CALDWELL UPSETS NO. 9 STONEHILL IN WOMEN'S HOOPS, 57-50

11-15-09
box score
EASTON, Mass. - The Caldwell College women’s basketball team defeated a nationally-ranked team for the first time since becoming a NCAA Division II institution in 2002 with a 57-50 triumph over ninth-ranked Stonehill College Sunday afternoon at Merkert Gymnasium. The victory came in the season-opening game for the Cougars, who were 10-18 last season. The Skyhawks, picked to win the Northeast-10 Conference after going 22-9 and advancing to the NCAA East Region finals in 2008-09, fall to 2-2 on the season.

Trailing 42-35 with 12:30 remaining in the second half, Caldwell reeled off a 16-2 run to grab a 51-44 lead with four minutes on the clock. Five different players scored in the run, including four points apiece by sophomore forward Kaitlyn Lambert (Cumberland, RI/Cumberland), pictured, and freshmen Ebony Thomas (Jersey City, NJ/Marist) and Torey Jones (N. Providence, RI/LaSalle Acad.). Four points from Kelsey Simonds and a basket by Kristen McWhirter cut the Cougars’ lead to one, 51-50 with just under two minutes to play.

Junior guard Kirsty Leedham (Ellesmere Port, England/Cheshire Acad.) answered with a lay-up for a 53-50 Caldwell lead at the one-minute mark. The Skyhawks came up empty on their final five possessions, and Leedham made 4-of-4 from the free throw line to wrap up the win for Caldwell, which hadn’t defeated a team from the Northeast-10 Conference since beating St. Anselm College on Dec. 28, 2007.

The Cougars opened the game by making six of their first nine shots from the field en route to a 13-2 lead. Stonehill battled back to tie the game with a 13-2 run of their own, and eventually overtook Caldwell near the end of the first half. Four points from Annie Griffin and a basket by Megan Methven gave the Skyhawks a 32-26 advantage at halftime. After the Cougars closed to within 36-35 early in the second half, Stonehill tallied six straight points to take their largest lead of the game, 42-35.

Caldwell dominated inside, out-rebounding Stonehill 48-33 while grabbing 17 offensive rebounds. The Cougars also scored 38 points in the paint compared to 22 for the host Skyhawks.

Three Cougars tallied double-doubles, led by Jones with 15 points and 10 rebounds in her first game wearing the Scarlet, White and Gold. Jones also had four assists and two blocks. Lambert, the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference Rookie of the Year in 2008-09, finished with 14 points and a team-best 11 boards, while freshman center Gillian Felix (Mahopac, NY/Mahopac) had 10 points and 10 rebounds. Thomas ended up with six points and five rebounds in her collegiate debut, while junior guard Abena George (Elmont, NY/Elmont Memorial) tallied five steals and four points. Leedham, the team’s leading scorer and an all-CACC third team selection last year, had eight points and went 2-of-11 from the field. Simonds, a two-time honorable mention All-American, led the Skyhawks with 14 points and nine rebounds.
 
Caldwell is set to play in the UMass.-Lowell Tournament Nov. 21-22, facing the host River Hawks on Saturday at 3:00 p.m. and Bentley College on Sunday at 1:00 p.m.

CALDWELL WOMEN'S HOOPS SELECTED THIRD IN CACC NORTH DIVISION

10-31-08
CALDWELL, N.J. - The Caldwell College women's basketball team was picked to finish third in the North Division, according to the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference Preseason Poll, the league announced. The Cougars received one first-place vote and a total of 73 points. Bloomfield College is the favorite in the North with 86 points, followed by Dominican College with 82 points.

The Cougars, coached by Linda Cimino, return eight players from last year's squad that finished 10-18 overall and 8-9 in the conference for a fourth-place finish in the CACC North. Junior guard Kirsty Leedham (Ellesmere Port, England/Cheshire Acad.), pictured, averaged a team-best 16.6 points per game last year and was named to the all-CACC third team. Caldwell also returns sophomore forward Kaitlyn Lambert (Cumberland, RI/Cumberland), who was named the 2009 CACC Rookie of the Year after posting averages of 11.3 points and 5.7 rebounds per contest. This year's team has two seniors in guard Danielle Hubbard (East Orange, NJ/Bloomfield Tech) and forward Kate Shutz (Edison, NJ/Edison).

Holy Family University was picked to win the CACC South Division, ahead of Wilmington University and Philadelphia University. The CACC now has 14 teams with the edition of Concordia College, who will compete in the North Division.

