Notre Dame Fighting Irish - Official Athletics Website

Irish Play Host To Seton Hall

Jan. 10, 2000

TONIGHT’S GAME — Notre Dame looks for its 15th consecutive home win this evening, as the Irish (11-2, 2-0) play host to the Seton Hall Pirates (6-6, 0-2). Coach Muffet McGraw’s squad has won seven straight since losing to Purdue on December 8. A victory at the Joyce Center tonight would tie the school record for consecutive home victories set on two other occasions. Coach Muffet McGraw’s squad has not lost a home game since December 8, 1998. The Irish, with a win tonight, will have a chance to break the home win-streak mark in its next outing when they entertain the Orangewomen on Saturday, January 15 at 2:00 p.m.

Notre Dame is coming off an 82-60 victory at Georgetown for its second BIG EAST win of the 1999-2000 campaign. The Pirates have dropped two straight of late, suffering back-to-back losses to George Washington and Rutgers.

Notre Dame is 7-2 all-time against Seton Hall and has won the last seven meetings between the two schools. The Irish are 3-0 against the Pirates at the Joyce Center. Seton Hall’s lone win at the Joyce Center was in the first-ever meeting between the two schools (62-55 on December 11, 1993).

Notre Dame is ranked in the top 10 of both polls for the second straight week as the Irish moved up two spots in both rankings. McGraw’s team is eighth in the AP and sixth in the ESPN/USA Today polls. The Irish have been ranked in the top 10 of the AP poll 22 of the past 25 weeks, including a school-record 19 consecutive weeks from November 16, 1998 thru November 29, 1999. Notre Dame has been in the top 10 of the ESPN/USA Today poll for 25 straight weeks.

Seton Hall (6-6, 0-2) at
No. 8/6 Notre Dame (11-2, 2-0)

Date: Tuesday, January 11, 2000
Place: Joyce Center (11,418)
Time: 7:00 p.m. (EST)
Radio: All Notre Dame games are broadcast on WJVA-AM (1580 in South Bend). Jeremy Gray provides play-by-play for games.

Notre Dame Probable Starting Lineup

No. Name                Hometown        Pos.  Ht.  Cl.  PPG  RPG50  Kelley Siemon**     Edina, MN         F   6-2  Jr.  5.8  3.800  Ruth Riley**        Macy, IN          C   6-5  Jr. 15.2  6.812  Danielle Green***   Chicago, IL       G   5-8  Sr. 10.7  3.022  Alicia Ratay        Lake Zurich, IL   G   5-11 Fr. 15.8  5.033  Niele Ivey**        St. Louis, MO     G   5-8  Sr. 11.0  3.7

Off The Bench

 3  Ericka Haney        Toledo, OH      G/F   6-1  So.  8.0  4.511  Karen Swanson       Westlake, OH      G   5-7  Fr.  0.8  0.423  Monique Hernandez   Rio Rancho, NM    G   5-9  Fr.  2.8  1.431  Amanda Barksdale    Friendswood, TX   F   6-3  Fr.  0.6  1.132  Julie Henderson***  Ann Arbor, MI   F/C   6-3  Sr.  4.5  4.141  Imani Dunbar**      San Angelo, TX    G   5-7  Jr.  1.3  2.044  Meaghan Leahy*      Wilbraham, MA  F 6-4 So. 3.5 3.2

* – Indicates monograms won

GEORGETOWN REVIEW – Alicia Ratay and Ruth Riley combined for 41 of Notre Dame’s 82 points in leading the Irish to an 82-60 BIG EAST road win at Georgetown. Ratay topped the 20-point mark for the third time this season as she scored 23 points. The Irish rookie was eight-of-14 from the field and finished with four three-pointers in the contest. Riley recorded her first double-double of the season as she finished with 18 points and 13 rebounds. Riley made four field goals in the game and was a perfect 10-for-10 from the free throw line. Danielle Green was the only other Irish player in double as she scored 12 points. It marked the sixth straight double figure outing for the senior guard.

Notre Dame shot 49.1 percent from the field and owned a 47-35 rebounding advantage. Coach Muffet McGraw’s squad also went to the free throw line 31 times, converting on 24 of those attempts.

The Irish defense held the Hoyas to just 32.3 accuracy. Georgetown went to the charity stripe 29 times in the game and hit 19 of its attempts.

The 22-point differential marked the third time in three games that the Irish beat an opponent by 20-plus points.

