Friday • Nov. 20 • 1:00 p.m. • Colorado Springs, Colo. (Clune Arena - 5,939)
Live Stats: GoAirForceFalcons.com
Series: AF leads 2-0
Last Meeting: AF 68, POR 61 - Dec. 2, 2004 @ Portland, Ore.
Pilots (0-2) vs Sacramento State (0-1)
Sunday • Nov. 22 • 2:00 p.m. • Portland, Ore. (Chiles Center - 4,852)
Live Video: PilotsVideo.com
Live Audio/Stats: PortlandPilots.com
Series: POR leads 4-1
Last Meeting: POR 63, SAC ST 59 - Nov. 30, 2008 @ Portland, Ore.
This Week in Pilots Basketball
The Portland Pilots (0-2) face their first road trip of the season as they travel to Colorado Springs, Colo., for a game on Friday afternoon against the Air Force Falcons (1-2) at 1:00 p.m. (PST) at Clune Arena. The Pilots then return home for a tilt on Sunday against the Sacramento State Hornets (0-1) at 2:00 p.m. at the Chiles Center.
The Pilots then host cross-town rival Portland State at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday night.
Game Coverage
All women’s basketball home games are video streamed live at www.pilotsvideo.com. A season pass is available for $50, while single games are $8. As usual, free audio streams and live stats are available at www.portlandpilots.com.
A Brief Look Back
The Pilots opened the season with two close, hard-fought losses at the Chiles Center. On Saturday, a 15-point half-time deficit proved to be too much for the Pilots to overcome as they dropped their season-opener 72-64 to the Eastern Washington Eagles. The Pilots shot a respectable 46.0 percent from the field, but were hurt by 28 turnovers. The Eagles, who had 22 turnovers themselves, were red-hot from downtown, going 11-for-21 from behind the three-point arc. EWU shot 42.6 percent overall. UP sophomore forward Alexis Gannis led all scorers with 21 points on seven of 12 shooting. Senior guard Laiken Dollente added 13 points and seven assists for Portland, while junior guard Tara Cronin just missed a double-double with 10 points and nine rebounds.
Portland found itself fighting from behind again on Monday night at the Chiles Center as Utah State held off the Pilots 63-57. The Aggies led the entire second half, enjoying their largest lead at 41-31 with 17:53 left to play. Portland responded and made it a single possession game when junior post Lauren Angel hit a three-pointer with 20 seconds left. But Utah State’s Alice Coddington would hit four free throws down the stretch to put the game on ice.
Angel notched her first career double-double with 15 points and a career-high 11 rebounds. Gannis also recorded a career high with 10 boards, while Dollente had 11 points and five assists.
About Air Force
The Falcons opened the season with losses to Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and Tennessee Tech before defeating Adams State 65-59 at home on Tuesday night. Junior guard Raimee Beck has led Air Force in scoring and rebounds every game this season and is averaging 17.0 points and 9.0 boards per game. Freshman forward Katie Hilbig is the team’s second leading scorer with a 7.0 per game mark. Ardie McInelly is in her ninth season as head coach of the Falcons. Last season, Air Force went 4-26 overall and 0-16 in the Mountain West Conference. Six letterwinners and three starters returned this season.
Pilots/Falcons Series
The Falcons have won the only two previous meetings with the Pilots. Air Force won 57-51 in Colorado Springs during the 2003-04 season and 68-61 at the Chiles Center in 2004.
About Sacramento State
The Hornets host UNLV on Thursday night before traveling to Portland. Sacramento State opened the 2009-10 season with a 90-68 loss to Cal State Fullerton at home on Sunday. Senior forwards Charday Hunt and Erika Edwards each scored a team-high 13 points in the loss to the Titans. Freshman forward Kylie Kuhns grabbed a team-high 11 rebounds. Jaime Craighead is in her third season on the Sac State coaching staff and is in her first year as head coach. The Hornets returned 11 letterwinners and four starters from a squad that was 9-21 last year and 7-9 in the Big Sky Conference. Sacramento State was slated to finish eighth in the Big Sky this season in the preseason coaches poll.
