WILKES-BARRE, PA (February 14, 2019) – The King's College women's basketball enters the final day of the 2018-19 regular season with a ton on the line, as the Monarchs play host to Manhattanville College Saturday for Senior Day. The Monarchs will honor their two seniors prior to the contest, giving thanks to Lindsay Dippre and Alexis Steeber for their contributions to the team during their tenures. After that though, the Monarchs will get down to the task at hand which is clinching the fourth and final spot in the 2019 Middle Atlantic Conference Freedom (MAC Freedom) Tournament next week.

Event Details
Opponent: vs. Manhattanville College  (16-7, 7-6 MAC Freedom)
Date: Saturday, February 16, 2019
Time: 1:00 p.m.
Location: Wilkes-Barre, PA – McGrane Gymnasium (Directions)
Live Coverage: (Live Video) (Live Stats)

Last Time Out: Host Misericordia University out-rebounded the King's College women's basketball team 53-37 including a 24-7 edge on the offensive glass to rally for a 78-67 Middle Atlantic Conference Freedom (MAC Freedom) victory in action from then Anderson Center Wednesday evening.

The Monarchs (12-12, 6-7 MAC Freedom) started the game hot from the field, making their first 10 field goals while shooting 11-of-16 from the floor in the opening stanza to take a 25-19 lead after the first quarter. The Monarchs led by as many as 10 twice, with the latest double-digit lead coming at 22-12 after a Rebecca Prociak layup.

Misericordia pulled to within four with 45 seconds to go in the first after two free throws by Rachel Carmody, but a Mackenzie Yori jumper gave King's a 25-19 lead at the end of 10 minutes. King's continued to lead through the second quarter, as Yori posted a team-best 12 points through the opening half. King's shot 55.6 percent in the first half, going 4-of-8 from behind the arc.

The third quarter was moving time for the Cougars, as MU put together a 10-2 run midway through the period to take a 51-45 lead after a Paige Wampole lay-up with 2:12 to go in the third. After Yori stopped the spurt with a jumper, the Cougars posted the final four points of the period to take a 54-47 edge going into the fourth.

The run continued into the fourth quarter for the hosts, as MU took its biggest lead of the game at 11 with 8:50 to go after a Wampole layup. The lead fluctuated from eight points to 10 points for the next four minutes before Alexis Steeber connected on back-to-back jumpers to make it 64-58 with 4:11 to go. That was as close as the Monarchs would get, as the Cougars pulled away for the victory thanks to 64.3 percent shooting in the final stanza. 

Yori posted a team-best 21 points on 9-of-16 shooting on the night, also pulling in seven rebounds for the Monarchs. King's had three other players in double figures, as Steeber chalked up 19 points after shooting 7-of-17 from the field while adding eight rebounds. Rajza also was 4-of-9 from the field en route to 11 points.

The double-doubles continued for Prociak, notching her 13th of the season as the junior registered 13 points and a team-high 11 rebounds. King's saw 64 of its 67 points come from the starting rotation, as it shot 44.1 percent from the field. The Monarchs forced Misericordia into 38 percent shooting, but the 15-point edge for MU in second chance points was the difference.

A Look At The Monarchs (12-12, 6-7 MAC Freedom):

• The Monarchs are looking to secure their second straight MAC Freedom Tournament appearance Saturday, while making the tournament in in four of the last eight seasons.
• King's can get into the 2019 MAC Tournament with a win, but still can earn a berth with some other help. If Eastern University falls at Misericordia and DeSales defeats Delaware Valley, then the Monarchs are in regardless of their outcome.
• Right now, the Monarchs have a trio of 15 points scorers in Rebecca Prociak, Alexis Steeber and Mackenzie Yori. It would mark the first time in program history that has occurred.
• Prociak currently ranks second in the conference in both scoring and rebounding, averaging a double-double with 16.8 points and 10.1 rebounds per game. She has totaled 12 double-doubles which leads the MAC Freedom.
• Prociak also leads the MAC in made free throw attempts with 135.
• Mackenzie Yori raised her scoring average to 15.2 points per game with a 21-point output against Misericordia on Wednesday. Yori has scored 20 or more points three times this year.
• Freshman Samantha Rajza continues to get better and better, as she has chalked up six games in double-figures over the last eight games. Rajza has averaged 13.3 points over the past three games.
• Alexis Steeber currently sits with 975 points heading into the season finale, looking to become the 24^th player at King's to post 1,000 points in her career.
• Freshman Emily Kriston has been missed over the last three games, as the spark plug guard saw the team averaging 71.5 points with her in the lineup. Since then, King's has averaged 61 points per game offensively.

A Look at the Valiants (16-7, 7-6 MAC Freedom):

• Manhattanville has locked up the No. 3 seed in the 2019 MAC Freedom Tournament, and will come back to Luzerne County on Wednesday to take Misericordia University in the semifinals. King's and Manhattanville could still end up tied in the standings, but MC holds the tie-breaker over King's.
• The Valiants have dropped their last three games, most recently falling on Senior Day to FDU-Florham 76-64 Wednesday.
• Manhattanville is third in the conference in scoring margin, outscoring opposition this season by 12.9 points per game. The Valiants defense is third-best in the conference, with teams scoring only 56.5 points a night.
• The Valiants don't shoot a lot of three-pointers, but they do make the second-most by percentage in the MAC Freedom. Manhattanville has connected on 32.9 percent from deep this year, but only making 105 as a team.
• Kayleah McGuire is third in the MAC Freedom in scoring, posting 16.0 points per game while ranking fifth in the conference in field goal makes and second in free throw makes with 105.
• Sarah Coutu is also pouring in 14.1 points per game, while ranking fourth in the conference in assists per game with 3.6 helpers a game. She is also fourth in steals per game with 3.0.
• Ali Mikaele is posting 8.2 points per game, while Spencer Shore has made 37 three-pointers and shoots a team-leading 35.2 percent from downtown.

Against Manhattanville All-Time: King's is 13-10 against the Valiants since the beginning of the 2008 season, as the teams have split the last eight games. King's is 8-3 at home during the last 11 seasons, but Manhattanville did defeat King's in Purchase, NY 66-60 earlier in the year. This is the final season that King's and Manhattanville will play as conference foes, as the Valiants get set to move to the Skyline Conference next year.

Up Next: If the Monarchs make the MAC Tournament, they'll travel to top-seed DeSales University Wednesday evening for a MAC Freedom Semifinal contest with the Bulldogs at a time to be determined.