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Women's Basketball Josh Hill, Assistant Director of Athletics Media Relations

PREVIEW: GU Women’s Basketball Looks to Bottle Up Momentum in PSAC Quarterfinals Matchup Wednesday at California (Video/Game Notes)

 
 
 WOMEN'S BASKETBALL GAMEDAY CENTRAL
 Game 31: (W6) Gannon (14-16) at (W2) California (Pa.) (23-4)
 Game Details  Wednesday, March 6 | 7:00 PM |
 PSAC Tournament Quarterfinal Round
 Convocation Center | California, Pa. (Directions)
 Game Coverage  Live Video – PSAC Digital Network
 Radio – 90.5 WERG FM (Erie)
 Live Audio Stream – Click Here
 Live Stats – Click Here
 Twitter Updates - @GUKnights

 Gannon Alumni Association Viewing Party:
    Public House, 4575 W Ridge Road, Erie
 Tickets  Adult ($10)
 Children ($5)
 PSAC Student w/ ID (FREE)
 Gannon Links  Game Notes (PDF) | Roster | Schedule | Stats
 California Links  WBB Homepage | Roster | Schedule | ­­Stats
 

JIM BRUNELLI WEEKLY RADIO SHOW
  • Hosted by Alex Womer: Click Here (or listen above)
  • Courtesy Fox Sports Radio 1330 AM The Fan - Erie, Pa.
 
CALIFORNIA BROADCAST INFORMATION:
  • Gannon Combined Stats (PDF): Click Here
  • Gannon Highs and Lows Statistics (HTML): Click Here
  • California Game Preview: Click Here
  • Live Video: PSAC Digital Network (CUTV; CalU Stretch Portal)
    • Broadcasters: TBA
  • Live Audio: 90.5 WERG FM (Erie)
    • Broadcaster: Alex Womer
 
AROUND THE LEAGUE:  
UPCOMING PSAC TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
  • Saturday, March 9 PSAC Semifinals (at highest East seed)
  • Sunday, March 10 PSAC Championship (at highest East seed)
 
CALIFORNIA SERIES INFORMATION:
  • All-Time Series: California leads 23-20
  • First Meeting: 1981-82 – California 74, Gannon 66 (Neutral Site)
  • Last Meeting: February 13, 2019: at California (Pa.) 79, Gannon 45 | Box Score
  • How It Happened: California (Pa.) started the game with an aggressive full court press which gave Gannon fits in the opening moments of the contest. The Vulcans made good on that early pressure, jumping out to a 16-0 lead to begin the conference clash.  The Vulcans eventually cruised to an easy victory at the Convocation Center.
 
GANNON STORYLINES/NOTES:
  • Gannon (14-16) led for 36:19 in the opening round of the PSAC Women's Basketball Tournament against Edinboro on Monday night, ultimately leaving McComb Fieldhouse with a 71-67 victory.
  • Gannon raced ahead to a 24-12 edge in the third quarter against the Fighting Scots, limiting the third seed in the PSAC West without a field goal in that span. Gannon has outscored opponents 507-475 in the third quarter of games this season.
  • Sydney Mitchell (Halethorpe, Md./Seton Keough) poured in a career-high 20 points, with 14 coming after halftime against the Fighting Scots. She was one of three players in double figures on Monday night.
  • The Lady Knights are fresh off one of their top shooting performances of the season, and showed great balance with six players registering at least five points against Edinboro.
  • Gannon will look to rewrite the story from last time out against the Vulcans, where the Lady Knights committed 33 turnovers in a road loss back on February 13.
  • Tori Obenrader (Fryburg, Pa./North Clarion) won the league's PSAC West Women's Basketball Freshman of the Week honor for the fourth consecutive time and seventh time this season on Monday. Including Monday's postseason outing, Obenrader is averaging 10.8 PPG and 9.1 RPG over the last eight games.
  • The Lady Knights boast a 10-7 all-time mark in the PSAC Tournament and head coach Jim Brunelli is 5-3 in the conference tournament.
  • Monday's win pushed Gannon's road record to 8-6 this season.
  • Nicole LaCava (Hermitage, Pa./Hickory) has averaged 13.5 PPG and 3.5 RPG in two meetings with CalU this season. The senior forward leads the team in scoring, connecting on 59.3% of her shots from the floor.
  • Chelsea Rourke (Gibsonia, Pa./Pine-Richland) has scored in double figures in each of the past five games, but also fills the stat sheet in other areas. She leads the squad in blocks and ranks second in steals and third in assists.
 
SCOUTING CALIFORNIA:
  • Coming off a bye in the PSAC Tournament First Round, the Vulcans are the second seed in the western division. California rolled to a 23-4 record in the regular season, winning five of the last six games.
  • The Vulcans boast a sterling 13-1 record at home this season, which includes a win over top-seeded IUP on February 23. The lone loss at home this season for the Vulcans came against Edinboro on February 9, a one-point 62-61 setback.
  • California has not played since March 2, where a trio of players in double digits powered the Vulcans to a 72-60 road win at Clarion. Bianca Jasper fired in a career-high 18 points, while Seairra Barrett recorded her 10th double-double of the year behind 19 points and 11 rebounds.
  • Barrett is one of the top players in the league and ranks third in the league in scoring at 21.6 PPG. The redshirt senior also leads the league in rebounding with 8.9 boards/game.
  • California is an aggressive squad, taking the ball away on average of 13.9 times per game.
  • Head coach Jess Strom is in her eighth season with the Vulcans. A former four-year starter at NCAA Division I Penn State, Strom helped lead the Vulcans to the 2015 NCAA DII National Championship.
 
UP NEXT:
  • The winner of Wednesday's PSAC Quarterfinals will advance to Saturday's semifinal round, where the tournament will be reseeded.
  • A Gannon victory would ensure a matchup with the east team that hosts the Semifinals and Finals.  
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Players Mentioned

Nicole LaCava

#31 Nicole LaCava

C/F
6' 0"
Senior
Physician Assistant
Sydney Mitchell

#23 Sydney Mitchell

G
5' 11"
Sophomore
Nursing
Chelsea Rourke

#13 Chelsea Rourke

G/F
5' 10"
Junior
Nursing
Tori Obenrader

#25 Tori Obenrader

G/F
5' 11"
Freshman
Sport and Exercise Science/Pre-Med

Players Mentioned

Nicole LaCava

#31 Nicole LaCava

6' 0"
Senior
Physician Assistant
C/F
Sydney Mitchell

#23 Sydney Mitchell

5' 11"
Sophomore
Nursing
G
Chelsea Rourke

#13 Chelsea Rourke

5' 10"
Junior
Nursing
G/F
Tori Obenrader

#25 Tori Obenrader

5' 11"
Freshman
Sport and Exercise Science/Pre-Med
G/F