RATAY CLAIMS THIRD ROOKIE OF THE WEEK HONOR – For the third time this season, Irish rookie Alicia Ratay claimed BIG EAST rookie-of-the-week as she shared the honor with Brookie Stewart of Pittsburgh. The only three-time honoree thus far in 1999-2000, she averaged 17.5 points and 5.5 rebounds in wins over West Virginia and Georgetown last week. Ratay shot 57.1 percent from the field in the two wins as she hit 12 of her 21 field goal attempts.

RILEY HAS HIGH SCHOOL NUMBER RETIRED – Notre Dame junior Ruth Riley had her high school number ?25? retired at North Miami High School (Indiana) on Thursday night (January 6). The Macy, Ind., native was a standout in three sports – basketball, volleyball and track. She is the first such athlete from her high school to have her number retired.

IRISH TOUGH AT HOME AGAINST BIG EAST FOES – Notre Dame has compiled a 35-3 (.921) record against BIG EAST opponents at the Joyce Center since joining the league in 1995-96. All three of those losses have been to Connecticut. Notre Dame was a perfect 9-0 at the Joyce Center in league action during the 1996-97 campaign.

HELPING PUT THE BIG IN THE BIG EAST – During its four seasons as a member of the BIG EAST Conference, Notre Dame has proven to be one of the league’s most dominant teams. The Irish have a 61-13 record (82.4 percent) in regular season games and an 8-4 mark (66.7 percent) in BIG EAST tournament action for an overall record of 69-17 (80.2 percent) against league opponents. Of Notre Dame’s 17 league losses, 10 have come against Connecticut. The Irish have lost to four other teams in the BIG EAST – Rutgers (three times), Boston College (twice), Villanova and Miami. All of the losses to those teams have come on the road.

RILEY STREAK SNAPPED – Ruth Riley failed to reach double figures for just the second time this season in scoring nine points against West Virginia last Wednesday night (January 5). After being held scoreless for the first time in her career (64 games) in the season opener against Toledo, Riley came back to score in double figures in 10 consecutive games. She has scored 20-plus points twice this season as she netted a season-high 32 points against Liberty on December 5 which marked the third 30-point performance of her career. Riley also had 20 points in a win over Florida International at the Orange Bowl Women’s Basketball Fab Four. She is second in the Irish scoring column with a 15.2 points per game average and has led the Irish in scoring in four games in 1999-2000. Riley has scored in double figures in 57 of 76 career games.

A DAILY DOUBLE FOR RUTH – Ruth Riley led Notre Dame and the BIG EAST Conference with 12 double-doubles last season. Saturday’s 18 points and 13 rebounds against Georgetown marked her first double-double of the season and the 22nd of her career. She has grabbed 10 or more rebounds 23 times in her career.

FRESHMAN FOLLIES – Freshman guard Alicia Ratay leads the team in scoring as she is averaging 15.8 points per game. Ratay, a two-time BIG EAST rookie-of-the-week honoree, has topped the 20-point mark three times this season, including a 32-point performance against North Carolina which marked just the second 30-point performance by an Irish rookie in the 22-year history of the program. Ratay led Notre Dame in scoring for the seventh time this season against Georgetown as she scored a game-high 23 points in the Irish win over the Hoyas.

IRISH CAPTURE WACHOVIA WOMEN’S INVITATIONAL – Notre Dame captured the Wachovia Women’s Invitational Tournament in Richmond, Va., as the Irish beat North Carolina and Liberty in the seventh annual event. The tournament is recognized as one of the most prestigious in-season events.

Junior center Ruth Riley was named MVP of the tournament in addition to being selected along with freshman Alicia Ratay to the all-tournament team. Riley scored 32 points (the third 30-point performance of her career) against Liberty in the championship game as she connected on 12-of-14 shots from the field and was a perfect eight-for-eight from the free throw line. In addition, she had seven rebounds and two blocked shots in 29 minutes of action. Against North Carolina, she registered 12 points, seven rebounds and four blocked shots in 28 minutes. For the tournament she averaged 22.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 3.0 blocked shots. Riley also was 17-of-22 (.773) from the field and a perfect 10-for-10 from the charity stripe.

Ratay had the first 30-point performance of her career, and second-ever by a Notre Dame freshman, when she tossed in 32 points on a 12-for-15 shooting performance against North Carolina. The Irish rookie also hit six-of-eight from three-point range. In the championship tilt, she was the only other Notre Dame player in double figures as she netted 17 points, grabbed four rebounds and dished off five assists playing a season-high 36 minutes. For the tournament, she averaged 24.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.5 steals. Ratay shot 18-of-25 (.720) percent from the field and was seven-for-11 (.636) from three-point range.

