Women's Basketball
Friday, December 9, 2022
Rider Broncs (3-5) vs. Seton Hall Pirates (6-3)
Location: South Orange, NJ (Walsh Gymnasium)
Tip: 11:00 a.m.
Live Stats: SHUPirates.com
Broadcast: FloSports
Radio: 107.7 TheBronc Retro
Twitter: @RiderWBB
 
 
What You Need To Know
- Friday morning's game will be broadcast on FloSports.
 
- Last time out, Emily Strunk (Stroudsburg, PA/Stroudsburg) scored a season-high seven points, but the a 14-0 first quarter run by Saint Joseph's was too much for the Broncs to handle.
 
- Rider went 1-1 at the MAAC/ASUN Challenge, defeating North Florida 76-67 before falling to Eastern Kentucky 85-64. Makayla Firebaugh (Winchester, VA/James Wood) averaged 21.0 points and 5.0 rebounds while shooting 55.0% from behind the arc to earn MAAC Player of the Week honors.
 
- Rider was picked to finish tied for sixth in the MAAC Preseason Coaches' Poll. The Broncs return four starters and all but three members of last year's team.
 
- Firebaugh was named Preseason Third-Team All-MAAC. The 2020-21 MAAC Co-Rookie of the Year averaged 11.0 points and 4.4 rebounds per game last season. Her 31 points against Niagara were the most in a single game by any player in the MAAC last season.
 
- Rider is one of just nine teams in Division I without a true freshman on the roster. They just faced one of the other nine teams at the MAAC/ASUN Challenge when the Broncs battled Eastern Kentucky. The remaining seven teams are Charlotte, Coastal Carolina, CSUN, Gonzaga, Green Bay, Norfolk St, and Valpo. The Broncs are one of just five teams that returns 12 or more players from last season's roster, joining Columbia, Western Michigan, Liberty, and Weber State.
 
- Rider has made the MAAC Semifinals in five of the last six seasons. The Broncs were named MAAC Champions for 2019-20 for the first time in program history.
 
- Raphaela Toussaint (Kingston, Ontario/Lincoln Prep) led the Broncs with five double-doubles last season. She earned her first double-double of the season against North Florida with 13 points and 13 rebounds.
 
- Amanda Mobley's (Coopersburg, PA/Southern Lehigh) eight assists last time out gives her 413 for her career, fourth-most in program history. Next on the list is Stella Johnson '20, who finished with 428.
 
- The Broncs led the MAAC and ranked 42^nd nationally with an average of 4.2 blocks per game last season. Anna Ekerstedt (Varberg, Sweden/Marks Gymnasieskola) averaged 1.50 blocks per contest last season. Even with Ekerstedt sidelined due to injury, Rider blocked nine shots against NJIT.
 
- Nearly two-thirds of Jessika Schiffer's (Iserlohn, Germany/Deutschhaus Gymnasium Würzburg) shots last season (179-277) came from three-point range. 44 of her 66 shots this season have come from deep. Schiffer scored a season-high 19 points against Lehigh.
 
- Incoming transfer ToniRenee Blanford (Montclair, NJ/The Patrick School) made her Rider debut in the season opener against NJIT, scoring six points and grabbing four boards.
 
- Seton Hall leads the all-time series 11-0, including an 85-49 victory in the last meeting during the 2017-18 season. The closest game of the series came during the 2016-17 season, when the Broncs had the game tied 75-75 with 2:39 to play, but the Pirates closed out the game with an 89-81 win.
 
- The Pirates are 6-3 this season, and have won four-straight, including an 82-78 victory over no. 24 Marquette last time out. In the Pirates' lone game this season against MAAC competition, Seton Hall defeated Saint Peter's, 73-39, in its season opener. Lauren Park-Lane is the engine that makes the Pirates' offense go, leading the team at 21.6 points per game and just under six assists per contest. Sidney Cooks has added 16.7 points a game this season.