WILMINGTON, Ohio – The Wilmington College women's basketball team hosts John Carroll University in the regular season finale for both teams on Saturday. Tip-off for the Senior Day contest from Fred Raizk Arena is scheduled for 4 p.m.
The Teams: Wilmington and John Carroll (JCU). The Quakers stand at 13-11 overall, 7-10 in Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) contests and looking to snap a three-game losing skid having most recently fallen to Otterbein University 65-57 at home on Wednesday. The Blue Streaks are also 13-11, but have an 8-9 record in league games after upsetting nationally-ranked Baldwin Wallace University 89-86 at home.
The Coaches: Wilmington is under the direction of third-year Head Coach Janel Blankespoor, who is in her fifth season with the program having been interim coach during the 2020-21 season and the program's top assistant the two years prior. The 2007 Otterbein College alumna spent stints at Mount Union and Earlham College before coming to Wilmington. Beth Andrews, a 2015 JCU alumna, is in her seventh season on the coaching staff including her third as head coach. She guided her alma mater to the second round of the NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Tournament and a 23-5 record last season.
The Players: Three Quakers - Kennedy Lewis, Jada Pohlen and Zahrya Bailey - all score over nine points per game for Wilmington with Lewis' 11.7 points leading the way. Lewis is also the team's leader in assists at 3.0 per contest and is joined by Marisa Seiler in grabbing 5.6 rebounds per game. Both Pohlen and Bailey are scoring in double figures in conference contests while Cassidy Lovett is near the top of the league in steals at 1.9 per game. Kaelyn Underwood leads JCU in scoring (13.3 PPG) and rebounding (6.1 RPG) while Halle Landies and Ava Ryncarz both score over nine points per game. Ryncarz shoots 41.9 percent on three-point attempts.
Tale of the Tape: Points per game – Wilmington 60.9, JCU 61.5; opponents' points per game – Wilmington 58.3, JCU 65.3; field goal percentage – Wilmington 36.4, JCU 35.7; three-point percentage – Wilmington 25.3, JCU 28.4; free throw percentage – Wilmington 71.9, JCU 63.4; rebounding margin – Wilmington +0.3, JCU +2.7; assist-to-turnover ratio – Wilmington 0.70, JCU 0.70.
Recent History: Wilmington is 26-26 against JCU since becoming an NCAA Division III member in the early 1990s. The Quakers claimed a 66-51 triumph in University Heights earlier this season. More information can be viewed by visiting the link above.
Senior Day: The game marks the final regular season home game in the careers of four seniors - Kennedy Lewis, Zahrya Bailey, Elise Carpenter and Cassidy Lovett. A brief cermony will be held prior to tip-off.
Win and In: With a win, Wilmington secures the No. 5 seed for the upcoming OAC Tournament.
Tickets: Hometown Ticketing will be used for the game. Fans are encouraged to purchase digital tickets prior to game time at the pink above.
Coverage: Live statistics and live video of the game will be available – visit the links above.
Social Media: Wilmington athletics is represented on Facebook (Wilmington College Athletics), Twitter (@DubCQuakers) and Instagram (@DubCQuakers). Follow all the happenings of Wilmington College on social media by using the hashtag "#WeAreDubC".
Up Next: Should the Quakers qualify, the OAC Tournament will begin with quarterfinal round games on Tuesday evening.
