Jan. 5, 2003
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Dukes (7-4) vs. #11 Vanderbilt (9-3)
Monday January 6 - 7:05 pm
Pittsburgh, Pa. - A.J. Palumbo Centeron the web @ RedZoneMedia.com
Coaches vs. Cancer
Today's game is not just another game. It's against one of the nation's top women's basketball teams and $1 from all tickets sold will be donated for cancer research.
Pittsburgh's own Edna Campbell, a breast cancer survivor, will address the crowd at half time. The Allderdice graduate and University of Texas stand-out, made a courageous comeback in the Sacramento Monarch's final game of the season this year after being place on the injured reserve list in March when she announced her illness.
The event also has special meaning for Head Coach Dan Durkin, a cancer survivor as well. Diagnosed with thyroid cancer in October 2000, Coach Durkin had been cancer free since his surgery.
Come out, watch some great basketball and help Duquesne, the community and American Cancer Society fight cancer. (more info)
The Series
Today marks the first meeting between Duquesne and Vanderbilt.
Game Time
Duquesne looks to snap a two-game losing skid while Vanderbilt is hoping to win its second straight after defeating Holy Cross this past Saturday. The Dukes lost at La Salle in the Atlantic 10 opener Friday evening.
Vandy is the first ranked team the Dukes are facing this season. The last time Duquesne defeated a ranked team was Jan. 8, 1994 with a 57-56 buzzer-beater over #23 George Washington at the Palumbo Center.
Duquesne Probable Starters| No. | NAME | YR | POS | HT | PPG | RPG | Notes |
| 10 | Shiri Sharon | JR | G | 5-7 | 9.5 | 6.1 apg | nearly posted a triple-double at La Salle with 9 points, 8 rebounds, and 8 assists; A-10's assist leader |
| 5 | Aiga Bautre | FR | G | 6-0 | 10.5 | 2.4 | team-best 23 three-point goals, shooting .512 (44-86) from the field |
| 31 | Nikolina Pender | SR | G | 6-1 | 4.7 | 4.0 | second with 17 steals and adds 46 assists |
| 40 | Beth Friday | SR | F/C | 6-1 | 14.0 | 10.0 | now 8th career scorer at Duquesne; limited to a season-low two rebounds at La Salle |
| 52 | Erin Wehrle | SO | C | 6-2 | 3.5 | 3.1 | second with 13 blocks |
Off the Bench| 21 | Candace Futrell | JR | G | 5-10 | 20.5 | 4.0 | expected to return this week after resting an ankle injury |
| 00 | Khalihah Este-Shehu | + SR | G | 5-9 | 2.0 | 3.0 | saw first action this season in the A-10 opener at La Salle; played 14 minutes |
| 22 | Kristin Kalervo | FR | G | 5-8 | 1.4 | 0.1 | grabbed her first rebound at La Salle; went 4-4 from the free throw line vs. Loyola; missed first four games due to injury |
| 30 | Jade Timol | ^ SR | F | 6-0 | 0.8 | 1.0 | seeing 4.8 minutes of action, two points and a steal in six minutes at La Salle |
| 14 | Omega Harrington | FR | G | 5-7 | 0.6 | 0.4 | averages 7.6 minutes as the back-up point guard |
| 45 | Maria Stankevich | FR | C | 6-3 | 4.0 | 3.1 | seven rebounds and six points at La Salle |
| 34 | Nicole Sinclair | FR | F | 6-0 | 3.5 | 3.3 | shooting .520 from the field, has committed just four fouls in 103 minutes |
| 32 | Andrea Eaton | SR | G | 6-0 | 0.0 | 0.4 | averages 2.5 minutes a game as a back-up |
| 35 | Selma Delibasic | SR | C | 6-5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | averaging 1.9 minutes as a back-up post |
^ Redshirted 1999-2000 season
+ Redshirted 2001-2002 season
About the Dukes
Duquesne fell to 7-4 on the season, 0-1 in the Atlantic 10 with a 67-55 loss at La Salle Jan. 3 in the A-10 opener. It was the second straight loss for the Dukes who earlier this season posted a six-game winning streak.
Three Dukes average double figure scoring led by junior Candace Futrell (20.5), whose return is questionable for today's game. (She was injured in the fourth game of the season.) Senior Beth Friday adds 14.0 points and a team-best 10.0 rebounds while freshman Aiga Bautre averages 10.5 ppg. Shiri Sharon adds 9.5 points and a league-best 6.1 assists per game.
The Dukes did return one injured player to the active roster on Friday. Redshirt senior Khalihah Este-Shehu, who missed all of last year with an ACL injury and has been resting a sprained ankle, saw her first action of the season Friday. Este-Shehu, DU's top scorer in the 2000-01 season, scored two points, grabbed three rebounds and had one steal and a turnover in 14 minutes of action.
About the Commodores
Ranked 11th in the Dec. 29, 2002. Associated Press poll, Vanderbilt rebounded from a 92-82 loss at Louisville on Jan. 2 to take an 86-54 victory over Holy Cross and up its record to 9-3 overall. They are 3-2 in their last five outings and are 3-3 on the road.
