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The Game
Stonehill returns to Merkert Gymnasium for its lone home game during a stretch of five of six on the road as it hosts Long Island University for its Alumnae Day Game on Paula Sullivan Court this afternoon. The Skyhawks are aiming to rebound from a run of five-straight losses, including a pair to the Northeast Conference co-leaders after Thursday night's 84-63 setback at Wagner on Staten Island. The Sharks are looking for their first NEC win after a 60-43 loss to Central Connecticut State University in Brooklyn on Thursday night.

Media Information
SkyhawksVision on NEC Front Row. Charlie Bergeron (PBP) and Brian Buckley (analyst) have the call of the action for tonight. The broadcast can be accessed via stonehillskyhawks.com through its NEC Front Row portal (necfrontrow.com/schools/SC) or through Apple TV, Android TV, Amazon Fire TV and Roku via the NEC On the Run App.

Welcome Back Alumnae!
The Stonehill women's basketball program welcomes back the alumnae across the program's storied 52-year history for today's game. The program welcomes the return of its Alumnae Game Saturday morning at 11:30 a.m., and following the game there will be a reception for the former teammates to get a chance to meet this year's Skyhawks squad at Martin Institute. Welcome back to all our women's basketball Chieftains and Skyhawks!

Last Time Out
Wagner maintained its position tied atop the Northeast Conference standings by holding off a third quarter Stonehill rally with 77-percent shooting in the fourth quarter to secure an 84-63 victory at Spiro Sports Center Thursday night. Senior Drayah Heyward led four Wagner players in double-figures with a game-high 18 points on 7-of-10 shooting, converting all four free-throws, with five assists, four rebounds, three steals and a blocked shot. Fifth-year Kem Nwabudu posted a double-double with 14 points and a game-high 12 rebounds, connecting on 6-of-18 shots, with two assists, while junior Alex Cowan contributed 16 points, two rebounds and two steals. Fifth-year Emily Bramanti (Chelmsford, Mass.) led three from Stonehill in double-figures with 15 points, four rebounds, two assists and two steals, while senior Mia Kelly (South Hadley, Mass.) registered 14 points on 5-of-7 shooting, with four assists and two steals. Postgrad Maddie Loder (Independence, Minn.) rounded out the Skyhawks in double-digits with 12 points, two boards and two assists.

Against the Sharks
This afternoon marks the first meeting all-time between Stonehill and Long Island University.  

Pioneer History
While this afternoon marks Stonehill's first ever encounter with LIU (Brooklyn), Stonehill did have a series history with LIU Post/C.W. Post, which merged its athletic department with the flagship LIU in Brooklyn prior to the 2019-20 academic year. Stonehill posted a 6-1 record in seven all-time meetings with the then Pioneers, including a 66-47 win in Brookville, N.Y., the last time they played on November 25, 2018.   

Sunshine Daydream
Stonehill has split its eight afternoon tip-offs this season after Monday's MLK Day matinee setback at FDU. The Skyhawks have posted a 1-9 mark in its games starting at 6 p.m., or later.

Prime Performer
Postgrad Maddie Loder (Independence, Minn.) was named to the Northeast Conference Prime Performer list for the second time this season on Wednesday. Loder, who also earned the recognition following the opening week of Stonehill's inaugural NCAA Division I season, averaged 18.0 points on 52.4-percent shooting (11-for-21) for the week, including 4-for-9 (44.4%) from three-point distance, while converting 10-of-11 (90.9%) free-throws and chipping in 2.0 assists per game in a pair of contests last week. She made her first six shots, including a trio of three-pointers, in scoring 15 points in the first quarter on her way to a career-high 28 points at Merrimack on Saturday, finishing 9-for-13 overall, including 4-for-7 from three, adding three assists. Loder is one of four Skyhawks to be named an NEC Prime Performer in its first season in the Conference, with fifth-year Emily Bramanti (Chelmsford, Mass.), a two-time NEC Player of the Week, leading the way with six selections - all of which came in consecutive weeks. All four Skyahwks have now collected multiple Prime Performer selections after Loder's second this week, with fifth-year Sophie Glidden (Scarborough, Maine) and senior Mia Kelly (South Hadley, Mass.) each earning the recognition twice as well.