POLL WATCHING- Notre Dame is ranked sixth in both the Associated Press and ESPN/USA Today rankings this week. The number six ranking ties the all-time high for Irish in the regular season in both polls. Notre Dame has been ranked in the top 10 of the AP poll 23 of the last 26 weeks over the past two seasons. The Irish slipped out of the top 10 (after a school-record 19 consecutive weeks there) on November 29, 1999, prior to that, Notre Dame had held a spot in the top 10 of every poll dating back to November 16, 1998. Coach Muffet McGraw’s squad has now been ranked 26 consecutive weeks in the top 10 of the ESPN/USA Today ranking. Notre Dame has earned a top 25 ranking for a school-record 29 consecutive weeks, breaking the old mark of 24 weeks set from February 5, 1996 thru March 10, 1997.

HEAD COACH MUFFET McGRAW – Notre Dame head coach Muffet McGraw is in her 13th season with the Irish and 17th as a collegiate coach. She has guided Notre Dame to four straight NCAA tournament appearances and six overall. McGraw led the Irish to the 1997 Final Four as her team claimed the East Regional championship. In 1998, McGraw’s squad finished with a 22-10 mark and advanced to the Sweet 16. In 12-plus seasons at Notre Dame, she has a record of 272-112 (.708), and in 17-plus campaigns overall, her teams have registered a 360-153 (.702) ledger. Prior to coming to Notre Dame, she spent five seasons at Lehigh where she compiled an 88-41 record for a .683 winning percentage. Last season, McGraw, after guiding the Irish to their sixth consecutive 20-win season, was named as a finalist for the Naismith Women’s Basketball and Associated Press coach-of-the-year awards.

PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER MAGAZINE TO FOLLOW IRISH ALL SEASON – Annette John-Hall, a feature writer for the Philadelphia Inquirer will be following head coach Muffet McGraw, a native of Pottsville, Pa., and the Irish all season long and feature them in the magazine section of that publication. She will file stories throughout the season on McGraw and her squad. Hall has already written three features thus far with the fourth installment scheduled for sometime in January.

IRISH GET 200TH WIN AT JOYCE CENTER – Notre Dame earned its 200th win at the Joyce Center a week ago against Valparaiso on December 29. Since its inaugural season in 1977-78, the Irish own a 202-65 mark for a .757 winning percentage. Notre Dame has won 14 straight at home, a streak that started last season. The last time the Irish lost at home was on December 8, 1998. Notre Dame has won a school-record 15 straight on two occasions – January 2, 1995-January 10, 1996 and December 10, 1997-December 2, 1998. Both times Connecticut stopped the Irish home win streaks.

HOME SWEET HOME – Since its inaugural season in 1977-78, Notre Dame has played all of its games at the Joyce Center. The Irish own a 202-65 mark for a .757 winning percentage since that first season. Currently, the Irish are 6-0 at home and have won 14 straight home games dating back to the 1998-99 campaign. Last season, Notre Dame won a school-record 12 games at home en route to a 12-1 home mark. During the last four-plus seasons, Coach Muffet McGraw’s squad is 52-4 (.929) at the Joyce Center.

SERIES RECORD VERSUS SETON HALL – Notre Dame is 7-2 against the Pirates all-time. Seton Hall was victorious against the Irish in the first two meetings between the two schools, but since a 60-55 overtime victory by Pirates on November 26, 1994, the Irish have won seven striaght. There have been two overtime games played in the series. Seton Hall is 1-3 at the Joyce Center.

RILEY REACHES 1,000-POINT – Junior center Ruth Riley became the 15th player in Notre Dame women’s basketball history to reach the 1,000-point plateau this season. Riley reached the mark in the first half of Notre Dame’s win over Florida International on December 19. The 6-5 Macy, Ind., native has 1,079 career points in 76 career games for a 14.2 career scoring average. Currently, Riley is 13th on the Irish career scoring list.

IRONWOMAN – Against Georgetown, Ruth Riley made her 70th consecutive start in an Irish uniform. The Irish junior has played in all 76 games throughout her career. Her first career start came seven games into her freshman season during the 1997-98 campaign and was against Wisconsin on the road in Madison, Wis., on December 8, 1997.

HOME SWEET HOME – Since its inaugural season in 1977-78, Notre Dame has played all of its games at the Joyce Center. The Irish own a 202-65 mark for a .757 winning percentage since that first season. Currently, the Irish are 6-0 at home and have won 14 straight home games dating back to the 1998-99 campaign. Last season, Notre Dame won a school-record 12 games at home en route to a 12-1 home mark. During the last four-plus seasons, Coach Muffet McGraw’s squad is 52-4 (.929) at the Joyce Center.

A PERFECT 10 – Ruth Riley, who has made 39 of her 46 free throw attempts this season (.848), was a perfect 10-for-10 from the charity stripe against Georgetown. It marked a personal best for the Irish junior who earlier in the season hit eight-of-eight from the line against Liberty en route to a 32-point performance.

