WBB: Hofstra Opens CAA Championship In Quarterfinals Versus Northeastern

Hempstead, N.Y. – Hofstra will start the Colonial Athletic Association Championship with a Thursday quarterfinal matchup against Northeastern at 7:30 p.m. from the Show Place Arena in Upper Marlboro, Maryland.

The Pride earned the third seed by posting a 22-7 overall record and a 13-5 mark in CAA play. Hofstra will face a sixth-seeded Northeastern squad that went 14-15 and 9-9. Free live video will be available through the Pride Productions portal courtesy of CAA.TV. Fans can also access free live audio through the portal as well as listen on terrestrial radio in the local area on WRHU (88.7 FM) starting with a 7 p.m. pregame show.

Fans can purchase tickets to the CAA Championship by visiting HofstraTickets.com, calling (516) HOF-TIXX or visiting the Hofstra Athletics Box Office in the Mack Sports Complex. The CAA Championship will start with two first round games on Wednesday, four quarterfinal games on Thursday, two semifinal games on Friday and the CAA title game on Saturday at 4 p.m.

Hofstra earned the third seed in the CAA Championship for the second consecutive season and just the third time overall to match the team's high-ever finish in the league. Head Coach Krista Kilburn-Steveskey's team has already posted back-to-back 20-win seasons for the first time in the program's Division I era.

The teams will be playing for the second consecutive game after Hofstra won at Northeastern, 71-64, in the regular season finale on March 2. The outcome helped secure the sixth seed for Northeastern, which will be playing Hofstra in the CAA Championship for the first time since 2013 when the teams also squared off in the quarterfinals.

Deja vu from 2013 marks this matchup. In that season, Hofstra played Northeastern on the road for the final regular season game before a rematch the following week in the conference tournament. Hofstra lost the regular season game but came away with a 57-52 victory en route to a semifinal appearance.

Senior guard Jakelle King-Gilchrist set a season high with 18 points in the win over Northeastern as one of four Hofstra players to finish in double figures. Junior guard Krystal Luciano scored 15 points on five three-pointers. Jess Genco's 17 points and 12 assists paced Northeastern, which built a 16-point first-half lead before Hofstra came back.

Hofstra is 20-18 in the all-times series and the recent history has swung momentum in the Pride's favor. Hofstra has won seven in a row dating to the 2012-13 season, including a victory in the first matchup between the team's on Jan. 22 and in the regular season finale.

Sophomore forward Ashunae Durant is one of just three Hofstra players to start every game this season, joining Luciano and senior guard Darius Faulk. Durant is nearly averaging a double-double with 11.4 points and 9.3 rebounds while shooting 46.5 percent from the field. Junior forward Anjie White is the only player on the team to have a better shooting percentage among players who have logged at least 400 minutes in shooting 47.7 percent in averaging 8.4 points.

Faulk is averaging 8.3 points and 5.1 assists with 4.5 rebounds to give the Pride an all-around threat from the point guard spot. She is also posting 1.9 steals-per-contest. Her defensive ability helped generate 16 Northeastern turnovers last week.

Hofstra has held 20 teams to less than 40 percent shooting this season, including 14 of the last 16 games. The Pride tied a program record for CAA wins by notching 13, matching the 2006-07 squad for the most since joining the conference in 2001-02.

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Players Mentioned

#2 Ashunae Durant: F; 5' 10"; Sophomore

#12 Darius Faulk: G; 5' 8"; Senior

#21 Jakelle King-Gilchrist: G; 5' 9"; Senior

#11 Krystal Luciano: G; 5' 5"; Junior

#20 Anjie White: F; 6' 2"; Redshirt Junior

Players Mentioned

#2 Ashunae Durant
: 5' 10"; Sophomore
: F

#12 Darius Faulk
: 5' 8"; Senior
: G

#21 Jakelle King-Gilchrist
: 5' 9"; Senior
: G

#11 Krystal Luciano
: 5' 5"; Junior
: G

#20 Anjie White
: 6' 2"; Redshirt Junior
: F

Hofstra University Athletics

Players Mentioned

Players Mentioned