Feb. 15, 2002
Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Two of the top defensive teams in the BIG EAST Conference will sqaure off when No. 23 Notre Dame visits Rutgers on Saturday at 8 p.m. (EST) at the Louis Brown Athletic Center in Piscataway, N.J. The Irish come into the contest ranked 14th in the nation in scoring defense (56.0 ppg.) and will be seeking a measure of revenge for a 54-53 road loss to the Scarlet Knights last season, one of only two setbacks Notre Dame suffered on the road to its first national championship.
The Irish (16-7, 10-2 BIG EAST) are riding a season-long six-game winning streak entering Saturday’s matchup, having dismissed St. John’s, 66-31 on Wednesday night at the Joyce Center. Senior guard/forward Ericka Haney and junior guard Alicia Ratay each scored 14 points to pace Notre Dame to its 50th consecutive home victory, extending the nation’s longest active home winning streak and the 10th-longest string in NCAA history.
Like the Irish, Rutgers (7-16, 4-8) has an extremely youthful team with five freshmen and two sophomores in the fold, and has had its share of struggles this season. Still, the Scarlet Knights are a dangerous outfit, as evidenced by their 53-48 win over Virginia and 50-46 loss to No. 2 Stanford earlier this season.
RU is coming off a 61-51 loss at Seton Hall Wednesday night. Nikki Jett and Dawn McCullouch scored 17 points apiece to lead the Scarlet Knights, who lost their fourth consecutive game and fifth in the last six outings.
Mauri Horton leads Rutgers in scoring at 12.0 ppg., with McCullouch right behind her at 11.7 rpg. Davalyn Cunningham averages a team-high 7.4 rebounds per game for the Scarlet Knights.
Hall of Fame coach C. Vivian Stringer is in her 30th season at the college level (651-215) and her seventh year at Rutgers (131-80). She is 5-7 in her coaching career against Notre Dame.
– ND –