GREEN PROVIDES A SPARK OFF BENCH – Senior guard Danielle Green has been a spark for the Irish off the bench as she has scored in double figures in Notre Dame’s last six outings. Green has started two of the 10 games she has played. Her most recent starting assignment was against Georgetown on Saturday. In her second start of the season, she responded with 12 points. Her current string of six straight games in double figures is the most by an Irish player. Green had 15 points and five rebounds in Notre Dame’s win over Marquette on January 2 and scored 10 points in last Wednesday night’s win over West Virginia. The 15 points were one shy of the season-high 16 she scored in the season opener at Toledo. Green has scored in double figures in seven of the 10 games she has played and is averaging 10.7 points per game (fourth best on the team). In addition to Georgetown, her other start of the season came against Illinois.

DOUBLE DIPPER – Guard Niele Ivey had her third double-double of the season when she scored a season-high 19 points and dished off 12 assists in Notre Dame’s win over Marquette on January 2. It marked the seventh double-double of her career and the seventh time in which she has dished off 10 or more assists in a game. Her other double-doubles this season have come against North Carolina (17 points, 13 assists) and Michigan State (14 points, 11 assists). Ivey leads the team in assists with 90 for a 6.9 average.

IVEY SHINES AGAINST VALPARAISO – Guard Niele Ivey had one of her best games of the season against Valparaiso on December 29 as she scored 13 points, dished off eight assists and tied her personal best with seven steals in the game. In 29 minutes of action, Ivey had just one turnover in the game. She is averaging 3.33 turnovers per game.

AN IRISH SPARK – Junior forward Meaghan Leahy provided a spark off the Irish bench in Notre Dame’s win over Georgetown as she tied her career-high with nine points in addition to grabbing four rebounds in 18 minutes of action. Her nine-point performance was the second of the season. Leahy also scored nine points and grabbed a personal best nine rebounds in Notre Dame win over Butler on December 1.

RILEY NOTCHES THIRD 30-POINT PERFORMANCE – Ruth Riley’s 32-point performance in the championship game of the Wachovia Women’s Invitational marked the third time in her career that she scored better than 30 points in a game. Riley had two 30-plus efforts last season, both against Providence College, as she scored 36 and a school-record 41.

A ROOKIE RARITY – Alicia Ratay’s 32-point performance against North Carolina was the first 30-point outing of her brief career and marked just the second time an Irish freshman has scored better than 30 points in a game. The only other Notre Dame rookie to record a 30-point performance was Michelle Marciniak as she scored 33 versus Georgia in a 90-86 loss on December 8, 1991.

RILEY NAMED FINALIST FOR NAISMITH PLAYER OF THE YEAR – On everyone’s preseason All-America teams, Ruth Riley, a third-team Associated Press All-America selection in 1999, is one of 10 finalists for the 1999-2000 Naismith Women’s Basketball Player of the Year Award which is presented by the Atlanta Tip-off Club. Riley and the nine other candidates were selected by a vote of the Board of Selectors comprised of leading college basketball coaches, journalists and basketball analysts. She is the first Notre Dame women’s basketball player to be named a finalist for the award, which was first presented in 1983. The nine other finalists include: Svetlana Abrosimova (Connecticut), Edwina Brown (Texas), Tamika Catchings (Tennessee), Tamicha Jackson (Louisiana Tech), Maylana Martin (UCLA), Kelly Miller (Georgia), Lynn Pride (Kansas), Semeka Randall (Tennessee) and Nikki Teasley (North Carolina).

RILEY RECORDS 500 REBOUNDS – Ruth Riley grabbed her 500th career rebound against Butler on December 1 and is 10th on the all-time career rebounding list with 582 boards. In 76 career games, Riley has a 7.6 rebounding average.

NON-CONFERENCE LOSSES A RARITY – Notre Dame’s loss to Purdue marked just the second loss the Irish had suffered to a non-conference opponent during the regular season in two seasons. The Irish were a perfect 8-0 against non-conference foes during the 1998-99 regular season. When Notre Dame lost to Illinois on November 27, it marked the first regular season loss to a non-conference opponent in 12 games. Heading into its matchup with the Illini, Notre Dame’s last non-conference regular-season loss was to Wisconsin (89-77) on December 8, 1997.

NOTRE DAME TO TAKE ON 10 NCAA TOURNAMENT FOES THIS SEASON – The 1999-2000 Notre Dame women’s basketball slate features 10 teams which last season participated in the 64-team 1999 NCAA tournament field. Notre Dame has already played Toledo, Illinois, North Carolina, Liberty, Purdue and Florida International with four other tourney teams on the slate: Boston College (Feb. 5), Connecticut (Feb. 26), Marquette (Jan. 2), Rutgers (Feb. 19).

