SU Hosts Le Moyne In Final Preseason Exhibition

SYRACUSE, N.Y. - The Orange women’s basketball team will host cross-town foe Le Moyne College on Friday, Nov. 11 at 7:00 p.m. in Manley Field House. The game is SU’s final preseason tune-up before the Orange tip off the regular year at Manhattan on Nov. 18.

Syracuse is coming off a 70-53 exhibition victory versus Bishop’s University of Canada on Nov. 5. The Orange shot better than 65 percent in the first half versus the Lady Gaiters and finished the contest 28-of-55 from the field (.509). SU’s defense forced 27 turnovers, including 14 steals, which led to 27 points. Freshman Cintia Johnson (Syracuse, N.Y.) had an impressive debut, recording seven of those steals and hitting three of her four field goal attempts to finish with eight points in 20 minutes of action.

Balance was the key to Orange’s success against the Lady Gaiters with nine out of 10 players that appeared in the game seeing double-digit minutes, and six players playing more than 20 minutes in the contest. Sophomore center Vaida Sipaviciute (Kaunas, Lithuania) turned in a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds. She also blocked five shots. Redshirt freshman Sara Antolick (Bethlehem, Pa.) and true freshman Lina Lisnere (Riga, Latvia) led all scorers with 13 points each. Lisnere also canned three of her four three-point attempts.

Le Moyne struggled in its first preseason tilt of the 2005-06 season, losing to Binghamton, 93-50, on Nov. 7. The Dolphins made just 15 field goals in the game and turned the ball over 24 times. Kathleen Gladstone and Ann Belforti paced the Dolphins with 12 and 11 points, respectively. Kim Wagoner, an all-rookie team selection in the Northeast-10 Conference last year, chipped in nine points.

One of the bright spots for the Dolphins against the Bearcats was the team’s free-throw shooting. Le Moyne knocked down 17-of-19 (.895) shots from the charity stripe, including a 6-for-6 performance from the free-throw line by Belforti.

First-year assistant coach Mary McKissack is very familiar with the Dolphins’ program. She served as an assistant under Le Moyne head coach Jeanne Dupree in 2004-05 before joining Coach Keith Cieplicki’s staff over the summer.

Admission for Friday night’s game is free and contest marks the second of five appearances for the Orange in Manley Field House this season. Ten of SU’s 13 regular season home games will be played in the Carrier Dome this year.

Syracuse University Athletics

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