Three Commodores average double figure scoring in Chantelle Anderson (17.9), Jenni Benningfield (14.6) and Ashley McElhiney (10.3). Vanderbilt averages 78.7 points per game as a team and is shooting .527 from the field.
Head Coach Melanie Balcomb, in her first year with Vanderbilt, is no stranger to the Dukes as she formally was the head coach at A-10 foe Xavier. In nine years at the Cincinnati school, Balcomb recorded a 163-105 mark.
DU Versus La Salle
The Dukes suffered a 67-55 loss to La Salle in both schools' Atlantic 10 season opener this past Friday in Philadelphia and are now 7-4 overall, 0- 1 in the Conference. Beth Friday led the game with 18 points while Shiri Sharon added nine points, a game-best eight assists and eight rebounds. Davineia Payne led the Explorers with 11 points and Monica Garrido Sanz grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds.
The Dukes opened the game taking a 12-5 lead led by Beth Friday's six points with just under eight minutes off the clock. La Salle rattled off a 9-2 run to tie the contest 14-14 before Sharon's basket gave the Red & Blue a 16-14 edge. Back-to-back three-point goals gave the host a 21-16 lead with 3:50 ticking. The teams traded goals and Duquesne saw a 21-23 reach with 2:38 remaining on a Nicole Sinclair lay-up, but the Explorers would take a 27-22 lead into the intermission.
La Salle opened the second half on a 6-0 run for a 33- 22 lead at 18:30. Sharon's three ended a scoreless streak for the Dukes for a 33-25 reach. They would not get within an eight point reach afterward with 27- 38 being the last. La Salle's largest lead was 17 points, with the last being a 56-39 advantage with 4:55 remaining. Khalihah Este-Shehu saw her first game action after resting an ankle injury this season and a season-ending knee injury in 2001. Este-Shehu scored two points and grabbed three rebounds.
Neither team fared well from the field with the Dukes shooting 21-64 (.328) and the Explorers hitting 22-56 shots (.393). Both squads committed 16 turnovers and La Salle held a slight 41-40 rebounding edge.
Friday Moves Up In All-Time Scoring
Beth Friday entered the La Salle game six points behind Chrissi Stough's 1,152 points scored during the 1981 through 1984 seasons. Her 18 points against the Explorers now gives her 1,164 points. The Pittsburgh native and Dapper Dan 2002 Sportswoman of the Year nominee is 22 points behind the 7th place mark, held by Katie Collins who tallied 1,186 points (1987-90).
Friday is already Duquesne's all-time career rebounder with 976 boards. She quickly took over the top of the career rebounding list six games into the season. With 922 boards entering the Towson game, Friday needed just seven boards to surpass Kathy Ridilla's mark of 928. Ridilla, a Duquesne Hall of Fame inductee, also posted 1,312 points from 1986-89. Friday is expected to be the first to hit 1,000 boards and points at Duquesne.
Friday will also challenge Ridilla's senior class rebounding mark of 279 boards. Thus far, Friday has bettered each class' rebounding title as she grabbed 297 as a freshman, 298 as a sophomore and 271 last year as a junior.
Duquesne's Career Rebound Leaders | 1. | Beth Friday | 976 | 2000-present |
| 2. | Kathy Ridilla | 928 | 1986-89 |
| 3. | Carina Hoffman | 860 | 1989-92 |
| 4. | Carol Burchlaw | 827 | 1982-85 |
| 5. | Tanya Larrydale | 798 | 1984-87 |
Duquesne's Career Scoring Leaders
| 1. Korie Hlede | 2,631 | 1995-98 |
| 2. Darcie Vincent | 1,538 | 1989-92 |
| 3. Kris Sebastian | 1,374 | 1991-94 |
| 4. Kathy Ridilla | 1,312 | 1986-89 |
| 5. Amy Alger | 1,306 | 1986-89 |
| 6. Becky Oglvee | 1,292 | 1983-86 |
| 7. Katie Collins | 1,186 | 1987-90 |
| 8. Beth Friday | 1,164 | 2000-present |
| 9. Chrissi Stough | 1,152 | 1981-84 |
| 10. Gail Wilkins | 1,083 | 1995-97 |
| 11. Kelly Eberhardt | 1,080 | 1996-99 |
| 12. Tanya Larrydale | 1,063 | 1984-87 |
| 13. Maureen Major | 1,035 | 1984-87 |
| 14. LynnDee Howell | 1,029 | 1997-00 |
| 15. Carol Burchlaw | 1,020 | 1982-85 |
Next Up
Duquesne hits the road this weekend for a two-game Atlantic 10 series first at Coach Balcomb's old stomping ground, Xavier (currently 8-3, 0-0 A10), on Fri. Jan. 10 at 7 p.m. followed by a Sunday afternoon game at Dayton (currently 7-4, 0-0 A-10) on Jan. 12 at 2 p.m. Xavier travels to Dayton Tues. Jan. 7 in the A-10 opener for both Ohio squads.