BIG EAST DEBUTS 16-GAME SLATE – The BIG EAST Conference will begin its 16-game league schedule this season. That’s a change from the 18-game format which had been in existence since the league expanded to 13 teams in 1995-96. In 1999-2000, Notre Dame will play Georgetown, Pittsburgh, Miami and St. John’s twice and has single games against West Virginia, Seton Hall, Syracuse, Providence, Villanova, Rutgers and Connecticut.

RATAY NETS 18 IN DEBUT – Freshman guard Alicia Ratay, a first-team Parade High School All-American, scored 18 points in her collegiate debut. It was the most by an Irish rookie in her first college game since Michelle Marciniak scored 16 points in an 86-70 loss to Penn State on November 22, 1991. Ratay’s five field goals were all from three-point range as she hit five-of-eight field goals from beyond the arc.

RILEY HELPS USA WOMEN’S BASKETBALL CAPTURE SILVER MEDAL – Ruth Riley was one of 12 players selected to the 1999 World University Games Team. She and 1999 graduate Sheila McMillen (now an assistant coach at Western Michigan) were among the 44 players invited to Colorado Springs, Colo., for the five-day tryout. The team, coached by Penn State’s Rene Portland, took home the silver medal after posting a 4-2 mark in Palma de Mallorca, Spain, site of the basketball competition. Riley appeared in all nine games with the USA and started five of those contests and was the team’s third-leading scorer and second-leading rebounder as she averaged 9.3 points and 5.2 rebounds, with a .630 field-goal percentage. At a tournament in Madrid Spain prior to the start of the World University Games, the USA Women’s Basketball squad posted a 3-0 mark and captured first-place. During those three games, she averaged 7.3 points and 5.3 rebounds. This was Riley’s second stint with the USA Women’s basketball program. In the summer of 1998, she was a member of the USA Women’s Basketball Select Team.

SIEMON TOURS WITH BIG EAST TEAM – Junior Kelley Siemon averaged 6.6 points and 4.6 rebounds in helping the BIG EAST/Nike Women’s Basketball All-Stars to a 4-1 record in a ’99 summer tour of Belgium and Germany. Siemon scored 14 points in the win over Aalst (Division) and had seven points and eight rebounds in a win over the Belgian Junior National Team. The team was coached by Boston College’s Cathy Inglese.

THERE’S A NEW KID ON THE BLOCK – Coquese Washington, who played for Notre Dame from 1989-93, has joined head coach Muffet McGraw’s coaching staff this season as an assistant coach. She replaces Letitia Bowen who has become the administrative assistant to the women’s basketball program while attending graduate school. Washington, the Notre Dame record holder for steals (307) and steals average (2.7), has played professionally the last three years. During the summers of 1998 and 1999, she has been a member of the Women’s National Basketball Association’s (WNBA) New York Liberty. This past season, her Liberty advanced to the finals of the WNBA Championship. The 5-6 guard, who led the Irish in steals all four seasons she was at Notre Dame, spent the 1996-97 season on the roster of the Portland Power franchise of the now defunct American Basketball League (ABL).

IRISH SIGN TWO – Notre Dame signed two players listed among the top 40 prep players in the country during the early signing period. Jeneka Joyce, a 5-9 shooting guard from Topeka, Kan., and Le’Tania Severe, a 5-9 point guard from Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., were rated 26th and 40th, respectively, by Blue Star Basketball.

PRESEASON HONORS FOR RILEY – The name Ruth Riley appears on preseason All-America teams of several publications. Notre Dame also is ranked in the polls of every preseason publication.

Street & Smith’s: Ruth Riley – High Honorable, Notre Dame Mention, Notre Dame – 7th
Athlon College Basketball: Notre Dame – 8th
Basketball News: Notre Dame – 8th
Women’s Basketball News Service: Ruth Riley – Second Team, Alicia Ratay – All- Freshman Third Team, Notre Dame – 9th
Women’s Basketball Journal: Ruth Riley – Second Team, Notre Dame – 25th

QUICK PLAYER BIOS:

