STANDISH, Maine – The Great Northeast Atlantic Conference (GNAC) Champion Saint Joseph's College (21-7, 14-0 GNAC) will face off against Little East Conference Champion (#3) Rhode Island College (27-0, 16-0 Landmark) in the opening round of the NCAA DIII Women's Basketball Tournament at the Murray Center in Providence, Rhode Island on Friday at 8:00 PM.

GAME INFORMATION:

$15– For Adults

$10 – For Stuents

Live Video: https://www.littleeast.tv/ric/

Live Stats: https://goanchormen.com/sidearmstats/wbball/summary

PARKING - Spectators can park in any of the lots surrounding The Murray Center (J, H, & I).

DIRECTIONS [CAMPUS MAP]

The Murray Center
Rhode Island College
600 Mt. Pleasant Ave.
Providence, R.I. 02908

HOW THEY GOT HERE:

Saint Joseph's: Led by 32nd-year Head Coach Mike McDevitt '83, the Monks are 21-7 overall and capped the conference docket with an unblemished 14-0 record. As the top seed in the GNAC Tournament, Saint Joseph's defeated #8 Rivier University, 74-64, in quarterfinal action and edged #4 Emmanuel College, 70-64, in a GNAC semifinal to advance to the GNAC Championship for the eighth-consecutive season. Facing #2 University of Saint Joseph in the title game on Mike McDevitt Court on February 24th, the Monks tied a team record with just four turnovers and scored a season-high 85 points to win the program's sixth GNAC Championship.

Rhode Island:

Rhode Island College won the Little East Regular Season Championship for the fourth straight season and was awarded the top seed for the conference tournament. RIC defeated fourth-seeded Eastern Connecticut, 67-40, in the semifinals on Feb. 22 and then second-seeded UMass Dartmouth, 67-52, in the finals on Feb. 24 to win the Little East Championship for the fourth consecutive campaign.

WHAT'S NEXT:

The winner of Friday's first contest, featuring St. John Fisher and Gettysburg, will face either the Monks or Anchorwomen in a Second Round matchup at Murray Center at 7:30 PM on Saturday.

SEASON AT A GLANCE

Saint Joseph's:

• The Monks have won 15 of their last 16 games – including 12 consecutive victories - and own a 9-4 record on the road this winter
• Four different SJC players are averaging 9.0 or more points per game, including a pair with at least 14.0 PPG contributions
• Saint Joseph's shot 37.4% (74-198) from three-point distance during the month of February and have averaged 72.0 PPG in 16 games during the 2024 calendar year
• Three of the Monks' seven losses this season came at the hands of NCAA Tournament qualifiers (Bowdoin, Bates, Maine Maritime)
• SJC sophomore forward Grace Ramsdell claimed GNAC Rookie of the Year, Second Team All-Conference, and All-Rookie Team honors while senior guard Angelica Hurley earned First Team All-Conference accolades

Rhode Island:

• The Anchorwomen posted a perfect regular season (27-0) and were one of just four undefeated NCAA DIII Women's Basketball teams as of February 29th; they have won 27-consecutive home games, with their last setback at home being a 62-34 loss to Babson College on Nov. 16, 2022
• RIC claimed their fourth-consecutive Little East Conference Championship and will be making the program's seventh NCAA Tournament appearance; The Anchorwomen are serving as a pod host for the first time in program history
• Nationally, Rhode Island College ranks third in scoring defense (45.0 PPG), fourth in scoring margin (27.6 PPG), and sixth in rebound margin (12.9 RPG)
• RIC has allowed 60 or more points just twice all season and yielded 40 points or fewer in 10 different games
• Four different RIC players are scoring at least 9.0 points per game with two players 11.9 PPG
• All five RIC starters garnered All-Conference honors, including LEC Player of the Year Sophia Guerrier and Defensive Player of the Year Jeniyah Jones

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Saint Joseph's:

