DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. (Jan. 7, 2025) – The Mercy University women's basketball team hosts ECC foe College of Staten Island on Wednesday, January 8th at 5 p.m.
Who, When and Where
Date/Time: Wednesday, January 8th 5 p.m.
Records: Mercy (8-5, 2-1 ECC), Staten Island (8-6, 2-1 ECC)
Location: Dobbs Ferry, N.Y.
Last Meeting vs. Staten Island
Staten Island earned a 73-71 win over Mercy on January 24, 2024.
Scouting the Mavericks
Mercy enters the 2024-25 season picked first in the ECC Preseason Poll for the first time in program history after going 20-10 last season. The Mavericks recorded their most wins in a season and first NCAA Tournament berth since 1985. Mercy finished with their most ECC wins (12) in program history and advanced to the ECC Championship Final for the first time. Met Basketball Writers Association and ECC Coach of the Year Scott Lagas guided the Mavericks to their fourth straight ECC Championship appearance, oversaw Mercy's first 10-game winning streak since 1985 and led the Mavericks to program-best second place finish in the ECC standings. Mercy has recorded back-to-back seasons with double-digit ECC wins for the first time and the Mavericks have recorded double-digit wins in three straight seasons for the first time since 1987-93. Mercy looks to qualify for the ECC Championship for the fifth straight season and win their first-ever ECC Championship. The Mavericks look to qualify for the NCAA Tournament for the second straight year and for the third time in program history.
Leading the returners for Lagas is ECC Preseason Player of the Year senior Jaclyn Stanavich who was tabbed First Team All-ECC and First Team All-Met last season after averaging 15.7 points per game on a team-best 41.4 percent shooting from the floor with 6.1 rebounds and 2.0 steals per game. The senior ranked fifth in the ECC in points per game and was sixth in steals per game. Stanavich was also named to the ECC Championship All-Tournament Team and scored a team-high 18 points against Bentley in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament in 2024. Also, returning for the Mavericks is junior Angelina Barrera who was named ECC Defensive Player of the Year last season after starting all 30 games with 10.4 points per game and a team-high 8.4 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game. Barrera had 10 double-doubles and ranked fourth in the ECC in rebounds per game. Junior Kyla Nembach returns after posting 2.5 points and 1.4 assists per game and senior Kayla Halvorsen is back after ranking second on the team with 18 three-pointers last season. Junior Megan Marcotte and sophomore Amani Abuhatab return after averaging 2.3 and 2.1 points per game, respectively. Sophomores Paige Fourtin and Molly Boek also return and sophomores Grace Lesko, Layla Greene and Victoria Pfeffer return after sitting out last season due to injury. Lagas also welcomes a strong four-member recruiting class with freshmen Morgan Miller, Caitlin Leary, Sophia Hoyt and Gabrielle Martin joining the team ahead of the 2024-25 season.
Mercy is coming off a 68-62 win over East Stroudsburg on Thursday. The Mavericks were led by sophomore Grace Lesko who had a career-high 22 points. Mercy has been led by senior Jaclyn Stanavich who is averaging a team-high 14.8 points per game on 47.0 percent shooting with a team-high 1.9 steals per game to go along with a team-high 5.8 rebounds per game. Junior Angelina Barrera is averaging 13.5 points per game with 5.7 rebounds per game and a team-high 1.3 blocks per game. Sophomore Molly Boek is averaging 6.6 points per game and 4.4 rebounds per game and sophomore Amani Abuhatab is netting 12.3 points per game on a team-best 56.9 percent shooting. Sophomore Grace Lesko is fourth on the team averaging 7.2 points per game. Lesko was named ECC Rookie of the Week on Monday and was tabbed MBWA Division II-III Player of the Week Honorable Mention on Tuesday. Barrera was named ECC Defensive Player of the Week on Monday and Stanavich was named to the Honor Roll. Stanavich was named to the ECC Honor Roll on December 23rd and Abuhatab and Stanavich were named to the ECC Honor Roll on December 16th. Lesko was named ECC Rookie of the Week on December 9th and Stanavich was tabbed to the Honor Roll. Barrera was named to the ECC Honor Roll on December 2nd and Abuhatab and Barrera were named to the ECC Honor Roll on November 25th. Stanavich and Barrera were named to the ECC Honor Roll on November 11th and Abuhatab and Stanavich were tabbed to the Honor Roll on November 18th. Mercy looks to start the season 9-5 for the second straight season. The Mavericks are receiving votes in the latest D2CSC East Region Top 10 Poll. Mercy is 4-2 in their last six meetings against the Dolphins and are 3-0 at home against Staten Island.
Scouting the Dolphins
Staten Island is coming off a 77-69 loss at Caldwell on Saturday for their second straight loss. The Dolphins were picked fifth in the ECC Preseason Poll after going 10-18 last season. Staten Island is led by three-time ECC Player of the Week and three-time Defensive Player of the Week Jenalyse Alarcon who is averaging a team-high 14.6 points, 6.9 rebounds and 2.9 steals per game. Dana Phelan is second on the team with 11.7 points per game and Amber Abusbeih is third with 10.2 points per game. Abusbeih also leads the team with 3.1 assists per game.
Next Game
Mercy hosts District of Columbia on Saturday, January 11th at 12 p.m.
