Last season:
The Raiders went 7-21 last season despite the efforts of then-freshman phenom Ariel Jones. Jones led the team in points per game, scoring 21.8 per contest and also finished the season with team-highs of 59 steals and 51 three-pointers made. The guard was named the 2017-2018 PSAC Eastern Division Women’s Basketball Freshman of the Year and earned All-PSAC First Team honors.
Key Losses:
● Guard Victoria Blackburn: 10.4 points and 3.4 assists per game, team-high 84 assists
● Center Kristin McGeough: 8.2 points and 7.5 rebounds per game, team-high 43 blocks
What to Expect:
With only four returners from the 2017-2018 season, the Raiders will once again look to now-sophomore Ariel Jones as its main scoring threat. Jones set the PSAC’s all-time freshman scoring record, finishing with 609 points on the season. Along with Jones, the Raiders will rely on sophomore forward Kryshell Gordy to hold things down on the glass. As a freshman, Gordy averaged a team-high 8.3 rebounds per game and grabbed a team-leading 55 offensive and 178 defensive rebounds. Additionally, Gordy averaged 7.8 points per game and blocked the second-most shots on the team with 27 on the season.
After a strong recruiting season, SU has 11 new players for the 2018-2019 season, nine of which are true-freshmen. The remaining two returners, redshirt-sophomore Lindsay Embly and sophomore Emily Houck, also expect to have expanded roles for the Raiders.
The Raiders open the season hosting Bowie State University and Wheeling Jesuit University today at 6 p.m. and tomorrow at 1 p.m., respectively, for the 2018 Wolf’s Bus Line Classic.
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