University of Richmond Athletics
Women's Basketball Hosts Duquesne This Sunday
01/07/2006 | Women's Basketball
Jan. 7, 2006
UNIVERSITY OF RICHMOND, Va. - The University of Richmond women's basketball team will host the Duquesne Dukes on Sun., Jan. 8 at 2:00 p.m. at the Robins Center. The Spiders will look to redeem Friday night's league loss and defend their 4-0 unbeaten-at-home streak against the Dukes before packing their bags for a road trip to Ohio.
SPIDER SCOOP: The Spiders are now 6-8 overall and 1-1 in the Atlantic 10 after victories over Hampton, UC-Santa Barbara, Harvard, Howard, Wake Forest, and A-10 opponent Saint Louis, and losses to Boston College, James Madison, Long Beach, VCU, Virginia Tech, Virginia, Missouri State, and A-10 opponent La Salle. Richmond is led by sophomore sensation Mirna Mazic (11.2 ppg, 6.7 rpg), who recorded two double-doubles and one 30-point game this season, senior guard Saona Chapman (9.3 ppg), who reached double figures in seven games this season, senior guard Araceli Gil (8.0 ppg), and junior forward Kelly Roche (8.0 ppg). The Spiders are coming off their third-straight 20-plus winning season (23-7) in which they advanced to the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
LAST SPIDER GAME: The Spiders are coming off a 59-58 dramatic loss to La Salle on Friday night in the Robins Center where Mazic scored over half of the Spiders' points after she hit a career-high 30 points. Despite coming back from a 13-point deficit and taking a six-point lead in the last three minutes, the Spiders fell in the last 3.7 seconds as the Explorers' Carlene Hightower hit the game-winning shot to give La Salle its first win in the Robins Center.
DUKE DISH: The Dukes are now 6-7 overall and 1-1 in the conference after wins over East Carolina, Bradley, Akron, Robert Morris, Ohio, and A-10 opponent Massachusetts, and losses to Penn State, Oakland, Pitt, Bowling Green, West Virginia, Western Kentucky, and A-10 opponent Saint Joseph's. Led by Aiga Bautre (14.6 ppg) and Loui Hall (13.0 ppg), the Dukes are currently 1-4 on the road. Duquesne is returning four starters from last year's squad that went 10-18 overall and finished sixth in the Atlantic 10 West Division with a 5-11 league record.
THE COACHES: Richmond head coach Michael Shafer is 6-8 (1-1 in the Atlantic 10) in his first season with the Spiders, earning his first win as head coach against Hampton and experiencing his first loss against Boston College in the Pre-Season WNIT. Shafer joined the Spiders after coaching at Georgia for the last 11 years where he helped lead the Lady Bulldogs to 11 straight NCAA Tournament appearances and four Southeastern Conference championships, three regular-season titles, and one tournament title. Duquesne head coach Dan Durkin is in his thirteenth season with the Dukes and has compiled a record of 162-187 during his tenure as head coach. During his first 12 seasons with the Dukes, Durkin led his team to several University marks, including the most wins in a season and the most conference wins, as well as posting the school's highest seeding in the A-10 tournament. Prior to his stint as the most winningest coach at Duquesne, the 1998 Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year was an assistant coach at Penn State from 1986-93 and an assistant at New Mexico for one year. He also notched in some international experience as he was the head coach for Team Corona in Belfast, Ireland from 1980-93, and the Under 17 National Irish Girls Team in 1984.
SERIES: This is the ninth meeting between the two teams with the Spiders leading the series 7-1 (4-0 in the Robins Center) and winning the last 6 contests.
LAST GO AROUND: The Spiders defeated the Dukes in both meetings last year, including their Jan. 16 meeting in the Robins Center when the Spiders enjoyed a 62-44 victory over the Dukes, setting a new program record for the longest winning streak (13) at home. Kate Flavin recorded her fifth double-double of the season with 15 points and 10 rebounds, while Campion grabbed a season-high 15 rebounds and Chapman dished out five assists. Richmond then topped Duquesne just 12 days later in Pittsburgh, Pa., 61-50, after Flavin added 17 points and 15 rebounds, Chapman tallied 16 points, and Campion recorded 13 points. Duquesne's Aiga Bautre led all scorers in both games with 20 points in the first meeting (after hitting four treys) and 19 points in the last meeting.
CURRENT STREAKS: Both the Spiders and the Dukes enter Sunday's contest 1-1 in the A-10; however, the Dukes are on a 1-0 run, while the Spiders just lost their last game. Richmond has won four of its last seven games and is currently 3-3 at home.
COACH'S COMMENTS: "We've got an unbelievable challenge facing us with Duquesne," stated Shafer. "Duquesne is an extremely talented basketball team on the inside and outside. We've just got to find a way to play with more energy and passion than they play with."
NEXT UP: Following Sunday's contest, the Spiders will pack their bags for a trip to Ohio to face Atlantic 10 opponents Xavier and Dayton. The Spiders will play Xavier on Fri., Jan. 13 at noon and Dayton on Sun., Jan. 15 at 2:00 p.m.