The Cougars begin the 2009-2010 season with a non-conference game at Stonehill College on Sunday, Nov. 15.

2009-2010 CACC Women's Basketball Preseason Poll
North Division

Pl	Team	2008-09 record	Points
1.	Bloomfield (7)	14-15/10-7 CACC	86
2.	Dominican (6)	17-12/13-4	82
3.	Caldwell (1)	10-18/8-9	73
4.	Nyack	17-14/7-10	65
5.	Felician	5-22/3-14	40
6.	Post	4-23/1-16	24
7.	Concordia	4-23/2-16 ECC	22

South Division

Pl	Team	2008-09 record	Points
1.	Holy Family (5)	26-6/18-0 CACC	87
2.	Wilmington (5)	18-12/11-7	84
3.	Philadelphia (4)	21-10/13-5	78
4.	Georgian Court	13-14/9-9	51
5.	USP	15-13/12-6	45
6.	Goldey-Beacom	9-18/5-13	29
7.	Chestnut Hill	6-21/4-14	18

 

CALDWELL WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TO PLAY ON NATIONAL TELEVISION

10-20-09
CALDWELL, N.J. - The Caldwell College women’s basketball team has been selected to play in a nationally-televised game against Bloomfield College on Saturday, Feb. 27 in the George R. Newman Center. The Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference game is one of eight NCAA Division II regular-season men’s and women’s basketball games to be televised on CBS College Sports Network this season. It also marks the first time that a contest involving a Caldwell College athletic program will be on national television.

“This is such a great opportunity for our players to play a big conference game on national television,” said Linda Cimino, head women’s basketball coach and assistant director of athletics at Caldwell. “Bloomfield is probably our biggest rival, and we’ve had some exciting games the past few years. This game will provide exposure to our program and to the type of basketball we play in the CACC, and we’re certainly looking forward to it.”

This is the fourth year of the television agreement between Division II and CBS College Sports Network (formerly CSTV).

“Our partnership with CBS College Sports is another example of why our schools consider Division II as a membership destination,” said Division II Vice President Mike Racy. “We are able to provide national exposure for the student-athletes and their institutions while also providing viewers a unique glimpse into the division and the way we balance academic and athletics excellence.”

Previous CACC institutions that have played televised games as a part of the agreement include Philadelphia’s men’s team in 2007 and 2009, Holy Family’s men’s team in 2009 and the women’s teams from Holy Family and Georgian Court in 2008.

“We are excited to be hosting this landmark game for our conference and for the Caldwell College community,” said Mark A. Corino, head men’s basketball coach and the Executive Director of Athletics at Caldwell. “Not only is it a great opportunity for our student-athletes, but the game gives the whole campus a chance to come together and put our best foot forward to showcase all that Caldwell College has to offer.”

Caldwell also will serve as host of the semifinals and finals of the CACC Men’s and Women’s Basketball Tournaments, held Mar. 5-6 in the Newman Center. The Cougars return eight players from last year’s team that went 10-18 and finished third in the CACC North Division. Junior guard Kirsty Leedham (Ellesmere Port, England/Cheshire Acad.) averaged a team-high 16.6 points per game last year en route to earning all-CACC third team honors.


2010 Division II/CBS College Sports Network regular-season basketball broadcast schedule
(all games noon Eastern time unless otherwise noted)
Saturday, Jan. 9 – Fort Valley State at Albany State (Women) (Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference)
Saturday, Jan. 16 – Molloy at Queens (New York) (Women) (East Coast Conference) (6 or 8 p.m.)
Saturday, Jan. 23 – Bellarmine at Northern Kentucky (Men) (Great Lakes Valley Conference)
Saturday, Jan. 30 – Queens (North Carolina) at Pfeiffer  (Men) (Conference Carolinas)
Saturday, Feb. 6 – Cal State Monterey Bay at Humboldt State (Men) (California Collegiate Athletic Association) (5:30 or 7:30 p.m.)
Saturday, Feb. 13 – Montevallo at Augusta State (Men) (Peach Belt Conference)
Saturday, Feb. 20 – Franklin Pierce at Bentley (Women) (Northeast-10 Conference)
Saturday, Feb. 27 – Bloomfield at Caldwell (Women) (Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference)

Click here for Caldwell's complete 2009-2010 women's basketball schedule

CALDWELL WOMEN'S HOOPS ANNOUNCES RECRUITING CLASS

9-3-09
CALDWELL, N.J. - Caldwell College women’s basketball coach Linda Cimino revealed the Cougars’ recruiting class for the upcoming 2009-2010 season. The group includes center Gillian Felix (Mahopac, NY/Mahopac) and guards Nikita Green (Roosevelt, NY/Roosevelt), Torey Jones (Providence, RI/LaSalle Academy), Chelsea Loscalzo (Bayside, NY/St. Agnes) and Gabrielle Rivera (Teaneck, NJ/St. Joseph’s of the Palisades).

