Lehigh University Athletics
Lehigh prepares for big test against defending champs
1/28/2004 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Lehigh returns to Stabler Arena to wrap up the first half of Patriot League play with a pair of home games against second place teams. Friday night, the Mountain Hawks play host to defending league champion Holy Cross. Lehigh maintains sole possession of first place in the league thanks to a pair of road victories last weekend. On Sunday, the Mountain Hawks rolled out to a 20-point second half lead, and then held on for a seven point win at Army. Three Lehigh players scored in double figures in the win, led by a 19-point effort from Dawn Gorynski.
For Holy Cross, the desire to show they are still the team to beat in the league should provide all the motivation necessary to make Friday night’s game a good one. Last weekend, the Crusaders split a pair of games at home. “It’s great to be in first place and 5-0 in the league,” sophomore guard Dawn Gorynski cautions. “But we know Holy Cross is hungry and they’re the defending league champs. This will be a good test for us to see how we stack up against the best.” Holy Cross has dominated the all-time series between the two schools, winning 28 of the first 31 meetings. However, Lehigh has split with the Crusaders in each of the last two seasons. Two years ago, the Mountain Hawks won a double-overtime thriller at Stabler Arena, and last year, Lehigh ended Holy Cross’ 55 game home winning streak against Patriot League opponents with a thrilling 58-56 buzzer-beating victory. Crusaders head coach Bill Gibbons – who has led his team to 10 postseason appearances – expects Friday night’s contest to be a great one. “Lehigh is playing the best basketball in the league right now," Gibbons said. “They are defending, rebounding, and on offense they are playing with a lot of balance. We have to play very well to beat Lehigh at Stabler Arena.” Action gets underway at 5:30 on Friday night. The game can be seen live on Service Electric TV2 in the Lehigh Valley, and can be heard on WLVR-FM and lehighsports.com. Tickets are just five dollars and can be purchased through the Lehigh Athletics Ticket Office at (610) 7LU-GAME. Date: January 30, 2004 Opponent: Holy Cross Crusaders Tip-off: 5:30 Arena: Stabler Arena (5,600) Location: Bethlehem, PA Tickets: (610) 7LU-GAME or at the Stabler box office Lehigh’s Record: 8-10 overall, 5-0 Patriot League Holy Cross’ Record: 8-10 overall, 3-2 Patriot League Series: Holy Cross leads, 28-3 Streak: The two teams split last season’s games Television: Service Electric TV2 Sports live Radio: 91.3, WLVR-FM, beginning at 5:15 Audio: Lehigh web site live Internet Broadcast: Game Notes:
