Lehigh University Athletics
Lehigh hosts 14th Annual Christmas City Classic
12/29/2010 2:57:00 AM | Women's Basketball
BETHLEHEM, Pa. - The Lehigh women's basketball team looks to extend its winning streak to seven games when it hosts the Rider Broncos on Wednesday in the 14th Annual Christmas City Classic at Stabler Arena. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m.
With a victory, the Mountain Hawks would play for the tournament championship on Thursday against the winner of the Mississippi State vs. Buffalo matchup. With a loss, Lehigh would face the loser of Wednesday's matchup between the Bulls and the Lady Bulldogs.
With a victory, the Mountain Hawks would play for the tournament championship on Thursday against the winner of the Mississippi State vs. Buffalo matchup. With a loss, Lehigh would face the loser of Wednesday's matchup between the Bulls and the Lady Bulldogs.
The Mountain Hawks (7-5) won their sixth game in a row against Wagner, 76-58, on Dec. 11. The Mountain Hawks are at their high-water mark of the season, sitting two games over .500. The win over Wagner also marked Lehigh's 11th straight December victory dating back to last season.
Lehigh will be playing only its fifth home game of the season on Wednesday after playing eight away from home up to this point, including two neutral site games against LSU and Howard. The Mountain Hawks are coming off an 18-day layoff in between the Wagner game and the Christmas City Classic.
The Mountain Hawks will look to advance to the Christmas City Classic Championship Game for the sixth straight season where they would face the winner of Mississippi State and Buffalo, who play earlier on Wednesday (5 p.m. tip-off). Lehigh is also looking for its third straight tournament championship. After dropping four straight title games from 2004-07, the squad has bounced back to win two straight.
The Dec. 11 win over Wagner upped Lehigh's December winning streak to 11 games dating back to last season. Overall, the Mountain Hawks have won 15 of 16 December contests and are 16-3 over the last three seasons in this month.
In tha Wagner game, senior Erica Prosser recorded a season-high eight assists. She also scored 16 points to jump into sole possession of fifth place on Lehigh's all-time scoring list. Sophomores Becky Guman and Sarah Pearce each set career-highs with six points while 15 Mountain Hawks saw action to tie a season-high. Lehigh eclipsed the 70 point mark for the third time in its previous four games, this after reaching 70 only once in its first eight.
Lehigh and Rider have met 26 times in their history with the Mountain Hawks holding an 18-8 advantage. This marks the first meeting since the 1996-97 season, when the Broncos pulled out a 60-53 victory. Lehigh won 17 of the first 20 meetings (including separate winning streaks of nine and seven games), but Rider has bounced back by winning five of the last six. The Mountain Hawks won the last game at Stabler Arena, 81-73, during the 1995-96 campaign.
Rider enters the Christmas City Classic with an 0-9 record, most recently coming off a 78-58 loss at La Salle on Dec. 19. The Broncos are 0-5 away from home. Leading the way on offense is Shereen Lightbourne, who averages 8.5 points and 2.1 rebounds per game. Ali Heller is second on the team in scoring, averaging 7.7 points per contest, most of the games coming off the bench. Caitlin Bopp has also averaged 7.6 tallies for the Broncos. Bopp is leading the MAAC in rebounding, averaging 8.9 boards per game.
The Mountain Hawks have faced every team from the MAAC at least once. Lehigh is an impressive 31-19 all-time against the conference, led by an 18-8 mark against Wednesday's opponent Rider. Overall, Lehigh faces two teams from the MAAC this year, having also defeated Saint Peter's, 83-62 on Dec. 7.
Lehigh remains at Stabler Arena for Day Two of the Christmas City Classic on Thursday. With a win, the Mountain Hawks would advance to the championship game for the sixth straight season at 7:30 p.m. The Lehigh/Rider winner will face the winner of Buffalo and Mississippi State, with the losers playing in the consolation game earlier in the day. Tickets for all home games are now on sale and may be purchased on Lehighsports.com or by calling the ticket office at (610) 7LU-GAME.
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Date:
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December 29, 2010
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Opponent:
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Rider Broncos
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Tip-off:
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7:30 PM
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Arena/Capacity:
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Stabler Arena/5,600
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Location:
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Bethlehem, Pa.
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Lehigh's Record:
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7-5 overall, 0-0 Patriot League
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Rider's Record:
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0-9 overall, 0-0 MAAC
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Series:
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Lehigh leads, 16-8
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Radio:
Internet Video:
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WLVR 91.3 FM with Matt Markus beginning at 7:15
Lehighsports.com
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Behind Enemy Lines:
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MHT EP10 - Women's Basketball
Friday, February 27
Lehigh Sports Central: Women's Basketball
Tuesday, February 17
Interview after win vs Colgate 1/10
Saturday, January 10
Interview after Bucknell win 1/3/25
Saturday, January 03
