POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (March 3, 2014) – The Vassar College women's basketball team will take part in the NCAA Tournament for the third time in program history this weekend, heading to Scranton, PA to take on Williams College in the NCAA First Round Friday evening at 5 p.m. in the Long Center. Host Scranton (24-3) will entertain Bridgewater State (16-11) in the other contest Friday night. The Brewers earned a right to play in the postseason thanks to a 64-60 win in the Liberty League title game over St. Lawrence University. Williams College picked up one of the 21 at-large bids available to teams that did not earn an automatic qualifying bid.

Vassar College (22-5, 13-3 Liberty League)
(Vassar Women's Basketball Home Page) (Roster) (Stats) (Schedule)

Game Details
NCAA TOURNAMENT POD INFORMATION – (INTERACTIVE BRACKET) – (PRINTABLE BRACKET)
Game: vs. Williams College (20-5, 6-4 NESCAC)
(Williams Women's Basketball Home Page) (Roster) (Stats) (Schedule)                 
Site: Scranton, PA
Facility:  Long Center (2,800)
Tickets: $6 General Admission/$3 Senior Citizens & Students
Date: March 7, 2014
Time: 5 p.m.
Game Coverage: (Live Video) (Live Stats)

NCAA Tournament Matchup First Round
Category	Vassar	Williams
Scoring Offense	69.9	64.4
Scoring Defense	60.1	55.3
FG%	41.3	39.4
FG% Defense	36.2	30.8
3PT%	36.5	30.4
FT%	76.9	70.3
RPG	44.6	41.4
TPG	14.3	15.3
APG	13.8	15.3
SPG	7.9	8.1
BPG	3.9	6.7

OTHER NCAA TOURNAMENT FIRST ROUND SITE CONTEST
Game: Bridgewater State (16-11, 8-4 MASCAC) vs. Scranton (24-3, 13-1 Landmark)          
Site: Scranton, PA
Facility:  Long Center (2,800)
Date: March 7, 2014
Time: 7 p.m.
Game Coverage: (Live Video) (Live Stats)

What To Look For
The Brewers will look to earn some firsts this weekend in Scranton, as they strive to chalk up their first-ever NCAA Tournament win. Vassar College will face a New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) team for the second time this season, as the Brewers knocked off Wesleyan University 65-52 on the road back on November 26. The Brewers have been to the NCAA Tournament two other times, falling to Kean University in 2011 and Lebanon Valley College in 2012.

A Look At The Ephs (20-5, 6-4 NESCAC)
The Ephs enter the NCAA Tournament after being knocked out of the NESCAC Tournament by Bowdoin College last week, 71-46. Williams has played five common opponents with the Brewers this year, posting a 6-1 mark against the likes of Skidmore (W, 55-34), Wesleyan (W, 53-46; W, 76-71), RPI (W, 66-44), St. Lawrence (W, 50-38) and Amherst (L, 78-62; W, 65-63). Williams wins games with defense, as the Ephs are fifth nationally and first in the NESCAC in field goal percentage defense, holding teams to 30.8 percent shooting. The Ephs are also third in the nation in blocked shots per game with 6.7 per game. WC has held teams to 25.3 percent shooting from downtown, second-best in the NESCAC, and also grabs the most boards per game in the conference with 41.4 per game.

Williams offensively sits in the middle of the pack in the NESCAC, ranking sixth in the league in shooting percentage with a 39.4 percent clip from the floor. The Ephs also sit right in the middle of the statistical rankings in terms of assists, turnovers and free throw shooting. Williams scoring defense is 42^nd nationally, holding teams to 55.3 points per game, and is also 33^rd in the nation in three-point shooting defense. Looking at Williams lately, the Ephs have lost three of their last four games, but prior to this stretch, WC had won seven straight contests including handing Amherst College one of just three losses this year.

Individually, junior guard Ellen Cook and her 14 points per game has led Williams this season, which was also fifth-best within the NESCAC. She has pulled in the eighth-most defensive rebounds in the league, while posting the second-most thefts in the NESCAC with 60 and posting the fourth-highest assist count with 94. Fellow guard Kellie Macdonald has poured in 11.9 points per game, making 42.9 percent from the floor, and guard/forward Lauren McCall has come off the bench in 24 games this year to add 9.1 points per game. She also leads the team in three-point shooting, making 40.7 percent from downtown. Oge Uwanaka leads the team in rebounding with 7.4 caroms per night, and Katie Litman just returned from an injury and is averaging 7.2 points and a team-leading 55.7 shot percentage for the Ephs.

