Women’s Basketball Plays Host to Lafayette

WASHINGTON – The American University women's basketball team is back in Bender to host the visiting Leopards of Lafayette on Wednesday. First tip is scheduled for 7 p.m. Wednesday will be American's Cancer Awareness Game, wear PINK to show your support!

Follow Along

Date & Time: Wednesday, Jan. 29; 7 p.m.
Site: Washington, D.C. (Bender Arena)
TV: ESPN+

Series History

Over the last five meetups, Lafayette holds the 3-2 advantage over American, including the series sweep last season, winning both at home in Easton (64-57) and in Bender Arena (60-55), making it just one of three wins the Leopards have claimed in Bender.
In the first meeting last season, in Bender, Ivy Bales led AU offensively in points with 13. The guard went 5-for-7 from the floor and defensively grabbed eight rebounds as well. Lafayette was led by Kayla Drummond and Makayla Andrews, each with 12 points. On the glass, Emma Shields led with six.
On the road in Easton, American led until Lafayette led through the first three quarters before a resurgent Leopards squad kicked back with 27 points. They were led by Andrews with a double-double, on 20 points and 11 rebounds. Andrews has since transferred to George Washington. For AU, Bales led with eight assists, closing the afternoon with five rebounds, eight points, and three steals.

Quick Hits

The Eagles are still winless on the season, holding an 0-19 record overall and going 0-8 in the first third of Patriot League play. Most recently, a slow start against Colgate in Hamilton didn't last long and ultimately led to the Colgate Raiders cruising past the Eagles, 85-43.
Four Eagles finished with seven points; Madisyn Moore-Nicholson and Cecilia Kay, along with Laura Nogues, and Bailey Garbee each tallied seven. Garbee and Ivy Bales both picked up their third fouls in the first quarter, limiting their time on the court for the remainder of the half and through the third quarter. Garbee fouling out with eight minutes left.
Kay led all players on the court with 11 rebounds, her 12th time leading AU this year. Nogues had a team leading four assists and four steals. Despite Kay's efforts, American was outrebounded 44-26 by the Raiders.
Kay leads the Eagles offensively and defensively, scoring an average of 10.9 ppg, and collecting an average of 8.4 rebounds per game. The 6'2 freshman has started in every contest for AU in her collegiate debut season. In the league, Kay is second in blocked shots (29) and third in rebounding.
Bales has 23 steals this season, leading the squad in the stat, and is second on the team in rebounding with 5.21 rpg.
Bales is the 20th player in AU history to become a member of the 500 rebound club, having hit the milestone in December against Towson. She has a career total of 567 boards. She is 10 rebounds away from joining the prestigious top 10 list of most in American history. She is also now tied for eighth in AU history in assists with 324, and with any registered playing time against Lafayette, Bales will move to tied for 10th all time in games played for AU with 121. The leading number of games played by an AU student athlete is 127.

Scouting Lafayette

The Leopards hold an overall 5-14 record, including two wins in the PL with wins over Boston U. and Loyola Md., but are most recently coming off a 73-51 loss to Lehigh in Bethlehem. The Leopards hold a 2-8 road record on the season, winning only against BU and at NJIT early in the non-conference season.
In the game against Lehigh, two Lafayette players managed to score in double digits: Abby Antognoli (11) and Kay Donahue (10). Antognoli also had two steals and two assists while Donahue had three assists and five rebounds. On the glass, the Leopards were led by Halee Smith with 8 rebounds.
Overall, the team against the Greyhounds shot 43 percent from the floor overall and 36 percent from three with four made triples. They also went 7-for-8 from the free throw line.
On the season, Antognoli leads the squad with an average of 12.9 ppg, good enough for eighth in the league, while her field goal percentage (.382) is good enough for seventh. She has 42 made three pointers on the year, with a 35.9 percentage from beyond the arc.
Antognoli is ranked second on the team in rebounding, pulling down 4.5 rpg. In the league, the senior guard is ranked third in assists, averaging 3.8 per game.
Leading the team in rebounding is Donahue with an average of 4.7 boards per game and she has a team-leading 11 blocks. The junior guard is also the second-leading scorer for the Leopards, pulling an average of 10.1 points per game across the season.
As a team, the Leopards take advantage of the free throw line, leading the league in percentage, shooting 78.4 percent from the line.