LEXINGTON, Va. – The ninth-ranked Washington and Lee women's basketball team is set to face No. 22 Vassar in the first round of the 2024 NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Championship on Friday at 7:30 p.m.
 
W&L & VASSAR -- HOW THEY GOT HERE:
The Generals are fresh off winning their second consecutive Old Dominion Athletic Conference championship this past Sunday and enter the weekend with an overall record of 26-2. This season's appearance in the NCAA Tournament marks the third straight for the Blue and White, and it is the first time in program history that the Generals will serve as a pod host. The Generals enter this weekend on an 11-game winning streak (tied for program record), and they are 22-1 in their last 23 games.

Ranked 22nd in the latest Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Top 25, the Brewers arrive in Lexington with an overall record of 25-2, which includes a 21-game winning streak from November 17 to February 10 following a 1-1 start to the season. Vassar claimed its fourth ever Liberty League title (first since 2014) last weekend to earn the conference's automatic bid into the tournament and will be making its fifth all-time appearance in NCAA Tournament play.

GENERALS BY THE NUMBERS:
The Generals have been led this year by All-ODAC First Team selections in sophomore Mary Schleusner and senior Hanna Malik, who are combining for 37.0 points per game. Schleusner, this year's ODAC Player of the Year and the back-to-back Defensive Player of the Year, owns the team high in scoring at 22.9 points per game on 55.1 percent shooting overall, and she has been one of the most dominant rebounders in all of Division III women's basketball. At 16.0 rebounds per game, ranks second in the country in rebounding average, with her scoring average good for 11th in Division III.
 
Malik, this year's ODAC/Virginia Farm Bureau Insurance Scholar Athlete of the Year, has been one of W&L's top outside scoring threats, not only this year but throughout her career. A 35.7 percent three-point shooter this season, Malik recently broke the program's single-season three pointers record (79), and she looks to build on her season total of 80 makes from outside. For her career, Malik owns the highest three-point field goal percentage in program history (.372) and she is 10 makes away from passing Meg Ingram '12 for the all-time program record.
 
Sophomores Quinn McGuinness and Elka Prechel are two more proven threats from beyond the arc, joining Malik above 35 percent shooting from outside. McGuinness is third on the team in scoring at 7.9 points per game, she is 27-of-75 (.360) on three-point shooting, and she leads the team with 73 assists. Prechel adds 7.7 points per game on 35.2 percent (68-193) shooting from distance, and she set the program's single-game record for threes made in a game this season with nine against Averett. As a first-year, Prechel also set the program record for threes made in a season, before Malik surpassed that mark on Sunday.
 
Other key contributors for the Generals this season include junior Lauren Achter and sophomore Sarah Zimmerman, who have combined for 8.5 points per game on 45.7 percent shooting and a total of 9.7 rebounds per game as the team's second- and third-leading rebounders. First-year Brianna Shuttlewood aids in running the offense, ranking third on the team with 60 assists this season.
 
As a team, the Generals boast the 13th-ranked scoring offense in Division III at 78.0 points per game, which would be a single-season program record. W&L has already set program records this season in wins (26), winning percentage (.929), total points scored (2,183) and field goals made (779), and the Blue and White enter the weekend nearing program single-season records in three pointers made (232) and total rebounds (1,472). As good as the Generals are at finding the bottom of the net, the defense is just as strong when it comes to defending beyond the arc. W&L's opponents are making only 21.8 percent of their three-point shots, the fourth-lowest mark in Division III.

VASSAR BY THE NUMBERS:
The Brewers are led into the weekend by a trio of double-digit scorers, all with averages better than 13.5 points per game. Tova Gelb owns the team high at 14.4 points per game on 46.7 shooting overall, and she adds averages of 9.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 1.9 steals and 1.0 blocks. Gelb claimed First Team All-Liberty League honors for the first time in her career this season, and she also earned the Liberty League Tournament's Most Outstanding Player award.
 
Sophomore Sierra McDermed, also a First Team All-Liberty League selection, is second on Vassar this season with 14.2 points per game and 6.1 rebounds per contest. She leads the squad in blocks with 34 total this season, and she shoots 45.1 percent from the field and 40.2 percent (47-117) from long range.
 
Junior Julia Harvey rounds out a trio of Brewers on the Liberty League's all-conference first team with averages of 13.7 points per game and 4.6 rebounds per game. Harvey is second on the team in total steals (38), and she has converted a Vassar-high 82.2 percent (74-90) of her free throw attempts.
 
Sophomore Naiya Kurnik adds 7.7 points per game for the Brewers, the fourth highest on the team, plus 4.8 rebounds per game, while sophomore Bella Tawney serves as a key inside presence for Vassar with 5.1 rebounds per game and the second-highest block total (30).
 
As a team, the Brewers are scoring 66.7 points per game, but they bring the 21st-ranked scoring defense in Division III into Holekamp Gym. Allowing just 51.9 points per game, Vassar has held teams to 50 points or fewer in nine games this season, one of which was the Liberty League Championship (W, 44-32).

CATHOLIC & PSU-BEHREND QUICK HITTERS:
Catholic (25-2) and Penn State-Behrend (19-7) round out the four-team pod for the opening weekend in Lexington. The Cardinals made it to the Landmark Conference championship game on Saturday, before falling to No. 7 Scranton, 57-48, in the teams' third meeting of the season. Penn State-Behrend secured the automatic qualifier out of the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference with a 73-54 win over La Roche in Saturday's championship.
 
The Cardinals are ranked No. 11 in the latest WBCA Top 25, and they are led on offense by Keegan Douglas, who averages a team-high 14.0 points per game on 48.5 percent shooting. Anna Scoblick follows with 12.5 points (0.524 FG%) and team-bests in rebounds per game (7.3) and assists per game (2.5), while Carly Mulvaney adds 10.7 points per contest.
 
As a team, the Cardinals are scoring 75.1 points per game and allowing just 54.5 points per game. Their average scoring margin of 20.6 ranks 15th in Division III, two spots ahead of W&L.
 
The Lions are led into Holekamp gym by a pair of 18-point scorers in Morgan Altavilla and Rachel Majewski. Altavilla is scoring 18.6 points per game on 50.1 percent shooting, while Majewski is at 18.5 points per game on 42.6 percent shooting. Alexis Furyes and Madilyn Boyer both grab over six rebounds per contest, and Altavilla adds a team-best 4.0 assists per game.
 
Collectively, the Lions are scoring 76.8 points per game and allowing 62.1. They also own a positive rebounding margin and force nearly seven turnovers per game more than they commit (20-13).

TICKET INFORMATION:
Spectators for this weekend's games are encouraged to purchase tickets in advance through HomeTown Ticketing. Tickets for kids (3-12), students and senior citizens (65+) are $10 and adult tickets are $15.
 
All W&L undergraduate and law student admissions for the games will be covered by Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students and the Office of Student Affairs. The University is also sponsoring the cost of admission for members of the University community who present a W&L ID at the ticketing table. The Blue and White will take on Vassar College at 7:30 p.m. on Friday night. If the Generals advance to Saturday night's second round contest, admission for the W&L community and all students with a W&L ID will be covered by the University.
 
For more information, click here or on the blue "Ticket Information" button at the top of the preview.

WEEKEND SCHEDULE:
The Cardinals and Lions will tip-off first on Friday at 5:00 p.m., with the Generals and Brewers tipping off at 7:30 p.m. The two winning teams on Friday will then meet on Saturday at 7:15 p.m. in the second round.
 
Live stats and live streams will be provided for all three games throughout the weekend at the following links: Live stats | Live Stream