“We are excited to welcome this outstanding group of student-athletes to our program,” Cimino said. “This class gives us more athleticism in the backcourt and some size in the post, two areas where we needed to improve. Also, each incoming player brings characteristics that will benefit our program, both on and off the court.”

A 6-foot-2 center, Felix starred at Mahopac High School, scoring over 1,000 points in her career while earning all-state honorable mention twice. Felix also was a three-time all-section and all-league player while starting all four years at Mahopac. Listed among the top 10 post players by the Journal News, she also won a gold medal at the 2008 New York Empire State Games playing for the Hudson Valley Region team.

Green comes to Caldwell after being named to the all-state third team by the New York State Sportswriters Association as a senior at Roosevelt High School. The Nassau County Player of the Year, Green led Roosevelt to the Nassau County Class A championship game and was named to the all-tournament team.

Jones had an outstanding career at LaSalle Academy, receiving Rhode Island’s Gatorade Player of the Year award after her senior season. A 5-foot-8 guard, Jones helped LaSalle Academy win three consecutive state championships while being named all-state three times. Her coach at LaSalle, Sean Reddy, also coached Cimino when she attended North Smithfield High School.

Loscalzo was her team’s offensive player of the year and most valuable player while at St. Agnes Academic High School in College Point, N.Y. Rivera scored over 1,000 points and was named all-Area first team as a senior at St. Joseph’s of the Palisades in West New York, N.J.

Also joining the Cougars’ lineup this season is 5-foot-11 forward Ebony Thomas (Jersey City, NJ/Marist), an all-Hudson County selection who redshirted last season. Two players, forward Jeanette Anderson (Lynn, MA/Lynn English) and guard Shantel McNeil (Camden, NJ/Camden Catholic), will redshirt this season.

In 2008-09 the Cougars finished the season 10-18 overall and 8-9 in conference play to take third in the CACC North. Caldwell advanced to the CACC Tournament for the second straight season.

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2008-09 ARCHIVED STORIES

4-13-09: LYNCH, PEREZ SELECTED TO ALL-MET BASKETBALL FIRST TEAMS
3-4-09: THREE COUGARS RECEIVE CACC WOMEN'S HOOPS HONORS
3-3-09: LAMBERT NAMED CACC ROOKIE OF THE WEEK AGAIN
2-23-09: LAMBERT RECEIVES FIFTH CACC ROOKIE OF THE WEEK AWARD
2-9-09: LAMBERT NAMED CACC CO-ROOKIE OF THE WEEK
2-6-09: LYNCH CHOSEN CALDWELL'S NJAIAW WOMAN OF THE YEAR
2-3-09: LEEDHAM RECEIVES THIRD PLAYER OF THE WEEK AWARD
2-2-09: LEEDHAM SELECTED MBWA PLAYER OF THE WEEK
2-2-09: LEEDHAM NAMED CACC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
1-6-09: LYNCH NAMED TO MBWA HONOR ROLL
12-22-08: LAMBERT SELECTED CACC ROOKIE OF THE WEEK FOR THIRD TIME
12-16-08: LYNCH INCLUDED ON MBWA WEEKLY HONOR ROLL
12-8-08: CACC HONORS LAMBERT WITH SECOND ROOKIE OF THE WEEK AWARD
11-17-08: LAMBERT RECEIVES CACC ROOKIE OF THE WEEK HONOR FOR WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
10-31-08: CALDWELL PICKED TO FINISH THIRD IN CACC NORTH DIVISION
10-28-08: CALDWELL WOMEN'S BASKETBALL ADDS LEARY, MITCHELL AS ASSISTANT COACHES
9-24-08: SETON HALL HIGHLIGHTS CALDWELL'S 2008-09 WOMEN'S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE
 

For 2008-09 game stories, go to the women's basketball schedule page.
For more archived stories, click here.

 

 

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