Princeton University Athletics
Women's Hoops Celebrates Love Of Sports This Valentine's Day Weekend
February 10, 2004 | Women's Basketball
Feb. 10, 2004
Princeton, N.J. - The Princeton University Athletic Department invites the community to share its love of sports this Valentine's Day when it celebrates the 18th annual National Girls and Women in Sports Day. The women's basketball team hosts Cornell on Friday night and then caps a day of festivities with a matchup against Columbia on Saturday night.
National Girls and Women in Sports Day was established by Congress in 1987 to promote the positive influence of sports and fitness participation. It also seeks to advance the struggle for equality and access for women in sports.
The community can began celebrating at the Cornell game when Princeton (2-3) looks to pass the Big Red (3-3) in the Ivy League standings. Cornell is 8-11 overall, boasting a 66-64 overtime win against preseason conference No. 1 Harvard. Three players lead the Big Red with double-digit scoring - Tanya Karcic (15.7 points per game), Lauren Kilduff (12.5) and Karen Force (11.6). Sports fans can also catch the Princeton women's hockey game against Cornell at 7 p.m. on Friday night, followed by a Skate With The Tigers event. On Saturday, the women's hockey team hosts Colgate at 4 p.m. in Baker Rink.
An interactive sports fair then kicks off at 5:30 p.m. on the main level of the Jadwin Gym. Princeton varsity athletes will host stations where youth members of the community will be able to learn proper techniques and basic skills for a wide range of intercollegiate sports including lacrosse, crew, softball, figure skating and much more.
The 2003 NCAA Champion Princeton Women's Lacrosse team will be signing autographs throughout the night.
The finale of the celebration is the women's basketball game against Columbia, slated for a 7 p.m. tip-off. The Lions come off their first-ever weekend sweep of Yale and Brown when it improved to 9-9 overall last week. Sue Altman is the only Lion in double figures with 14.9 points per game while seven others average between four and eight points.
Princeton enters the weekend at 5-14 overall and 2-3 in the conference after falling to Dartmouth and Harvard last weekend. Katy Digovich recorded her first career double-double with 16 points and 12 rebounds against Dartmouth, and the score was tied 51-51 with under six minutes to play, but the Big Green remained undefeated in the league with the 63-56 win.
Against Harvard, Casey Lockwood and Becky Brown combined for 27 points and 10 rebounds but were outmatched by the Crimson, who finally played like the two-time defending league champion after a 1-3 start in the Ivies.
Brown averages 12.2 points for Princeton while Lockwood and Digovich add 11.4 and 11.2 points per game. The threesome also accounts for 20 of the team's 38 rebounds per game while Katy O'Brien averages a team-high 3.1 assists and adds 9.9 points off 46% shooting behind the arc.
Fleet Bank sponsors this year's festivities and will be giving away free seat cushions to lucky rows during the game. The Princeton Athletic Department will also run several contests and hand out National Girls and Women's in Sports Day T-shirts, Princeton women's lacrosse T-shirts and Westin T-shirts.
Admission to the sports fair and basketball game is $3 for adults and $1 for youth under the age of 14.
Do You Know Your Princeton Women's Basketball Facts?
* The record for attendance at a women's basketball game in Jadwin is 3,067 set two years ago at National Girls and Women in Sports Day. Last year's crowd of 2,192 is the second-largest crowd.
* Princeton has won consecutive games only once this year and it happened last time the Tigers were in Jadwin. They defeated Brown and Yale two weekends ago, which also marked the first Ivy League weekend sweep since 1999-2000.
* The last time Princeton defeated Cornell and Columbia in the same weekend was on the road in 1999-2000. The last time the Tigers did it at home was the year before when they were the Ivy co-champions.
* The Tigers have a three-game home win streak.
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Princeton vs. Cornell - Friday, Feb. 13 at 7 p.m.
History Lesson - Princeton leads the all-time series with Cornell, 32-14. They split last season when the Tigers won first, 66-63, to snap a three-game losing streak on National Girls and Women In Sports Day. The Big Red took the second game on its home court, 64-50.
Wins and Losses - Cornell lost the first four games of the season including two at the Indiana Classic, but then won its next four. Its biggest win of the season was a 66-64 overtime upset of Harvard.
Seniors Rule - The Big Red starts five seniors who all average over 25 minutes per game. Cornell has just three subs who play 11 or more minutes per game.
Player to Watch - Senior forward Tanya Karcic leads Cornell in scoring (15.7 points per game) and is second in rebounding (7.9 per game). She has 102 defensive boards, more than double her offensive boards.
Secondary Threat - Senior guard Lauren Kilduff adds 12.5 points per game, including three performances of over 20 points. She leads the team in minutes played with 34.1 per game.
Tour de Force -Senior guard Karen Force accounts for over 21 points per game, scoring 11.6 and assisting on the rest. She averages 4.8 assists per game.
The Workhorse - Senior forward Dani Aretino has team-highs in rebounds (8.5 per game) and steals (1.6 per game) and adds 4.7 points per game.
They're Clutch - Three of the Big Red shoot over 80% from the foul line. Sophomore guard Sarah Brown is 17 for 20 (85%), Force is 73 for 88 (83%) and Karcic is 71 for 87 (82%).
Princeton vs. Columbia - Sat., Feb 14 at 7 p.m.
