BROOKVILLE, N.Y. (February 4, 2011) – Each Pioneer basketball team, men's and women's, will be looking to get back on the winning track as the C.W. Post squads will travel to Dobbs Ferry, N.Y. for a doubleheader match up against the Mercy Mavericks. The men and women from C.W. Post have taken both games against Mercy this year, one each at the Pratt Center and one already played at Mercy. 

 

The Pioneer women are coming off a heartbreaking loss at Bridgeport this past Thursday night, as the Pioneers could not hold in to the lead in the second half, dropping the game 57-62. After leading 28-22 at halftime, the Pioneers were outscored by the Purple Knights 40-29 in the second half. Bridgeport used 25 turnovers on the part of C.W. Post to earn the victory.

 

Felicia Joyner (Lindenhurst, N.Y.) led the way for the Pioneers in the loss with 13, while Janea Aiken (St. Albans, N.Y.) contributed 12 points, six assists and six rebounds. Joyner and Aiken are currently both in the top 12 of scoring in the ECC, as they have combined to average 27.1 points a game for the Pioneers. Aiken is also seventh in the conference in assists with 3.17 a game, as well as fifth in free throw percentage at 77.3 percent on the season from the line.

 

Senior Alyssa Lombardi (New Fairfield, Conn.) has continued to keep pace at top of the conference in rebounds throughout the season. Currently, the six foot senior is averaging 8.7 rebounds a game, putting her third in the conference. 

 

The Mercy Mavericks come into the game with the current Co-Player of the Week in sophomore Aysha Williams. A. Williams earned her honor after putting together a double-double effort in Mercy's only game last week against NYIT. A. Williams tallied 21 points and 11 rebounds, with a 15-16 mark from the free throw line. 

 

Juniors Jasmine Williams and Simone Williams have been the leading scorers for the Mavericks this season, with two currently sitting at sixth and seventh in the conference with scoring averages of 13.0 and 12.8 respectively. Jasmine is also second in the conference in shooting percentage at 46.6 percent on the year. Simone has also played the point well, averaging the third best assists per game mark in the conference at 4.47 a game. Fellow teammate, Ashley Borofsky also finds herself in the top ten of scoring, averaging 11.3 points a game. The Mavericks as a team are putting forth 61.2 points a game on the season. 

 

Mercy also leads the conference in steals at 10.53 a game. S. Williams is the best in that category at 2.84 steals a game, with Borofsky just trailing at 2.37 a game, fifth in the conference. 

 

As previously mentioned, these two teams have met twice already this season, with C.W. Post coming out with both wins. First, the Pioneers were able to take Mercy at its home-court with a 61-58 victory on December 1. The following game on January 13 saw the Pioneers protect home-court with a 73-62 win. In the two games, Aiken tallied 26 and 19 points, along with seven assists in the second game. Lombardi grabbed a total of 19 rebounds in both games.

 

After going 10-0 in the month of January, the Pioneer men started off the month of February with a difficult loss on Thursday to Bridgeport, 65-75. The Pioneers managed to shoot only 35.5 percent from the field, compared to a 53.7 shot by Bridgeport. The Pioneers were able to chip into the lead during the second half after being down 18 at the half. However, the Purple Knights controlled the inside game, finishing the evening outscoring the Pioneers 36-18 in the paint. Jonathan Kohler (Bordentown, N.J.) led the way for C.W. Post with 22 points and six rebounds.

 

Earlier this week, the C.W. Post men entered the Regional Polls in the East Region. The Pioneer men became the only ECC team in the poll, placing 10^th for this week. And despite the loss to Bridgeport, C.W. Post is still in first place in the ECC, tied with the Purple Knights and the Knights of Queens at an 11-3 record.

 

As the season has progressed, the Pioneers have become one of the better offenses in the region. Averaging 80.9 points a game as a team, while shooting 46.3 percent from the field, including 39.9 percent from beyond the arc, the Pioneers enter play Saturday with four players in the top 20 of scoring in the ECC. Kohler and three teammates, Stefan Bonneau (Middletown, N.Y.), Aaron Hall (Syracuse, N.Y.), and Tobin Carberry (Hamden, Conn.), have combined to average 56.5 points a game for the Pioneers. Bonneau, the current ECC Player of the Week, leads the way with 19.1 a game.

 

The Pioneer offense has also experienced great team play, with the squad averaging a conference best 16.45 assists a game, led by Gilbert Montalvo (Astoria, N.Y.) and his 5.85 assists per game. The senior point guard has also kept his turnovers low, keeping his assist-to-turnover ratio at 3.16 for the season. 

 

Along with dishing the ball, the Pioneers have continued to show strength on the glass. Kohler and Hall are both in the top 10 of rebounding with 6.4 and 5.8 boards a game respectively. Freshman Vaughn Allen (Mount Vernon, N.Y.) has also rebounded well with the minutes he has seen, grabbing 5.3 rebounds a game for 13^th in the conference.

 

The Mercy men's basketball team is coming off its first win of the season after losing the first 18 contests to begin the year. On Wednesday evening, the Mavericks were able to push past Dowling for a 93-83 victory. Mercy also entered the week with good news, as Colin Senior earned Rookie of the Week behind a 24 point effort against NYIT last week. Senior shot 6-9 from beyond the arc despite the team loss.

 

Seniors Ed Wilson and Manny Garcia have combined to score 25.4 points a game to lead the Mavericks on the season. And although the Mavericks have given up the most points per game on the season, 88.6 a game, the team does boast the third best scoring offense with a 71.2 scoring average. 

 

The men teams, like the women teams, have already seen each other twice this season, with C.W. Post coming out with wins both times. In the first meeting on December 1, the Pioneers put up their highest scoring total on the season with a 104-80 victory. Kohler led the scoring parade with 21 points, while Montalvo chipped in 14 points to go along with six rebounds and four assists. In the last meeting, much was the same for the Pioneers with a 98-64 win. Hall tallied a double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds, while Allen led the scoring with 22 points to go with nine rebounds. Montalvo and teammate Billy Butler (Elmont, N.Y.) combined for 26 points and 18 assists.

 

The doubleheader is set to begin on the campus of Mercy College with the women at 1 p.m. on Saturday February 5. The men's game will follow at approximately 3 p.m.