Williams has been to the Big Dance seven previous times, including last year in 2013 when the Ephs made the Division III Final Four, losing to eventual D-III national champion DePauw University. The Ephs are 12-7 all-time in the NCAA Tournament, going 5-1 in the Tournament last year. Coincidentally, Williams knocked off pod host Scranton 79-59 last year in the NCAA First Round. This will be the first time that Williams has played a Liberty League team in the NCAA Tournament.

Projected Starting Lineups:
VC – G – Cydni Matsuoka (18.4 PPG), G – Caitlin Drakeley (12.4 PPG), G – Allyson Pemberton (7.3 PPG), F – Hannah Senftleber (14.7 PPG), F – Michaela Janowski (3.5 PPG).
WC – G – Ellen Cook (14.0 PPG), G – Kellie Macdonald (11.9 PPG), G - Mary Kate O'Brien (5.5 PPG), G – Jane Thompson (5.0 PPG), F – Oge Uwanaka (7.6 PPG)

Against Williams All-Time
Vassar College and Williams have played 13 times previously, with the Ephs earning wins in all 13 matchups. The Brewers and Ephs have not played each since 2000, a 67-61 win for Williams in Poughkeepsie.

Feels Like The Third Time
Vassar College earned its third Liberty League title Saturday with a 64-60 win over St. Lawrence University. The Brewers are now a perfect 3-0 in championship games, and have represented the Liberty League in three of the last four seasons.

Seen You Before
Vassar is 2-1 against teams within the NCAA Tournament this year, earning wins over then No. 3 Montclair State University (Dec. 11, W – 63-58) and Hartwick College (Jan. 7, W – 67-65), while falling to Amherst College 66-53 in Las Vegas on December 28.

Pretty Neutral
The Brewers have played two games on neutral this year, both in Las Vegas at the Vegas Hoopla, falling to Amherst College and Gwynedd Mercy University. Over the last five seasons, Vassar is an even .500, going 6-6 over that span.

Get To The Glass
Vassar College has understood the importance of controlling the glass this year, and it certainly has benefited them. In games that VC has won the battle on the boards, it is a cool 20-1 with the only loss coming in overtime at William Smith College.

40-40 Club
This season, when the Brewers shoot over 40 percent from the field, they are a perfect 14-0.

No Foul Play
The Brewers are one of the best teams in the country at playing legal defense, ranking 12^th nationally with just 13.9 personals per game.

For Free
The Brewers have made the most of their opportunities at the free throw line, shooting 76.1 percent from the charity stripe this year. That leads the Liberty League and is eighth best in Division III. Cydni Matsuoka (Sacramento, CA/John F. Kennedy) leads the nation in the statistic, making 93.2 percent at the line.

Bombs Away
Vassar College shooting from behind the arc this year has been stellar, posting the 14^th-best three-point shooting percentage (.365) in the nation. Senior Cydni Matsuoka leads the team with the sixth-best rate in the nation, making 46.6 percent from deep.

Helping Out
Cydni Matsuoka ranks 12^th in D-III in assist-turnover ratio, handing out 2.42 assists per turnover.

High Scoring
Vassar is just five points of breaking the single-season team record for most points in a season, currently sitting with 1,887 tallies on the year.

Awesome AP
Junior Allyson Pemberton (Weston, MA/Weston) is averaging over seven points a game and was named Liberty League Tournament MOP and Player of the Week over the last three days. Not bad for a player that came into the season averaging 2.4 points per game over her previous two seasons.

Clutch From The Line
This year, in the final five minutes of games, Vassar has made 81.8 percent from the line. More impressively, the starting five for the last 18 games has made 105 of its 122 (86.1 percent) at the end of games.

Everyone On Board
This year, the Brewers have posted nine games where all players dressed for the game have scored at least two points.

Comeback Kids
This year, the Brewers have trailed in each of their last seven games, but have rallied to earn wins in six of those, overcoming double-digit deficits twice.

Bench Benefit
Coming into Friday games, the Brewers are 18-2 when getting double-digits from its bench.

2013-14 Records From Another Look (Out of):
Home: 13-1 (14)
Road: 9-2 (11)
Neutral: 0-2 (2)
Leading Scorer 20 or less:  11-3 (14)
Leading Scorer 21 or more: 11-2 (13)
Leading Rebounder 10 or less:  10-4 (14)
Leading Scorer 11 or more: 12-1 (13)
Against Teams A-K: 6-2 (8)
Against Teams L-Z: 16-3 (19)
Against Connecticut Teams: 1-0 (1)
Against Massachusetts Teams: 1-1 (2)
Against Pennsylvania Teams: 0-1 (1)
Against NY Teams: 19-3 (22)
Against NJ Teams: 1-0 (1)