  • Amanda Barksdale has seen action in all 13 contests … she scored her first career points against Michigan State when she made two of her three field goal attempts for four points … had two points and a career-high three rebounds against Valparaiso … has 11 blocked shots on the season.
  • Imani Dunbar earned starts against Butler, North Carolina, Liberty, Purdue and Marquette and has played in all 13 games … earned first career start versus the Bulldogs … played a career-high 23 minutes against USC and registered personal bests of eight assists, five rebounds and three steals … second on the team in assists with 37.
  • Danielle Green has scored in double figures in Notre Dame’s last six games (the most consecutive double figure scoring games of any Irish player) … has been a spark for the Irish off the bench this season … has started two of the 10 games she has played and earned a start in Notre Dame’s most recent outing against Georgetown … scored a season-high 16 points and grabbed seven rebounds coming off the bench in the season opener at Toledo … netted 15 points and grabbed five rebounds versus Marquette … grabbed a season-high eight rebounds against Valparaiso … missed three games (Butler, North Carolina and Liberty) due to a disciplinary suspension … averaging 10.7 points and 3.0 rebounds.
  • Ericka Haney has started eight games this season and has played in all 13 contests … first career start came against Toledo in the season opener … has scored in double figures in five games … recorded first career double-double with personal bests of 18 points and 14 rebounds against North Carolina … tallied a season-high 11 points against Butler and also added five rebounds and three assists in the game … grabbed six rebounds in the Valparaiso game … scored 10 points in her first collegiate start in the season opener at Toledo … averaging 8.0 points and 4.5 rebounds.
  • Julie Henderson has been in the Irish starting lineup in nine of Notre Dame’s last 11 games … has started all but four games this season after coming off the bench in the first two contests of the season … has had season-highs of six points in four games this season versus North Carolina, Liberty, Michigan State and USC … grabbed a season-high eight rebounds against Purdue, one shy of her career best … had four rebounds against the Tar Heels, five versus Florida International and six versus the Spartans and Women of Troy … grabbed five rebounds versus Valparaiso … averaging 4.5 points and 4.1 rebounds.
  • Monique Hernandez played in the first seven games of the season and has seen action in 12 contests … scored a career-high six points against West Virginia … had five points, four rebounds and two assists against Valparaiso … played a season-high 15 minutes in both the Butler and North Carolina contests … scored four points and grabbed four rebounds against Butler … also netted four points in win over Marquette.
  • Niele Ivey started the first 11 games of the season, but was not in the starting lineup against Marquette … is averaging 11.0 points, 3.7 rebounds and 6.9 assists … has registered three double-doubles, most recent was against Marquette as she netted a season-high 19 points and dished off 12 assists (the seventh double-double of her career) … had first double-double of the season against North Carolina as she scored a then season-high 17 points and dished off a career-best 13 assists versus North Carolina in the Wachovia Women’s Invitational Tournament … the 13 assists in the game also marked a tournament record … has scored in double figures in five games this season … had 14 points and 11 assists in win over Michigan State … had solid all-around game against Valparaiso as she scored 13 points, dished off eight assists and made seven steals, tying her career-high, while playing 29 minutes and committing just one turnover … dished off nine assists and had two turnovers in 31 minutes versus Georgetwon.
  • Meaghan Leahy has come off the bench for the Irish in all 13 games … ?averaging 3.5 points and 3.2 rebounds … tied her personal best of nine points against Georgetown … had career-highs of nine points and nine rebounds rebounds while playing 24 minutes (also a career-high) against Butler … scored seven points and grabbed seven rebounds in 18 minutes of action against Illinois … grabbed five rebounds against Michigan State and dished off a career-high four assists.
  • Alicia Ratay leads the team in scoring as she is averaging 15.8 points per game … also averaging 5.0 rebounds … named game MVP at the Orange Bowl Women’s Basketball Four Four against Florida International … scored 27 points, grabbed five rebounds and made five steals (personal best) in the contest while playing a season-high 39 minutes against the Panthers … turned in only the second 30-point performance by an Irish rookie when she scored 32 points against North Carolina … has scored in double figures in nine games and has been the team’s leading scorer in seven of those contests … in her collegiate debut, scored a game-high 18 points and grabbed seven rebounds in 33 minutes of action … it was the most points by an Irish rookie in a season opener since 1991 … tallied 16 points and dished off seven assists against Butler … scored 19 points against USC as she hit six-of-10 shots from the field (4-5 from three-point range) … has twice earned BIG EAST Rookie of the Week for the week of December 6 and was selected to the all-tournament team at the Wachovia Women’s Invitational Tournament … has had a career-high seven rebounds in three games (Toledo, Butler and Marquette) … had the third 20-plus point performance of her career when she scored 23 points against Georgetown.
  • Ruth Riley has been in double figures scoring in 11 of 13 games … was plagued by foul trouble in the first two games of the season and played only 28 minutes in those outings … recorded her first double-double of the season and 22nd of her career when she scored 18 points and grabbed 13 rebounds against Georgetown … had the third 30-plus outing of her career when she scored 32 points against Liberty in the championship game of the Wachovia Women’s Basketball Invitational … second on the team in scoring as she is averaging 15.2 ppg. … tops the rebounding list with 89 (6.8 per game) … scored her 1,000th career point against Florida International and finished with 20 for the game on nine-for-11 shooting from the field … grabbed her 500th rebound against Butler … had a season-high nine rebounds against Florida International … hauled in eight rebounds versus Purdue … blocked a season-high seven shots versus Butler … was the only player in double figures against Illinois with 16 points in 18 minutes of action … played only 10 minutes in the season opener at Toledo because of foul trouble … held scoreless in the contest for the first time in 64 career games … scored 18 points and blocked six shots versus Michigan State … had 15 points and eight rebounds against Valparaiso … scored 18 points and tied her season-high with nine rebounds against Marquette … one of just two players who has started all 12 games.
  • Kelley Siemon has been in starter in three of the 13 games she has played … started the season opener at Toledo and also earned start against Marquette … scored four points and grabbed four rebounds in the game … scored a season-high 12 points and grabbed five rebounds against North Carolina … had a season-high seven rebounds against Toledo … scored eight points and grabbed six rebounds versus West Virginia … scored nine points and grabbed five rebounds in earning start against Georgetown … averaging 5.8 points and 3.9 rebounds.
  • Karen Swanson is a walk-on freshman who has played in 10 games … tallied her first career basket against USC … registered her first career three-pointer against Vaparaiso.

