holy Cross meeting of the year was no exception. The Black Knights have played in 13 games decided by four points or less and are 5-8 in those contests. Seven of Army's 12 league games have been decided by four points or less -- at Bucknell (W, 67-64), vs. Lafayette (W, 44-43), at Navy (L, 58-56), vs. American (L, 40-39), at Holy Cross (L, 62-59), vs. Lehigh (W, 66-64) and most recently vs. Bucknell (W, 60-56). The Black Knights were 1-5 in games decided by four points or less to start the season, but have since rebounded to win four of their last seven "close encounters."
LAST TIME OUT: AMERICAN 54, ARMY 48
Saturday, Feb. 18, 2012 - Bender Arena
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Junior guard Anna Simmers paced Army with 19 points and a career-high 12 rebounds, while freshman forward Olivia Schretzman added 12 points, but Army was unable to solve undefeated regular-season champion American in a 54-48 loss in Patriot League women's basketball action on Saturday afternoon.
The Black Knights trailed 22-14 at halftime and found themselves down 46-30 with 6:30 to play, but did not go quietly. Simmers and Schretzman engineered a 10-0 Army run over the next three-plus minutes to stay in the game. Schretzman scored on three-straight Army possessions and capped the surge with a putback that trimmed the deficit to 46-40 with 2:52 to play.
Army continued to remain on American's heals, but was never able to get over the hump. Schretzman buried her second career three-point bucket with 27 seconds remaining, pulling the Black Knights within 51-46. American hit three of four free throws over the final 25 seconds to seal the Eagles' 12-straight victory.
THE LAST MEETING: HOLY CROSS 62, ARMY 59
Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2012 - Hart Center
WORCESTER, Mass. - Army erased a double-digit deficit over the final six minutes of the game and held Holy Cross without a field goal over the final seven minutes only to fall short in a 62-59 battle for third place in Patriot League women's basketball action on Wednesday night at the Hart Center. The Crusaders scored their final seven points of the game from the free throw line, including a crucial pair with 10.6 seconds to go to put the game out of the Black Knights' reach.
Sophomore guard Jen Hazlett paced Army with 18 points, including 14 in the second half to lead Army's comeback charge. Junior guards Anna Simmers and Molly Yardley followed with 12 and 11 points, respectively.
INSIDE THE SERIES: ARMY VS. HOLY CROSS
• Army and Holy Cross have entertained some highly contested battles in recent years - none bigger for the Black Knights than a thrilling 69-68 victory to capture the program's only Patriot League title at Christl Arena on March 8, 2006. Under the direction of late head coach Maggie Dixon, Army fans rushed the court to create a scene showed across the nation, one that is still recounted today. Less than a month later, Dixon died suddenly of a heart condition on April 6, 2006.
• Holy Cross dominated the series from its start in 1990-91, winning 27 of its first 33 meetings with Army. The Black Knights won a 59-56 battle to kick off the 2005-06 series and have won 12 of the last 16 games. The last six meetings have been decided by an average of 5.17 points.
• Wednesday night pits two of the Patriot League's winningest coaches against one another. Although only in his sixth season as Army's mentor, head coach Dave Magarity has spent 29 years as a collegiate head coach (men's and women's). Holy Cross' Bill Gibbons has spent all 27 seasons with the Crusaders. Both men reached milestone victories this season, as Magarity earned his 400th win at St. Francis (N.Y.) on Nov. 16 and Gibbons reached win No. 500 earlier in the year.
TOP PERFORMANCES
Army players own the top three individual performances in the Patriot League this season thanks to sophomore Jen Hazlett and junior Anna Simmers.
• Hazlett poured in a career-high 30 points in a 62-47 win over Colgate last Wednesday (Feb. 15) at Christl Arena. Not only was that the top performance by any player in the league this season, she also became the first Army player to reach the 30-point plateau since Cara Enright (West Point '08) accomplished the feat in 2005.
• Simmers has taken her offense to a new level during Patriot League play, as evidenced by a 27-points effort at Bucknell in the league opener on Jan. 7. She later went on to score a career-high 28 points at home against Lehigh on Jan. 29. Army won both contests.
SENIOR SALUTE
Prior to Wednesday night's tip, the Black Knights will honor five seniors to include co-captains Kait Goodall and Meagan Doucette. Student assistant coach Erin Jankowski, who lettered three years as a player, and managers Nadege Benoit and Madelyn "Shorty" Corcino will be recognized prior to the 7 p.m. tip.
SCOUTING HOLY CROSS
Holy Cross enters Wednesday night's game riding a two-game win streak and sitting alone in fifth place in the league standings with a 6-6 mark. The Crusaders lead the league in scoring (63.3 ppg) and feature two of the top offensive threats in the conference in junior forward Amy Lepley, reigning Patriot League Player of the Week, and sophomore guard Alex Smith. Lepley is third in the Patriot League with a 50.3 field goal percentage, while Smith leads the league in assists (5.6 apg) and three-point field goals made (2.6). Lepley (13.6 ppg) and Smith (12.4 ppg) rank third and fifth in the league in scoring, respectively. Holy Cross also features one of the top rookies in the league in Emily Parker. The 6-2 forward leads all freshmen averaging 5.8 rebounds per game. The Crusaders are under the direction of 27th-year head coach Bill Gibbons, who authored his 500th career win earlier this season.
JEKYLL AND HYDE
After starting the non-conference slate off as one of the hottest teams in the Patriot League with a 5-1 record, Army cooled off once December hit. The Black Knights lost seven straight and eight of nine games before snapping the skid with a 67-64 victory at Bucknell (Jan. 7) in the Patriot League opener. Army won four of seven Patriot League contests during the first half of conference play and has now won four of its last six games. The Black Knights, who were picked to finish seventh in the Patriot League preseason poll, sit in a tie with Navy and Lehigh for second place in the league standings. The top four teams in the final standings will host Patriot League Tournament quarterfinal games on March. 1.
TICKET TIME
With the exception of courtside seating, which sold out early in the season, all tickets in Christl Arena are general admission. Individual game tickets are available for $6 per game. Youth, students, senior citizens and groups of 10 or more can purchase a single-game ticket for $4.
All ticket orders can be placed online at www.goARMYsports.com or by calling 1-877-TIX-ARMY. Fans may also visit the Holleder Center ticket office during its regular hours, Monday-Friday (8 a.m.-5 p.m.), or one hour prior to any Army home contest.
NEXT ON THE DOCKET
Army visits Lehigh in the final game of the Patriot League regular season. Tip-off is slated for 7:30 p.m., at Stabler Arena and will air live in the Lehigh Valley on Service Electric 2. The Black Knights edged Lehigh 66-64 in the first meeting on Jan. 29 at West Point, N.Y.
