Jan. 6, 2004

Stony Brook (1-8, 0-0 AE) vs. UMBC (0-9, 0-0 AE)
January 7, 2004 * 7:00 p.m.
RAC Arena * Baltimore, Md.

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Today's Matchup
The Seawolves (1-8) open up America East Conference play when they travel to UMBC (0-9). Stony Brook enters the contest on a five game losing streak, while the Retrievers are looking for their first win this season.

Scouting the Retrievers
UMBC returns no starters and five letterwinners from a team that went 14-16 and made a trip to the NEC Championship game a year ago.

The Retrievers are led by Anastasia Goncharova, who is averaging 9.4 points per game. Last time out, UMBC dropped a 72-50 decision vs. Loyola.

Last Time Out
Hana Peljto posted game-highs of 21 points and 16 rebounds to lead Harvard over Stony Brook 72-64 at the Indoor Sports Complex on Saturday afternoon. Mykeema Ford led Stony Brook with 18 points, while Jessica Smith added 12 points and six rebounds. Sherry Jordan finished with 10 rebounds and seven steals.

Ford Named Rookie of the Week
Freshman Mykeema Ford was named the Rookie of the Week in the America East for the week ending Jan. 4 after averaging 20.3 points while shooting .615 (24-for-39) in Stony Brook's last three outings.

Keema on the Mark
Freshman Mykeema Ford has been nearly unstoppable in the Seawolves' last three outings. The guard averaged 20.3 points while shooting .615 (24-for-39) in those games.

Ford was named to the Hawk Classic all-tournament team after averaging 21.5 points on 17-of-25 (.680) shooting from the field, including 6-of-10 (.600) from three point range. Against St. Joseph's, she tallied 20 points on .667 shooting and, in the consolation matchup vs. UNC-Charlotte, netted a game and career-high 23 points on .692 shooting while dishing out four assists in the contest. Ford followed up that performance with a team-best 18 points to go with a career-high three steals vs. Harvard.

Struggling from the Floor
With the exception of their outing against Charlotte on Dec. 29, the Seawolves have struggled with poor shooting in their last several games.

After shooting a season-best .517 (31-60) vs. IPFW on Nov. 29, SBU shot just .337 (60-178) in its next three contests. The Seawolves responded with a solid 49.2 percent (30-61) effort against the 49ers, but followed up that performance with a 35.2 percent (25-71) outing. SBU is now shooting just .371 (115-310) in their last five outings.

Smith Not Playing Like a Freshman
Freshman Jessica Smith has been one of SBU's top performers through its first nine games this season.

The forward, who currently ranks third in the America East with 8.8 rebounds per game, leads the team in scoring (11.7 ppg) and rebounding.

Smith recorded her first career double-double with a 14-point, 15-rebounds performance vs. Providence on Dec. 11. At the Hawk Classic Dec. 28-29, she put up back-to-back double-digit rebounding games, pulling down a career-high 16 vs. Saint Joseph's and 14 against Charlotte.

Seawolves in The America East Stats
Three Seawolves are among the America East leaders in games played through Jan. 4.

Jessica Smith ranks first in the league with 4.0 offensive rebounds, 12th with 11.7 points, third with 8.8 rebounds and ninth with 4.78 defensive rebounds per game. Mykeema Ford is tied for 19th with 10.3 points per outing and Inbar Orion is 10th with 0.67 blocks per game.

As a team, the Seawolves are sixth with a .405 field goal percentage and fifth in scoring offense with 62.6 points per game.

Notable
SBU has had at least one player pull down double-figures rebounds in each of its last five games . . . with the Seawolves loss to Providence Dec. 11, SBU failed to win consecutive games, something it has not done since defeating UNH and Northeastern last season on Feb. 2 and 5, respectively . . . SBU outrebounded Providence by 20, 48-28, and posted a 22-5 advantage on the offensive boards on Dec. 11 . . . in SBU's outing vs. IPFW Nov. 29, the Seawolves shot over 50 percent for the first time since March 5, 2003 vs. Albany (55.2 percent), which covered a span of five games.

New Edition
Sabrina Thompson, a freshman guard from Roosevelt, N.Y., has been added to the Stony Brook roster. Thompson has been with the team since the beginning of the season as a practice player, but joined the squad as a walk-on in early December.

Thompson earned all-county honors as a senior after averaging 14 points, eight assists, five rebounds and four steals per game for Roosevelt HS.

T-Lo Moving Up
Senior Theresa LoParrino continues to move up on Stony Brook's all-time record book in several categories.

The guard stands in sixth place all-time with 226 free throws, 28 away from fifth place (Lisa White, 254). LoParrino also moved into 11th with 156 assists and third with a .766 (226-of-295) free throw percentage.

LoParrino ranks in several other categories, including three point field goals (second, 93) and free throw attempts (eighth, 295).

Oh, Sherry
Senior Sherry Jordan is looking to make her final season at Stony Brook a memorable one.

A two-time all-conference pick and a preseason all-league selection, Jordan has scored in double-figures in 69 of the 80 games she has played in, including 27 games with 20 or more points and four with 30 or more.

Jordan currently has 1,328 career points, good for seventh all-time at Stony Brook. She needs just 199 points to pass Katie Browngardt (1,527 points, 1988-91) on the list for second place all-time. Michele White (1983-87) is the Seawolves' leader with 2,183 career points.

The forward recently moved into sixth place all-time at Stony Brook with 211 steals, just three away from fifth place (Detra Sarris, 214). She also stands fifth with 496 field goals and sixth with 185 assists.

Milestones Approaching
Several Seawolves are approaching milestones at the start of the 2003-04 season. Theresa LoParrino netted her 200th field goal vs. Harvard on Jan. 3, while Sherry Jordan dished out her 200th assist vs. UNC-Charlotte on Dec. 29.

Here is a look at a few of the milestones that could be reached at some point this season:

Points
1,500 - Sherry Jordan (has 1,328)
600 - Danielle DeGiorgio (599)

Rebounds
700 - Sherry Jordan (672)
400 - Danielle DeGiorgio (389)

Assists
100 - Danyelle Ingram (82)

Steals
100 - Danielle DeGiorgio (91)

Field Goals
500 - Sherry Jordan (496)

3-Point Field Goals
100 - Theresa LoParrino (93)