Time For a Change - Princeton dominates the series 25-10 but the Lions are on a four-game winning streak against the Tigers. Princeton lost 75-66 and 66-63 last season and has not defeated Columbia under head coach Richard Barron.
Reason to Compare - Columbia and Princeton both defeated Brown and Yale and lost to Dartmouth and Harvard. Against common non-conference opponents, Columbia beat Lehigh and Hofstra while the Tigers lost to both. The two teams both lost to Sacred Heart.
Lonely Sue - Junior guard Sue Altman is the only Lion averaging double-figures in scoring (14.9 points). She has a team-high 34 three pointers, shoots 77% from the foul line and averages 2.3 assists and 1.5 steals.
Chipping In - Besides Altman, five others have led the team in scoring in at least one game. Eight players average between four and eight points per game.
Key Efficiency - Junior center Edytte Key is the second-highest scorer (8.2 points per game) and the leading rebounder (7.5 per game) although she plays just 18.5 minutes per game.
Splitting Time - Nine players average at least 13.8 minutes and no one plays more than 28.6 minutes per game. Eleven Lions played in 15 games or more.
Popping Kern - Junior guard Susan Kern has the best three-point percentage, popping 23 of 60 attempts (38%). She averages 6.2 points per game.
Durable Duo - Junior forward Nicole Lesko and senior guard Lizi Chorney are the only Lions besides Altman to start all 18 games. Lesko contributes 6.7 points, 3.7 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game while Chorney adds 5.9 points, including 18 three-pointers, and 2.5 assists.
Power Forward - Junior Erin Jaschik shoots 36 for 65 for a 55% field goal percentage. She chips in 5.4 points and 3.3 rebounds per game.
Princeton Team Notes
Ball Control - The Tigers outrebound their opponents by 1.2 boards per game but haven't been able to control the ball long enough to gain an edge. Princeton averages 19.1 turnovers per game, which is 3.4 more than their opponents average.
Critical Number - Princeton averages 12.7 assists per game, which is 6.4 less assists than turnovers (19.1), for a 0.7 ratio.
The Offensive Trio - Three players average double-digit scoring for Princeton - Becky Brown (12.2 points per game), Casey Lockwood (11.4 points per game) and Katy Digovich (11.2 points per game).
Same in the Paint - The same threesome accounts for over 20 of the Tigers' 38 rebounds per game. Lockwood has a team-high 8.3 boards per game while Digovich and Brown add 6.8 and 5.6.
Shuffling the Lineup - Only Lockwood and point guard Katy O'Brien have started all 18 games for Princeton. Nine different players have started at least one game.
Favorite Helper - O'Brien hands out 3.1 assists per game, including a season-high seven against Georgia Tech. She had six assists two times this year. O'Brien also puts up 9.9 points per game.
Restless Legs - Digovich leads the team in minutes played at 33.9 while Lockwood and O'Brien each average 31.9 minutes. O'Brien played all 40 minutes in a team-high four games this season.
Get Out of Their House - Brown and Digovich have 15 and 14 blocks apiece.
Hot Streak - Brown scored in double figures the past four games after scoring just six against Penn and Colgate.
Doing It All - Lockwood has seven double-doubles this season, including four in the last seven games. She was one point and one rebound shy of three straight double-doubles at Dartmouth.
Finding Her Role - Ali Smith averaged eight points in the last four games after scoring 3.6 points per game before then.
First Honor - Lockwood was named the Ivy League Rookie of the Week after recording consecutive double-doubles in wins over Brown and Yale. It was her first career league honor and Princeton's only this season.
Homesick - The Tigers are winless on the road (0-8) and have just one neutral win (1-2). Four of their five wins, including the last three, came in Jadwin Gym.
Winding Down, Heating Up - Cornell and Columbia are Princeton's last two new opponents this year. After this weekend, the Tigers replay the seven Ivy teams.
Using Time Wisely - At 22.0 minutes per game, Brown averages almost 12 minutes less than the Tiger with the most minutes but is still the team's top scorer (12.2 points per game) and shot blocker (15) and is third in rebounds (5.6 per game). She shoots 47% from the floor, good for sixth in the league.
Long Range - O'Brien is shooting 46% (46 for 101) behind the arc for the best percentage on Princeton and third in the Ivy League. She has made at least four three-pointers in seven games, including five threes in eight attempts vs. Georgia Tech.
Sharing the Wealth - Five different Tigers have been the team's leading scorer in at least one game. Brown, O'Brien and Digovich each had five top-scoring performances this season.
The 20 Club - Princeton had a player score at least 20 points only four times this year and each time it was by a different player. Lockwood scored 20 in the season opener, Brown had 20 in the second game of the season, Digovich scored 20 at Penn and O'Brien had the team's season-high 21 points against Brown.
On the Line - Lockwood is Princeton's top free-throw shooter, hitting 53 of 70 attempts (76%). Digovich (50 of 71) is the only other Tiger shooting better than 70%.
Man Down - Freshman Kelli Hughes has left the team due to a recurrent knee injury.
Proud Crowd - The Tigers have played in front of over 2,000 fans three times this season, including 3,409 fans against Montana in Dahlberg Arena.
Looking Ahead - Three high school seniors committed early decision to play at Princeton. Meagan Cowher (Pittsburgh, Pa.), Ali Prichard (Apple Valley, Minn.) and Ariel Rogers (Evanston, Ill.) join the Tigers in 2004-05.