ASSOCIATED PRESS
(Week of Jan. 10)

                          LW 1. Connecticut            1 2. Tennessee              2 3. North Carolina State   3 4. Louisiana Tech         4  5. Penn State             6 6. NOTRE DAME             8 7. Georgia                7 8. Iowa State            10 9. Rutgers               1110. Auburn                 511. Duke                  1412. Illinois              1513. Tulane                1914. UCLA                  1715. North Carolina         916. Texas Tech            1317. LSU                   1618. Purdue                1219. Santa Barbara         2220. Arizona               1821. Kansas                2322. Old Dominion          2123. Oregon                2424  Mississippi St.       2025. Boston College        25

ESPN/USA TODAY
(Week of Jan. 10)

                          LW 1. Connecticut            1 2. Tennessee              2 3. North Carolina State   4 4. Louisiana Tech         4 5. Penn State             5 6. NOTRE DAME             6 7. Georgia                7 8. Duke                  10 9. Iowa State            1110. Auburn                 811. Rutgers               1412. North Carolina         913. Illinois              1614  Texas Tech            1315. Tulane                2016. Purdue                1217. UCLA                  1718. Arizona               1519. LSU                   2120. Santa Barbara         2221. Old Dominion          1922. Mississippi State     1823. Kansas                2324. Oregon                2425. Boston College        25

Irish All-Time vs. 1999-2000 Opponents

Team                  RecordBoston College           4-3Butler                  19-6Connecticut             0-10Florida International    1-0Georgetown              12-1Illinois                 1-4Liberty                  2-0Marquette               21-4Miami                    7-2Michigan State           4-6North Carolina           1-0Pittsburgh               6-0Providence               6-0Purdue                   2-9Richmond                 1-0Rutgers                  5-6St. John's               7-0Seton Hall               7-2Syracuse                10-1Toledo                   3-2USC                      1-1Valparaiso              13-0Villanova                9-3West Virginia            7-0Total                 149-60 (.713)

NOTRE DAME POLL WATCHING
(Week By Week)

Date       AP ESPN/USA TodayPreseason   8      9 Nov. 15     7      9Nov. 22     6      6Nov. 29    11      8Dec. 6      7      6Dec. 13    11      7Dec. 20    12      8Dec. 27    10      8Jan. 3      8      6Jan. 10     6      6

Series Record
Notre Dame leads 7-2
Home: 3-1
Away: 3-1
Neutral: 1-0

Date     Site                  Score12-11-93 Notre Dame, IN        L 55-6211-26-94 South Orange, NJ (ot) L 55-60  1-2-96 South Orange, NJ (ot) W 88-79  3-4-96 Storrs, CT*           W 69-58    1-2-97 South Orange, NJ      W 87-47 2-22-97 Notre Dame, IN        W 75-61 1-31-98 Notre Dame, IN        W 91-35 1-20-99 South Orange, NJ      W 87-47*BIG EAST Tournament
Series Scoring Total AverageNotre Dame 684 76.0Seton Hall 498 55.3
Current Win Streak: Notre Dame, 7 gamesMcGraw vs. Seton Hall: 7-2ND Biggest Win: 56 (91-35 on 1-31-98)SH Biggest Win: 7 (62-55 on 12-11-93)ND Longest Win Streak: 7 (from 1996-99)SH Longest Win Streak: 2 (from 1993-94)