Pilots/Hornets Series
Portland has won four of five meetings all-time against Sacramento State. The Hornets’ lone win in the series came in Sacramento during the 2006-07 season. Last year, Laiken Dollente fueled the Pilots with 22 points as UP defeated Sac State 63-59 at the Chiles Center.
A Brief Look Ahead
The Pilots close the month with a home game against the Portland State Vikings on Tuesday night at 7:00 p.m. at the Chiles Center. Portland then takes a week off before traveling to Eugene, Ore., for a game against the Oregon Ducks on Wednesday, Dec. 2. UP follows its trip to Eugene with home games against Pacific (Dec. 4) and Boise State (Dec. 4).
It’s A Lonely Place for Some
While the road can be a tough place to play, the Pilots were seemingly right at home away from the friendly confines last season. The Pilots were nearly unstoppable on the road during the WCC slate, going a remarkable 6-1 away from The Bluff. The loss at Pepperdine on Feb. 19 was the only loss to a WCC opponent on the road during the 2008-09 slate.
The six conference road wins were the most in a season for the Pilots since the 1996-97 team went a perfect 7-0 away from the Chiles Center. UP, which was 8-7 in away games overall, registered the most road wins since the 1997-98 team also won eight road games.
The Laik Show Rolls On
Senior guard Laiken Dollente, the lone senior on the roster, is one of the most prolific scorers in UP program history and is looking to continue her assault on the record books this winter. After three seasons on The Bluff, Dollente ranks No. 7 on UP’s all-time scoring list with 1,390 career points. Last season, she became the 18th player in program history to reach the 1,000-point plateau.
Dollente also currently ranks first all-time at UP in free throw shooting (.872), is second in three-point accuracy (.398) and free throws made (435), ranks third in three-pointers made (153) and is fifth in career points per game (14.9).
Dollente was a scoring machine last season, leading the Pilots in points 18 times. She averaged 15.3 points per game, scored at least 20 points eight times and reached double figures 25 times. During the win against Manhattan on Dec. 19, Dollente dished out nine assists, becoming the first Pilot to accomplish that feat since Da’Love Woods in 2001.
Queen of the Boards
5-10 junior guard Tara Cronin, who earned All-WCC Honorable Mention in 2008-09, did a bit of everything for the Pilots last season, including leading the team in rebounds. Cronin, who averaged 5.8 boards per game, led the squad in rebounding a team-high 12 times. On Sunday, Feb. 8, Cronin notched her second career double-double with career highs of 22 points and 13 rebounds during a 70-67 win at Gonzaga. The Spokane, Wash., native was also second on the team in scoring with 9.3 points per game mark. She reached double figures in scoring 14 times and shot .826 (71-86) from the free throw line.
Cronin currently ranks third all-time at UP in career free throw percentage (.813).
Each Win Brings A New Record
Head coach Jim Sollars, who has won 142 West Coast Conference games with the Pilots, currently has more WCC wins than any other coach in the 22-year history of the conference. During the 2007-08 season, Sollars picked up his record-breaking 130th WCC win against Saint Mary’s on Feb. 2, moving him past former USF head coach Mary Hile-Nepfel for first place on the league’s all-time list. Sollars also won his 300th game at UP during the 2007-08 season and is 317-347 (.477) all-time at Portland. Sollars, who coached at Portland State before moving to UP, has 340 total wins at the NCAA DI level and 494 wins overall.
WCC Coaches Pick Pilots to Finish Fourth
Portland senior guard Laiken Dollente was voted to the WCC’s Preseason All-Conference team, while Gonzaga was chosen as the favorite to claim the West Coast Conference women’s basketball title for the second straight year in the 2009-10 preseason coaches poll. The Pilots were picked to finish fourth.
