Dec 17, 2007

Weekly Ram Report

As fall-term final exams filled the schedules of the Philadelphia University basketball teams, both the men and women played just one game this past week. Head Coach Tom Shirley's women's basketball team evened their December record at 2-2 and upped their overall mark to 5-3 in a 73-64 non-conference win over Molloy College (1-9) in Rockville Centre, N.Y. on Saturday afternoon, December 15th.

Sophomore center Jessica Romano scored a game-high 21 points and grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds to lead the Lady Rams, who trailed 40-36 at halftime. The Lady Lions controlled play throughout much of the first half, shooting 50% from both the field (16-32) and three-point line (4-8) in the opening frame. But the Philadelphia defense put the clamps on Molloy in the second half, yielding just 23 more points as the Lady Lions shot 29% overall (9-31) and 22.2% from beyond-the-arc (2-9) over the final 20 minutes of the contest. Moreover, the Lady Rams forced 13 Molloy team fouls and 10 turnovers in the second half.

In addition, Romano pulled down eight of her 10 boards, while adding 12 of her game-high 21 points in the closing stanza. Coming off the bench, freshman point guard Stephanie Agger scored nine of her 12 points while playing 18 minutes in the second half for Philadelphia. The Lady Rams' comeback victory was closer than the nine-point final margin indicated, as the game featured six ties and five lead changes.

Junior guard Amanda Brennan and senior forward Ashley Webster both found ways to contribute to a team effort despite struggling from the field at Quealy Gym. Brennan had 13 points on 4-12 (33.3%) overall shooting-2-9 (22.2%) from three-point land-but came through in other areas with nine rebounds, four assists and three steals in the victory. Meanwhile, Webster notched 12 points on 4-13 (30.8%) shooting, but delivered another solid all-around performance with eight rebounds, two assists, one blocked shot and three steals.

On the milestone front, Ashley Webster continues her rise in the University record books. The all-around product of Philadelphia's Cheltenham High School is now in eighth place all-time in Lady Rams' history with 194 steals, having just passed assistant coach Melissa (Kelly) Storm, who had 193 from 1998-2002. Webster is also now tied for sixth place in blocked shots in University history with Kelly Lorenz who had 77 from 1990-'94. On the rebounds list, Webster's 708 at the moment place her eighth in that category, just ahead of former great Tammy Greene who grabbed 706 boards from 1990-‘94.

Looking ahead, the women's basketball team looks to go above .500 in Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) play as they bring a 1-1 league mark into this coming Friday, December 21st's 5:00 p.m. tip-off with CACC South Division rival Wilmington University. Last season, the Lady Rams went 2-1 against the Wildcats, with the home teams holding serve in the regular-season matchups before Philadelphia won an opening-round CACC Tournament game between the two teams at the Gallagher Center.

Here is a look at how the rest of the varsity athletic teams fared this past week:

MEN'S BASKETBALL (4-7 overall, 3-0 CACC) - If you are attending Wednesday night games at the Gallagher Center this season, you are getting your fair share of action as both mid-week home games this month have gone to overtime. Unfortunately for Head Coach Herb Magee's squad, the Rams have been on the losing end of both 45-minute affairs.

This past Wednesday, December 12th, despite sophomore forward Malcolm Ingram's career-high and game-high 23 points plus seven rebounds, the Rams suffered a 77-76 overtime loss to visiting UMass Lowell. It was a highly-competitive contest that featured six ties and seven lead changes.

Junior guard Mike Dunn scored 19 points in the losing effort, while senior forward Jason Hickenbottom contributed 15 points before fouling out, including a perfect 5-5 performance from beyond the three-point arc.

The Rams built a nine-point lead nine minutes into the first half when Dunn hit two free throws to put Philadelphia up 22-13. But UMass Lowell battled back throughout the rest of the opening period, tying the game at 31-31 at the 2:07 mark. Another three-pointer plus a field goal in the closing minute gave the River Hawks a 36-31 halftime advantage.

In the second period, UMass Lowell raised their lead to 11 points with just 3:38 remaining. That is when the Rams began their comeback, as Ingram hit two free throws at 1:54 after to cut the UMass Lowell lead to five. A River Hawk foul with :18 seconds left sent Rams' sophomore guard Russell Frederick to the line, where his two made free throws cut the lead to one at 64-63. UMass Lowell would go on to miss the back end of a one-and-one just two seconds later, and Ingram pulled down the rebound and the Rams called time out to set up a game-tying play. The play that Coach Magee drew up in the huddle worked to perfection as Ingram put in a layup with :05 seconds left that sent the game into extra minutes and gave new life to the Rams.

In overtime, the home team staked a three-point lead at 73-70 with just over two minutes remaining, but a pair of turnovers led to a River Hawks field goal and then a knockout three-pointer that put the visitors up for good.

The men's basketball team is now preparing for their next game, which takes place-could it be another overtime thriller-on Wednesday, December 19th at the Gallagher Center at 7:00 p.m. The Rams will square off with the visiting Griffins from nearby Chestnut Hill College, and please note that the game will not count towards the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) standings. The contest will represent a homecoming for Jesse Balcer '96, head coach of the Griffins, who played for Coach Magee from 1992-'96 and then was a Rams' assistant coach from 2000-'03. Balcer was the first walk-on player to be named team captain in University history. He was also a four-year starter at shortstop on the then-Textile baseball team, earning All-ECAC honors for the 1993 and 1994 seasons.