NEC Prime Performers:
Nov. 14: Maddie Loder
Nov. 28: Sophie Glidden
Dec. 5: Emily Bramanti & Mia Kelly
Dec. 12: Emily Bramanti
Dec. 19: Emily Bramanti
Dec. 26: Emily Bramanti & Mia Kelly
Jan. 3: Emily Bramanti & Sophie Glidden
Jan. 9: Emily Bramanti
Jan. 18: Maddie Loder

Tough Stretch
Thursday's game at Wagner was its third in a four-game stretch for Stonehill against the three remaining unbeaten teams in the NEC - including back-to-back road contests with the Seahawks and FDU (Monday) that now remain as the only two undefeated NEC teams.

Guard on the Glass
Senior Mia Kelly (South Hadley, Mass.) is contributing 6.0 rebounds per game over Stonehill's six NEC games, ranking ninth among Conference leaders in league play. Kelly has recorded the first two double-figure rebounding games of her career, including a career-high 12 boards against Saint Francis on January 6. She is ranked 11th among NEC rebounding leaders with 5.1 boards per game for the season, and her 4.0 defensive rebounds per game are good for seventh in the NEC.

Stepping Up
Freshman Melissa Whitmore (Hanover, N.H.) made her first collegiate start at Merrimack last Saturday after posting eight points and four rebounds in back to back games against Saint Francis and Sacred Heart. She rewarded the milestone start with season-highs of nine points and seven rebounds at Merrimack, having posted seven straight DNPs between November 27 vs. Oakland and January 6 against Saint Francis. She is averaging 5.8 points and 4.4 rebounds per game over the Skyhawks last five games.   

They Are Free. Throws.
Stonehill is the top free-throw shooting team in NEC play after six games, converting at 75.3-percent. The Skyhawks rank second among Conference leaders overall at 72.6-percent for the season. Senior Mia Kelly (South Hadley, Mass.) ranks sixth among NEC free-throw shooting leaders at 77.6-percent (38-for-49), while fifth-year Emily Bramanti (Chelmsford, Mass.) ranks tenth at 69.8-percent (44-for-63) - fifth among NEC players with 40-plus made free-throws this season. She is shooting 88.9% (16-18) from the line in NEC play to rank third in the Conference, along with postgrad Maddie Loder (Independence, Minn.), while Kelly is ranked fifth at 83.3% (15-18) in NEC play.

Counting Down
Stonehill fifth-year Emily Bramanti (Chelmsford, Mass.) enters today's game having scored 929 points in 98 career games played as she aims to become the program's 34th 1,000-point scorer. She looks to become Stonehill's first 1,000-point scorer since former teammate and All-American Kayla Raymond '22 reached the milestone against Saint Anselm at Merkert Gym on February 5, 2022.

Glidden Paints the Glass
Fifth-year Sophie Glidden (Scarborough, Maine) ranks second among NEC rebounding leaders with her team-high 7.2 rebounds per game. She pulled down 12 boards in each of Stonehill's first two games at Lehigh and Providence and grabbed her first career double-double with 14 points and ten boards against Hartford. She ranks fifth in the NEC with 2.2 offensive boards per game to go with 5.0 defensive rebounds to rank second in the Conference.

In Transition
Stonehill announced it had accepted an invitation to join the Northeast Conference and commence a four-year transition to full NCAA Division I membership on April 5. The Skyhawks started their four-year transition on July 1 and will earn full NCAA Division I membership in 2026-27. At the June NEC meetings, the Conference presidents announced a shift in the waiting period for automatic qualifier sports from competing for NEC postseason championships from four to two years, making Stonehill eligible to compete in the NEC postseason starting in 2024-25.

Getting Social
Fans and media members of Stonehill athletics have multiple social media outlets to get updates on all 21 varsity programs. The department's Facebook page is www.facebook.com/stonehillskyhawks, and you can also follow @GoStonehill on Twitter and @stonehillskyhawks via Instagram!  Stonehill women's basketball is also on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/StonehillCollegeWomensBasketball, Twitter and Instagram by following @stonehillwbb. You can even follow head coach Trisha Brown on Twitter via @CoachTB_SC.

Up Next
Stonehill heads back out on the road and returns to action next Saturday at Sacred Heart University for an NEC matchup at 2 p.m. The Skyhawks return to Merkert Gym on Saturday, February 4, to host St. Francis Brooklyn at 2 p.m.