HICKORY, N.C. - Head coach
Emry Tsitouris and the Lenoir-Rhyne (24-5, 20-2 SAC) women's basketball team have qualified for the eighth NCAA Tournament in program history, earning the #2 seed in the Southeast Region. The Bears will face #7 seed Augusta on Friday in the opening round.
The entire NCAA Southeast Regional will be hosted in Harrogate, Tennessee, on the campus of #1 seed Lincoln Memorial University. The four quarterfinals will take place on Friday, the two semi-finals on Saturday, and the Southeast Region championship on Monday night.
The Augusta Jaguars currently sport a 21-9 (13-7 PBC) record and won their first conference tournament championship in 33 years with a 61-56 victory over Georgia College earlier today. These teams have faced off just five times in their history. Their last matchup was a 72-63 Augusta victory on November 22, 2002.
Quarterfinal matchups:
#1 Lincoln Memorial (25-4) vs. #8 Lees-McRae (23-7)
#2 Lenoir-Rhyne (24-5) vs. #7 Augusta (21-9)
#3 Coker (25-6) vs. #6 Francis Marion (19-10)
#4 Columbus State (25-4) vs. #5 Carson-Newman (21-10)
Lenoir-Rhyne Fast Facts
- First South Atlantic Conference regular season championship in since 2013-14 and fifth overall.
- First year head coach Emry Tsitouris SAC Coach of the Year.
- Aaliyah El and Abigail Brown named All-SAC First Team, Elyseia Brown All-SAC Third Team.
- Abigail Brown named SAC Freshman of the Year, Ralee Bare named to All-Freshman Team.
- School-record 19-game win streak.
- Team ranks second in the country with an average of 86.6 points per game.
- 2,511 total points set a new program record.
- Aaliyah El ranks 14th nationally in free throws made while Amiya Porter is 18th in assist/turnover ratio.
The Southeast Region automatic qualifiers come from the winners of the South Atlantic, Conference Carolinas, and Peach Belt Conference tournaments. The other five teams are chosen as at-large entries from those three conferences.
More info on tickets, game times, live stats, and other media will be released later this week.