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The Lady Lions controlled play throughout much of the first half, shooting 50% from both the field (16-32) and three-point line (4-8) in the opening frame. But the Philadelphia defense put the clamps on Molloy in the second half, yielding just 23 more points as the Lady Lions shot 29% overall (9-31) and 22.2% from beyond-the-arc (2-9) over the final 20 minutes of the contest. Moreover, the Lady Rams forced 13 Molloy team fouls and 10 turnovers in the second half. In addition, Romano pulled down eight of her 10 boards, while adding 12 of her game-high 21 points in the closing stanza. Coming off the bench, freshman point guard Stephanie Agger scored nine of her 12 points while playing 18 minutes in the second half for Philadelphia. The Lady Rams' comeback victory was closer than the nine-point final margin indicated, as the game featured six ties and five lead changes. Junior guard Amanda Brennan and senior forward Ashley Webster both found ways to contribute to a team effort despite struggling from the field at Quealy Gym. Brennan had 13 points on 4-12 (33.3%) overall shooting-2-9 (22.2%) from three-point land-but came through in other areas with nine rebounds, four assists and three steals in the victory. Meanwhile, Webster notched 12 points on 4-13 (30.8%) shooting, but delivered another solid all-around performance with eight rebounds, two assists, one blocked shot and three steals. On the milestone front, Ashley Webster continues her rise in the University record books. The all-around product of Philadelphia's Cheltenham High School is now in eighth place all-time in Lady Rams' history with 194 steals, having just passed assistant coach Melissa (Kelly) Storm, who had 193 from 1998-2002. Webster is also now tied for sixth place in blocked shots in University history with Kelly Lorenz who had 77 from 1990-'94. On the rebounds list, Webster's 708 at the moment place her eighth in that category, just ahead of former great Tammy Greene who grabbed 706 boards from 1990-‘94. Looking ahead, the women's basketball team looks to go above .500 in Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) play as they bring a 1-1 league mark into this coming Friday, December 21st's 5:00 p.m. tip-off with CACC South Division rival Wilmington University. Last season, the Lady Rams went 2-1 against the Wildcats, with the home teams holding serve in the regular-season matchups before Philadelphia won an opening-round CACC Tournament game between the two teams at the Gallagher Center. Here is a look at how the rest of the varsity athletic teams fared this past week: MEN'S BASKETBALL (4-7 overall, 3-0 CACC) - If you are attending Wednesday night games at the Gallagher Center this season, you are getting your fair share of action as both mid-week home games this month have gone to overtime. Unfortunately for Head Coach Herb Magee's squad, the Rams have been on the losing end of both 45-minute affairs. This past Wednesday, December 12th, despite sophomore forward Malcolm Ingram's career-high and game-high 23 points plus seven rebounds, the Rams suffered a 77-76 overtime loss to visiting UMass Lowell. It was a highly-competitive contest that featured six ties and seven lead changes. Junior guard Mike Dunn scored 19 points in the losing effort, while senior forward Jason Hickenbottom contributed 15 points before fouling out, including a perfect 5-5 performance from beyond the three-point arc. The Rams built a nine-point lead nine minutes into the first half when Dunn hit two free throws to put Philadelphia up 22-13. But UMass Lowell battled back throughout the rest of the opening period, tying the game at 31-31 at the 2:07 mark. Another three-pointer plus a field goal in the closing minute gave the River Hawks a 36-31 halftime advantage. In the second period, UMass Lowell raised their lead to 11 points with just 3:38 remaining. That is when the Rams began their comeback, as Ingram hit two free throws at 1:54 after to cut the UMass Lowell lead to five. A River Hawk foul with :18 seconds left sent Rams' sophomore guard Russell Frederick to the line, where his two made free throws cut the lead to one at 64-63. UMass Lowell would go on to miss the back end of a one-and-one just two seconds later, and Ingram pulled down the rebound and the Rams called time out to set up a game-tying play. The play that Coach Magee drew up in the huddle worked to perfection as Ingram put in a layup with :05 seconds left that sent the game into extra minutes and gave new life to the Rams. In overtime, the home team staked a three-point lead at 73-70 with just over two minutes remaining, but a pair of turnovers led to a River Hawks field goal and then a knockout three-pointer that put the visitors up for good. The men's basketball team is now preparing for their next game, which takes place-could it be another overtime thriller-on Wednesday, December 19th at the Gallagher Center at 7:00 p.m. The Rams will square off with the visiting Griffins from nearby Chestnut Hill College, and please note that the game will not count towards the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) standings. The contest will represent a homecoming for Jesse Balcer '96, head coach of the Griffins, who played for Coach Magee from 1992-'96 and then was a Rams' assistant coach from 2000-'03. Balcer was the first walk-on player to be named team captain in University history. He was also a four-year starter at shortstop on the then-Textile baseball team, earning All-ECAC honors for the 1993 and 1994 seasons.