Hofstra Opens CAA Tournament Play On Thursday Against William and Mary

Hempstead, NY --

The seventh-seeded Hofstra Women's Basketball team (16-13, 8-10 CAA) will open play in the 2009 Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) Championship on Thursday at 5 p.m. when it faces 10th-seeded William & Mary (13-16, 6-12 CAA) in the first round. This year's tournament will take place at the JMU Convocation Center on the campus of James Madison University and will run until Sunday when the two finalists will meet at 3:30 p.m. to determine the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Championship. Sunday's title game will air on Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic and Comcast/Charter Sports Southeast.

The winner of Thursday's quarterfinal matchup between the Pride and the Tribe will advance to face second-seeded Virginia Commonwealth (21-8, 15-3 CAA) on Friday at 5 p.m. in the quarterfinals. The semifinals are scheduled for noon and 2:30 p.m. (Hofstra's half of the bracket).

Hofstra and William & Mary will be meeting for the second time this season, with the Pride earning a 55-45 victory back on January 18. The Tribe led 24-22 at the half, but Hofstra stormed back to outscore William & Mary 33-21 in the second half to earn the 10-point victory. Hofstra placed four players in double figures in that contest, with senior guard Natty Fripp leading the way with 15 points and adding seven rebounds. Junior center Jess Fuller had a double-double in the game as she tallied 11 points and 12 rebounds, while also blocking four shots. Junior guard Sam Brigham added 12 points and six rebounds in 40 minutes of action, while senior guard Niki Williams chipped in with 10 points, seven assists and five rebounds.

Hofstra's oldest current rival, the Pride and the Tribe first met in the opening game of the 1938-39 campaign with the two squads battling to a 14-all tie. That marked Hofstra's third season of women's basketball, and the Pride hold a 12-7-1 advantage in the all-time meetings with William & Mary. Since Hofstra joined the CAA starting with the 2001-02 season, the Pride owns an 11-4 advantage in the series meetings. These two squads are quite familiar with each other, especially in the postseason, as in the eight seasons they have been conference rivals this will be the fifth time they have met in the CAA Tournament.

Fuller has been a force offensively and defensively for Hofstra this season, as the Queens, NY native leads Hofstra in scoring (11.9 points per game), rebounding (8.1 rebounds per game), field goal percentage (58.1%) and blocked shots (95). Fuller, who has 12 double-doubles this season, leads the CAA in field goal percentage and blocked shots, and ranks third nationally in blocked shots per game. A pair of freshmen have also assisted greatly in Hofstra's 11-game improvement from a season ago (third-best turnaround in nation as of 3/9/09), as freshmen guard Nicole Capurso is second on the team with 10.8 points per game, while freshmen forward Joelle Connelly is third in scoring with 9.2 points per game. Capurso has nailed a team-best 43 three-pointers this season, despite missing Hofstra's last seven games with an injury. Connelly ranks second on the Pride in rebounding (6.2 per game) and blocked shots (59). Both players have been named the CAA Rookie of the Week three times this season.

William & Mary is led by Tiffany Benson, who averages a double-double with 11.8 points and 11.4 rebounds per game. She also has 82 blocked shots in 2008-09, while Taysha Pye is second on the team in scoring with 9.4 points per outing.

HOFSTRA HEAD COACH KRISTA KILBURN-STEVESKEY PREVIEWS THE CAA TOURNAMENT

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(Photo by Brian Ballweg for Hofstra Athletics)