The Christmas break is over for the Charger women's basketball team, and from here on out, it's a heated battle to the finish line in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference.
Hillsdale picks up the action on Thursday, sending out 2020 with one final game at home against Ursuline at 2 p.m., before heading to northern Ohio to take on Lake Erie on Monday at 1 p.m.
In order to comply with current Department of Health and Human Services mandates in both Michigan and Ohio, spectators will not be allowed at either of this week's games. Fans who want to follow along with the action can do so online via the Great Midwest Digital Network. Webcasts for both games are linked below.
Schedule
Ursuline (1-3, 1-3 G-MAC) at Hillsdale (0-4, 0-4 G-MAC) | 2 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 31 | Dawn Tibbetts Potter Arena | Hillsdale, MI
Hillsdale (0-4, 0-4 G-MAC) at Lake Erie (0-0, 0-0 G-MAC) | 1 p.m. Monday, Jan. 4 | Osborne Center | Painesville, OH
Follow/Watch
Live Stats vs Ursuline | Webcast vs Ursuline | Live Stats vs Lake Erie | Webcast vs Lake Erie
Additional Info
Hillsdale Roster | Ursuline Roster | Lake Erie Roster | 2020-21 Hillsdale Stats | 2020-21 Ursuline Stats | 2019-20 Lake Erie Stats
Projected Starters
Hillsdale: #21 Lauren Daffenberg, Jr., G, Yorkville, IL/Yorkville (11.8 ppg, 4.0 rpg); #22 Grace Touchette, Jr., G, Northfield, MN/Northfield (12.8 ppg, 4 rpg, 4.5 apg); #3 Jaycie Burger, Sr., G, Pittsford, MI/Pittsford (11.3 ppg, 5 rpg, 4 apg); #5 Sydney Mills, So., F, DeWitt, MI/DeWitt (8.5 ppg, 15 rpg); #15 Arianna Sysum, So., F, East Grand Rapids, MI/East Grand Rapids (11.0 ppg, 4.3 rpg)
Ursuline: #10 Morgan Mattimore Sr., G, Delta, OH/Delta (12.5 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 3.3 apg); #5 Madison Cloonan, Fr., G, Kirtland, OH/Cornerstone Christian (10.8 ppg, 9 rpg); #4 Rebekah Green, Jr., G, Jackson, OH/Jackson (8.5 ppg, 2.5 rpg); #32 Alyssa Evans, So., G, Amanda, OH/Amanda-Clearcreek (11.5 ppg, 3 rpg); #20 Michaela Cloonan, Fr., G, Kirtland, OH/Cornerstone Christian (8.3 ppg, 7.3 rpg, 2.8 apg)
Lake Erie: #32 Breanna Bauer, Sr., F, Port Huron, MI/Northern (15.9 ppg, 6.4 rpg in 2019-20); #10 Lauren Flannery, So., G, Hannibal, OH/River (6.2 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 2.3 apg in 2019-20); #13 Sydney Wyngarden, So., G, Hilliard, OH/ Hilliard Darby (5.7 ppg, 2.6 rpg in 2019-20); #1 Lainey Billing, Jr., G, Columbus, OH/Bishop Watterson (5.5 ppg, 4.0 rpg in 2019-20); #31 Angela Fink, So., G, Brunswick, OH/Brunswick (1 ppg, 1 rpg in 2019-20)
Scouting the Opposition
Ursuline: The Arrows got off to a difficult start in the 2020-21 season, losing their first three games, but an upset win on the road at Findlay, 80-77, has Ursuline looking like a dangerous team as 2020 draws to a close.
Growing pains were to be expected for the Arrows, a young squad that completely remade its lineup in the offseason. Ursuline has three players who are new to the team this year in the starting lineup – Urbana transfer Morgan Mattimore, who leads the team in scoring through four games, and freshmen guards Michaela and Madison Cloonan.
