When it comes to 2020, be prepared for anything.
That's a truth the Hillsdale College women's basketball team and their Great Midwest Athletic Conference foes are learning the hard way so far this season.
In a span of 48 hours, the Chargers have gone from being slated to host Kentucky Wesleyan on Thursday and Trevecca Nazarene on Saturday, to watching both those games get postponed, and then finally finding a new opponent to kick off the 2020-21 campaign in arch-nemesis and perennial G-MAC title contender Findlay.
It's a game that was originally scheduled to take place on Jan. 2. Now, both teams will have that date open and can potentially schedule make-up contests for that day.
Although the game is a last-minute addition to both teams' schedule, it should be a quality contest if past meetings between the two squads are anything to go by. Last season, Hillsdale picked up one of their three G-MAC wins on the season with a high-scoring, 91-72 win at home on Dec. 14, 2019, and Findlay returned the favor with a buzzer-beating 69-68 win in their gym that closed out the Chargers' season on Feb. 29, 2020.
Schedule
Hillsdale (0-0, 0-0 G-MAC) at Findlay (0-0, 0-0 G-MAC) | 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 3 | Niekamp Arena | Findlay, OH
Follow/Watch
Live Stats | Webcast | Radio
Additional Info
Hillsdale Roster | Findlay Roster | 2019-20 Hillsdale Stats | 2019-20 Findlay Stats
Players to watch
Hillsdale: #21 Lauren Daffenberg, Jr., G, Yorkville, IL/Yorkville (12.7 ppg, 4.3 rpg in 2019-20); #22 Grace Touchette, Jr., G, Northfield, MN/Northfield (12.6 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 2.7 apg in 2019-20); #3 Jaycie Burger, Sr., G, Pittsford, MI/Pittsford (8.3 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 2.5 apg in 2019-20); #5 Sydney Mills, So., F, DeWitt, MI/DeWitt (6.3 ppg, 6.4 rpg in 2019-20).
Findlay: #23 Sydney Kin, Jr., F/C, Carey, OH/Carey (16.4 ppg, 8.3 rpg, 1.3 bpg in 2019-20); #13 Bridget Landin, Jr., F, Ottoville, OH/Ottoville (10.9 ppg, 7.7 rpg, 2.0 apg, 1.9 spg in 2019-20); #2 Amber Schweiger, Jr., G Hummelstown, PA/Lower Dauphin (9.9 ppg, 4.2 apg, 1.9 spg in 2019-20); #43 Paige Bellman, Jr., F, Columbus Grove, OH/Columbus Grove (8.7 ppg, 2.3 rpg in 2019-20)
Scouting the Opposition
The Oilers were one of the top teams in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference in 2019-20, finishing tied for third and reaching the G-MAC tourney semifinals. With four starters returning and one of the most imposing front lines in the league, Findlay figures to be a tough opponent for the rest of the conference to contend with again this season.
Findlay is built around a gigantic and potent front-court led by 6-foot-3 junior center Sydney Kin. A first-team All-G-MAC player last season, Kin led the Oilers in scoring, rebounding and blocks and was sixth in the G-MAC in points per game. She has excellent complimentary pieces around her in the front court in junior Bridget Landin, a second-team All-G-MAC player in 2019-20, and junior Paige Bellman, a Division I transfer from Detroit-Mercy.
Point guard Amber Schweiger also returns to direct the Findlay attack once again, after leading the team in assists in 2019-20. The Oilers do have to replace graduated senior Lauren Ruth, and will look to senior Madison Stolly, junior Lily Simon and sophomore Elizabeth Flynn to play bigger roles after all saw action in spot duty last year.
Findlay is coached by Jim Wiedie, who is entering his eighth year in charge of the Oilers, with a 115-81 record during that time. He's guided the Oilers to five winning seasons in the last six years, including an NCAA DII tournament appearance in 2017-18.
Scouting Hillsdale
With three starters returning and several players with more experience under their belt, as well as a new coach at the helm in Charlie Averkamp, the Chargers could be a much-improved team from their 12th place finish in the G-MAC last season.
Much of the optimism surrounding the Chargers stems from the return of a talented backcourt trio that's accumulated significant experience over the last two seasons. Leading the way is junior Lauren Daffenberg, a second-team All-G-MAC pick last season who led the team in scoring (12.7 points per game) in 2019-20 and is on pace to go down as one of the program's best 3-point shooters of all time when her career is over.
Daffenberg is flanked by junior Grace Touchette, another versatile offensive player and sharpshooter who averaged 12.6 points per game in 2019-20, and senior leader Jaycie Burger, who's entering her third season as a starter and whose versatile game makes a big impact at both ends of the floor for the Chargers.
Hillsdale will have to find rotation replacements for graduated seniors Sydney Anderson and Julia Wacker. To help replace the lost production, the Chargers will look for more from sophomore Sydney Mills, who quickly developed into the team's sixth man and its most effective post player offensively in her first season in college last year, as well as junior Anna LoMonaco, another top reserve from the 2019-20 season.
Leading the way is Averkamp, who comes to Hillsdale College as a coach on the rise after a four-year tenure at Division III Benedictine University in suburban Chicago where he led the Eagles to unprecedented heights in the history of the program. Averkamp has posted a 98-35 record as a head coach and he will aim to build the Chargers back into a contender quickly.
Other Notes
Hillsdale has a longer history with Findlay than any other G-MAC foe because of both programs' prior affiliation as members of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. The Chargers currently lead a tight series that began in the 1985-86 season 25-24…Hillsdale's 69-68 loss at the buzzer at Findlay in the 2019-20 season finale snapped a three-game winning streak for the Chargers over the Oilers. Since both teams joined the G-MAC, Hillsdale has a 5-3 edge over their rivals in eight meetings…The Chargers are looking to snap a three-game losing streak in season openers dating back to the 2016-17 campaign, but were 6-1 in season openers in the seven years prior to the start of that streak…With 120 3-pointers in two seasons, junior Lauren Daffenberg needs just four 3-pointers to break into the top 10 all-time in Hillsdale women's basketball history in 3-pointers made. With two seasons left to play, Daffenberg is on pace to challenge 2012 graduate Chelsea Harrison's program record of 237 3-pointers made.