11/18/2004 - Women's Basketball
Women's Hoops Opens Season in California
Files associated with this release:
11-17 at Cal Poly, Cal Game Notes in pdf
Tipping Off
Navy opens the 2004-05 season this weekend with games Friday at Cal Poly (10 p.m. EST) and Sunday at California (5 p.m. EST).
Neither game will be aired by Navy, but Sunday's game will be carried by Cal's student radio station, KALX, and will be available over the internet -- kalx.berkeley.edu(.)
Past Openings
Navy enters its 28th season opener having posted an 18-9 record in past opening tilts. Friday's game against the Mustangs marks the 19th time Navy has started a new campaign away from home. The Mids are 10-8 in such games.
Cal Poly Preview
The Mustangs return four starters from last year's team which posted a 14-14 overall record and a 10-8 mark in the Big West Conference. Among the returnees is senior forward Katy Paterson, who led the team in scoring (10.6 ppg) and rebounding (5.4 rpg) one year ago.
In their lone previous meeting, Navy defeated Cal Poly, 70-66, Dec. 19, 2002, in Navy's Alumni Hall.
Navy vs. the Big West
Friday's game will be just the third for Navy against a team from the Big West Conference.
Cal Poly vs. Patriot League
Friday's game will mark the fifth time the Mustangs have faced a team from the Patriot League. In addition to the loss to the Mids, Cal Poly has lost to Bucknell (64-54, Nov. 20, 1996, Lincoln, Neb.) and swept two meetings with Army (50-43, Jan. 5, 1986, West Point, N.Y.; 75-59, Jan. 4, 1986, San Luis Obispo).
California Preview
The Golden Bears posted a 12-17 record last season, as well as a 4-14 mark in conference play. Head coach Caren Horstmeyer was tabbed as the league's coach of the year.
Senior forward Leigh Gregory is, statistically, the top returning player for the Golden Bears. She averaged 11.5 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game last year, marks which are tops among all returning players.
Navy vs. Pacific Ten Conference Last season's contest versus Arizona in the Rainbow Wahine Classic marked the first time Navy has taken the floor against a team from the Pacific Ten Conference. Sunday's game will be the second.
Cal vs. Patriot League
The Golden Bears have previously played a pair of games against teams from the Patriot League, losing a 59-56 home decision to Bucknell, Jan. 5, 2002, and defeating Lehigh, 67-46, Nov. 28, 2003, in Boulder, Colo.
Pacific Ocean
This weekend's trip marks the third time in the last four seasons the Mids have played a game along the shores of the Pacific Ocean.
Navy dropped a 73-69 contest at San Diego State in Nov. 2001, then participated in the Rainbow Wahine Classic in Honolulu last season.
Three-Point Streak
Navy has connected on at least one three-point field goal in 194 consecutive games. The last time the Mids were held without a three pointer was Nov. 23, 1997, vs. Sacramento State.
Well Traveled
Navy opens the season with four of its first five games and eight of its opening 12 games away from Alumni Hall. The Mids will play road games in California (two games), Maryland, New York, Florida, Colorado, Delaware and Virginia during those 12 contests.
In addition to playing two more games in New York, the Mids also will compete in Pennsylvania (three games), Rhode Island, Massachusetts and our nation's capitol this season.
Next Up
After making the cross country trip back to Annapolis following Sunday's game, the Mids will have a few days to rest up and prepare for their home opener Saturday, Nov. 27 against Troy. The Lady Trojans posted an 11-17 overall record last year and placed seventh in the Atlantic Sun Conference with a 10-10 record.
Navy Quick Facts
* Navy returns just one starter -- Abi Campbell -- from last year's team which tied for sixth place in the Patriot League with a 6-8 league record and compiled a 13-17 record on the season.
* Campbell converted at least one three-point field goal in 24 of Navy's 30 games last season, with multiple triples coming in 12 games. She started 26 of the 30 games last season and is the leading returning scorer at 7.5 points per game.
* Among the additional four letterwinners back for the Mids is sophomore post player Kate Hobbs who was selected to last year's Patriot League's All-Freshman Team. Hobbs appeared in all but one game last season -- missed due to illness -- and averaged 5.1 points and 2.6 rebounds per game. She also converted 52-percent of her shots from the field and 82-percent of her free throw attempts.
* Two other seniors return for Navy in Nikki Curtis and LaTesha Ford. Curtis appeared in 27 games last season and tallied 3.7 points and 3.3 rebounds per game. After appearing in just four of Navy's first 24 games last year, Ford saw action in each of the final six contests. She averaged 1.4 points and 0.5 assists per game on the year.
* A pair of juniors who saw extensive playing time last year also are back for Navy. Point guard Lauren Skrel played in 19 games last season and contributed 0.7 assists per game on the year. Classmate Ashley Pelzek saw action at both the point and shooting guard positions last year as she appeared in all but two games. She connected on 13 three-point field goals during the season on her way to averaging 3.1 points a game.