The fresh faces have pushed last year's leading scorer, Tamara Mathis, to a sixth man role, and part-time starters in 2019-20 Sam Jenkins and Aubrie Marsh are also coming off the bench this year. These additions have made the Arrows a deeper team, and could make Ursuline better in the long run as players adapt to new teammates and new roles.
Leading Ursuline is head coach Shannon Sword, now entering her 11th season with the Arrows. During her time at Ursuline, Sword has guided the Arrows to two G-MAC regular season titles, two NCAA tournament appearances and a then-G-MAC record of 22 consecutive conference wins. She was also the G-MAC Coach of the Year in 2015 and 2016.
Lake Erie: It's not easy to get a read on the Storm, who have yet to play a game in the 2020-21 season, and who return just five players who saw court action in 2019-20.
Lake Erie does return a key piece in All-G-MAC second team forward Breanna Bauer, who was second on the team with 15.9 points per game last season, as well as two other starters in guards Lauren Flannery and Sydney Wyngarden.
The question mark for the Storm is how much they can expect out of six new faces on the roster, including Urbana University transfer Shalaya Heath and JuCo transfer Jordyn Mantz. If Lake Erie can get big contributions from its incoming talent, the Storm could finish much better than the 11th place finish they were predicted to have in the G-MAC Preseason Coaches Poll.
Lake Erie is coached by Mackenzie Perttu, who is entering her second season in charge after leading the Storm to a 10-19 record and a G-MAC tournament berth in 2019-20. Prior to taking over, Perttu was an assistant with Lake Erie, following a successful college basketball career at Michigan Tech.
Scouting Hillsdale
With one exception, Hillsdale has been a tough out for the opponents on its schedule. The Chargers have played tight games against several quality opponents, with the most recent coming in a narrow 72-62 loss to G-MAC title contender Kentucky Wesleyan on Jan. 15. That competitiveness hasn't yet translated into a win, however, and that's where Hillsdale's focus lies as the calendar prepares to turn to 2021.
While the Chargers haven't had the start were hoping for, there have been bright spots for Hillsdale. The offense has looked excellent at points, with great balance between all five starters and top post reserve Anna LoMonaco. Leading the way is junior Lauren Daffenberg, who's averaging 15.7 points per game, with fellow junior Grace Touchette close behind at 12.3 ppg.
Hillsdale has also been strong on the glass, led by sophomore Sydney Mills, who has had 15 or more rebounds in all three games this season and is currently leading the G-MAC with 17.3 rebounds per game. Freshman Dani Salenbien has also made an impact early, scoring 13 points off the bench against Kentucky Wesleyan and solidifying her place in the rotation.
Where the Chargers must improve is on the defensive end of the floor. Hillsdale is giving up a G-MAC worst 84 points per game, though those numbers are slightly skewed by the strength of the competition the Chargers have played so far. Improving that, as well as a G-MAC worst turnover margin, could help Hillsdale become a dangerous team to play for conference foes.
Other Notes
Hillsdale has a narrow 4-3 edge over Ursuline in seven meetings, but lost both contests against the Arrows last year, 87-81 at home on Jan. 2, and 74-57 on the road on Feb. 22…the Chargers have a 12-5 edge over Lake Erie in 17 meetings, but lost the most recent meeting 75-59 on Jan. 4, 2020…with 8 rebounds in last Saturday's loss to Walsh, Sydney Mills kept her per game average for the season at 15, the highest rebounds per game average among women's basketball players in the G-MAC and second in Division II. Her 60 rebounds through four games is seventh in the nation in Division II currently, and Mills is one of only two players in the top 10 who've played fewer than six games so far…Thursday's game is the first time the Charger women have played on New Year's Eve or New Year's Day in 14 years, and just the second time in 22 years. Hillsdale beat St. Joseph's (IN) 87-59 in a neutral site game at Findlay on Dec. 31, 2006 in their last contest on New Year's Eve.