1999-2000 BIG EAST Coaches’ Preseason Poll

 1. Connecticut (10)  142 2. Rutgers (3)       135 3. NOTRE DAME        121 4. Boston College    112 5. Georgetown         90  6. Villanova          86 7. Miami              79 8. Syracuse           59 9. St. John's         4610. Pittsburgh         4411. Seton Hall         39 12. Providence         3813. West Virginia      23

Preseason All-BIG EAST First Team: Svetlana Abrosimova (Connecticut), Tasha Pointer (Rutgers), Shea Ralph (Connecticut), Ruth Riley (Notre Dame), Shawnetta Stewart (Rutgers)

Preseason All-BIG EAST Second Team: Niele Ivey (Notre Dame), Alissa Murphy (Boston College), Katie Smrcka-Duffy (Georgetown), Tammy Sutton-Brown (Rutgers), Tamika Williams (Connecticut)

BIG EAST Preseason Player of the Year: Svetlana Abrosimova (Connecticut)

BIG EASTPreseason Player of the Year: Kennitra Johnson (Connecticut)

Irish Record

By Day

On Sundays:    3-0On Mondays:    1-0On Tuesdays:   0-0On Wednesdays: 3-1On Thursdays:  0-0On Fridays:    0-0On Saturdays:  4-1

By Time

Night Games:   6-1Day Games:     5-1

By Location

Home Games:    6-0Road Games:    3-2Neutral Games: 2-0

By Halftime Score

Lead at halftime:  11-0Trail at halftime:  0-2Tied at halftime:   0-0

By Rebound Margin

Outrebounding opponents:   9-0Outrebounded by opponents: 2-1Same number of rebounds    0-1

By Field Goal Shooting

Shoot better from field:   11-1Shoot worse from field:     0-1Shoot same from field:      0-0Shoot 50% or better:        5-0Shoot less than 50%:        5-2Keep opponents under 50%:  11-2Keep opponents under 40%:  10-1

By Free Throw Margin

Hit more free throws:       5-0Hit fewer free throws:      6-2Same number of free throws: 1-0

By Turnovers

Commit fewer turnovers:          4-0Commit more turnovers:           5-2Commit same number of turnovers: 1-0

By Margin

One-point games:   0-0Two-point games:   0-0Three-point games: 0-0Four-point games:  0-05-10 point games:  1-211-20 point games: 6-021-30 point games: 4-031+point games:    0-0

By Conference

Mid-American          1-0Big Ten               1-2Midwestern Collegiate 1-0Atlantic Coast        1-0Big South             1-0Sun Belt              1-0Pac 10                1-0Mid-Continent         1-0Conference USA        1-0BIG EAST              2-0

By Month

In November  1-1In December  7-1In January   3-0In February  0-0In March     0-0

1999-2000 BIG EAST STANDINGS
(through games of Jan. 9)

              BIG EAST  Overall               Record    Record Rutgers           3-0      10-2Connecticut       2-0      12-0NOTRE DAME        2-0      11-2Boston College    2-0      13-3Pittsburgh        2-1      11-3Providence        2-1       7-5Miami             1-1       7-5Villanova         1-1       7-5Georgetown        1-2       7-6Syracuse          0-2       7-6Seton Hall        0-2       6-6St. John's        0-3       5-8West Virginia     0-3       5-8

1999-2000 BIG EAST WEEKLY AWARDS
Player of the Week:

Nov. 22 Becky Gottstein (BC)        Jen Gombotz (PC)Nov. 29 Shea Ralph (UC)Dec. 6  Ruth Riley (ND)        Swin Cash (UC)Dec. 13 Becky Gottstein (BC)        Katie Smrcka-Duffy (GU)Dec. 20 Cal Bouchard (BC)        Shawnetta Stewart (RU)Dec. 27 Shanetta Stewart (RU)        Svetlana Abrosimova (UC)Jan. 3  Becky Gottstein (BC)        Monika Roberts (PC)Jan. 10 Sue Bird (UC)

Rookie of the Week:

Nov. 22 Amanda Papuga (UM)Nov. 29 Shannon Perry (SU)        Trish Juhline (VU)Dec. 6  Alicia Ratay (ND)Dec. 13 Santia Jackson (GU)Dec. 20 Alicia Ratay (ND)Dec. 27 Kennitra Johnson (UC)Jan. 3  Mandy Wittenmyer (UP)Jan. 10 Alicia Ratay (ND)        Brooke Stewart (UP)