• (#20) Senior guard Angelica Hurley (Groveland, Mass.) averages 15.1 points, 7.5 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and 1.6 steals per game while shooting 39.0% (142-364) from the field, 35.1% (66-188) from three-point range, and 77.9% (74-95) from the free throw line; The third-year starter became the 27th member of the Monks' 1,000-Point Club during the season 
• (#33) Sophomore forward Grace Ramsdell (Wells, Maine) is averaging 14.3 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 1.1 assists and shooting 47.8% (155-324) from the floor, 35.3% (30-85) from three-point range, and 69.4% (59-85) from the FT line; after missing her freshman season due to injury, Ramsdell was named as the GNAC Rookie of the Week an astounding eight times this winter and led the team in field goals made (155), rebounding, total rebounds (227), three-point percentage, and blocked shots (17)
• (#23) Sophomore guard Elisabeth Stapelfeld (Brookline N.H.) contributes 9.8 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game and leads the team with a 49.2% (97-197) FG%; an outstanding free throw shooter, the second-year starter is shooting 78.6% (66-84) from the line this winter and 79.7% (110-138) for her career
• (#11) Senior guard Nina Howe (York, Maine) earned GNAC All-Tournament Team honors for the second year in a row and contributes 9.0 points, 3.8 assists, 3.3 rebounds, and 1.4 steals per contest; she is currently shooting 40.9% (92-225) from the floor, 29.9% (23-77) from downtown, and 86.5% (45-52) from the charity stripe and dealt 22 assists while committing just five turnovers in 100 minutes of play during three GNAC tourney tilts

Rhode Island College:

• (#3) Grad forward Izabelle Booth (Newport, R.I.) earned LEC First Team All-Conference accolades and is averaging 11.9 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.4 assists, and 1.2 steals while shooting 40.1% (114-284) from the floor and 38.1% (53-139) from downtown
• (#13) Grad guard Sophia Guerrier (Waltham, Mass.) was named the LEC's Player of the Year for the second time in her career and is averaging 11.9 points, 6.0 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 2.9 steals and leads the team with a 52.7% (135-256) FG%
• (#12) Junior forward Angelina Nardolillo (Hinsdale, N.H.) claimed Second Team All-LEC honors and is averaging 10.3 points, 5.6 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 1.0 blocks, and 1.0 steals and is shooting 51.7% (119-230) from the field
• (#22) Junior guard Madison Medbury (Scituate, R.I.) collected LEC Tournament Most Outstanding Player and First Team All-Conference honors and contributes 9.1 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.7 assists, and 2.3 steals

ATTITUDE REFLECTS LEADERSHIP:

Saint Joseph's: Mike McDevitt '83 (646-223, .744) – 32nd collegiate season

Among the most successful coaches in all of NCAA DIII Women's Basketball, McDevitt ranks 10th among active coaches in victories and 17th in winning percentage. Only one coach in New England has more wins and just three (10+ years) have a higher win rate.

During his tenure at Saint Joseph's, Coach McDevitt – a member of the Maine Basketball Hall of Fame - has guided the Monks to at least 20 wins in 22 different seasons, the sixth-highest total in the history of NCAA DIII Women's Basketball, with 19 championships. During his career, McDevitt has garnered 15 'Coach of the Year' accolades, including GNAC top coach honors in 2014, 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2023.

Rhode Island College: Jenna Cosgrove (138-41, .771) – seventh season

In seven seasons guiding the Anchorwomen, Cosgrove has four Little East Conference Championships, five LEC Tournament Appearances, has been named the LEC's Coach of the Year four times and been named the Region II Coach of the Year. Additionally, the Anchorwomen have four 20-win seasons, three NCAA Tournament appearances, one NCAA Final Four, two Little East Rookies of the Year and two Player and Defensive Player of the Year honorees. RIC is 89-10 over the past four seasons.

In 2023, she led the Anchorwomen to program's best-ever season as Rhode Island College went 28-4, won the program's third consecutive Little East Regular Season and Tournament titles and reached NCAA Div. III Championship's Final Four for the first time in program history. During the Anchorwomen's run in the NCAA Tournament, Cosgrove's team's knocked off No. 3 Scranton, No. 12 Chicago and No. 10 Babson to advance to the National Semifinal. She was named a finalist to receive the Women's Basketball Coaches Association's (WBCA) National Coach of the Year award.

THE LAST TIME WE MET:

The Monks and Anchorwomen have never before met in a women's basketball contest. 

COMMON FOES:

SJC and RIC have two common opponents: Little East Conference programs University of Southern Maine and Vermont State University Castleton. The Monks are 2-0 versus these two teams while RIC owns a 4-0 record against their conference counterparts this season.

NCAA TOURNAMENT HISTORY:

The Monks will be making their seventh NCAA Tournament appearance in the last 10 seasons. Saint Joseph's picked up the program's first NCAA tourney triumph with a 61-56 win over UMass.-Boston in the first round of the 2018 tournament before falling to eventual repeat national champion Amherst College, 53-47, the following day. As an at-large selection in 2019, the Monks defeated MIT in first round action at Ithaca College.