CENTERVILLE, Mass. --- The Moravian College women's basketball team has been awarded a berth to the 2012 Eastern College Athletic Conference Division III South Championship Tournament announced Monday, and the second seeded Greyhounds will host to seventh seed Centenary College, 14-11 this winter, for a quarterfinal game on Wednesday, February 29th at 7:00 p.m. in Johnston Hall.
Moravian, which is 15-11 overall this season, will be making its 13th appearance in the ECAC Tournament, and the Greyhounds have won a pair of ECAC South Championships, one in 1987 and the other in 2007. The program has finished as the ECAC South Runner-Up on five occasions.
Wednesdays' other quarterfinal games will feature third seed Waynesburg University (20-7) hosting sixth seeded Penn State-Behrend (21-5) and fourth seed Marywood University (18-9) hosting fifth seeded Bethany (W.Va.) College (16-11). Top seed Medaille (N.Y.) College (22-5) earned a bye with only seven teams selected to the tournament. The semifinals and championship are scheduled for Saturday and Sunday, March 3rd & 4th at the highest remaining seed. However, Medaille is unable to host so a win by Moravian on Wednesday will put the semifinals and championship in Johnston Hall this weekend. For the complete bracket, visit www.ecacsports.com.
Moravian head coach Mary Beth Spirk has the Greyhounds in the postseason for the 22nd time in her 25 years as head coach. Spirk, who has an overall record of 463-222, has the Greyhounds looking for the program's third ECAC Championship. She led Moravian to an 8-6 Landmark Conference regular season record and the conference tournament for the 12th straight year last week.
Leading the Greyhounds is senior forward Alexandra Blair, who was named to the 2012 Landmark All-Conference First Team, with team highs of 13.4 points and 9.0 rebounds per game. Blair, who became Moravian's 22nd 1,000-point scorer for women in the Landmark Semifinals at Juniata College, also has 85 blocked shots, 50 assists and 23 steals while playing a team high 29.2 minutes per game. Blair earned a spot on the All-Tournament Team at the 11th Annual Starters Moravian Winter Classic back in January, and she has earned Landmark Conference Player of the Week honors twice this season as well as ECAC South Player of the Week honors twice and D3hoops.com Team of the Week accolades once. Blair is the school record holder with 298 blocked shots, and she is seventh in school history with 695 rebounds in 109 career games. This season, Blair is shooting 74.2 percent at the foul line, making 66 of 89 free throw attempts, and she has nine double-doubles including the first triple-double in school history.
Freshman forward Alexis Wright, who was honored as the 2012 Landmark Conference Rookie of the Year, is complementing Blair on the inside with averaged of 11.2 points and 7.8 rebounds per contest in her debut campaign to go with 46 blocked shots, 40 steals and 21 assists. Wright, who has five double-doubles this season and was the Most Valuable Player of the Starters Moravian Winter Classic and the Landmark Conference Player of the Week on January 9th, has started 24 of 26 games, and she is fourth in minutes per game at 26.1.
Junior guard Amanda Kreuder is contributing 9.0 points per outing, and she has added 71 rebounds, 59 assists and 33 steals while seeing 26.3 minutes of action a game. Sophomore guard Katie O'Rourke is tossing in 7.7 points and grabbing 5.9 rebounds per game to go with 65 assists and a team high 46 steals while averaging 27.1 minutes per contest. O'Rourke has one double-double this season.
Sophomore guard Danielle Brogan leads Moravian with 45 three-pointers this winter to go with a scoring average of 7.2 points per game, and she has added 68 rebounds, 24 steals, 12 assists and six blocked shots. Senior guard Hilary Murray leads the Greyhounds with 85 assists in her final campaign, and Murray is adding 5.5 points per game with 58 rebounds, 41 steals, 12 three-pointers and seven blocked shots.
Sophomore forward/center Laura Jordan is contributing 4.7 points and 3.5 rebounds per outing off the bench for Moravian with 18 blocked shots, nine assists and seven steals. Sophomore guard Alyssa Hann, who earned a spot on the Starters Moravian Winter Classic All-Tournament Team, has 83 points, 45 rebounds, 43 assists, 35 steals and five three-pointers for the Greyhounds while sophomore guard Laura Casey has added 62 points, 32 rebounds, 26 assists, 11 steals and five blocked shots off the bench.
Sophomore forward Ericka Blair, who is out for the remainder of the season with an injury, had 41 points, 17 rebounds, nine steals and six blocked shots in limited action.. Senior guard Cassandra Phillips has added 15 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists in her final season while junior guard Katie Marakos has 18 points, five rebounds and three steals. Sophomore guard Sarah LaFerrara has nine rebounds, eight points and five steals in limited action for the Greyhounds while freshman guard Casey Bill has six assists, three points, three steals and two boards in her debut season. Junior guard Alyssa Baranovich has contributed four rebounds, two assists and two points this winter.
Centenary College is 14-11 on the season and was 7-9 during the regular season in the Colonial States Athletic Conference in the North Division. The Cyclones, under the direction of first-year coach Justin Phoenix, are making their second appearance in the ECAC South Championships.
