ERIE, Pa.- The Mercyhurst women's basketball team hosts crosstown rival Gannon Wednesday, January 18, at the Mercyhurst Athletic Center. Tip-off is set for 5:30 p.m. in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Western Division meeting.


 
Live stats will be available at http://www.sidearmstats.com/hurst/wbball/index.htm. A live B2 Network broadcast is available at http://www.b2livetv.com/partner_members.asp?id=16.
 
The Lakers enter the contest 8-6 overall and 6-4 in the conference. They beat Clarion, 55-46, in the division-opener January 11 before losing, 75-67, to Slippery Rock January 14. The loss to the Rock was the first home loss of the season for Hurst. Freshman Lindsay Stamp leads the team with 13.3 points per game, coming off a 24-point outburst Saturday. Nikki Frederickson totaled 36 points and 13 rebounds in the two games last week, continuing her stellar senior campaign.
 
Gannon sports an 11-3 overall record with an 8-2 mark in league action. It began the season 8-0 and 11-1, but has lost its first two West contests. The Lady Knights fell, 72-62, to nationally-ranked Edinboro January 11, and then dropped a 72-63 decision at California (Pa.) January 14. Sophomore Jen Papich leads the team with 14.3 points per game. Freshman Nettie Blake is averaging 10.5 points and 8.2 boards, while senior Caitlyn Lowe has hit 35 three-pointers this season. GU features three freshmen and two sophomores in their top seven players by minutes.
 
Coach Deanna Richard's group swept two meetings with the Knights last season, the first season sweep since the 1996-97 campaign. Gannon leads the all-time series, 49-26. The Lakers will be going for their first three-game win streak against GU since 1994-96, when they took six straight matchups.
 
This year's first contest should be a low-scoring affair, as Gannon is second in the PSAC in scoring defense (55.3 points), while Hurst is fourth at 58.1 points per. The Lady Knights lead the league in field goal percentage (44 percent) and place second in field goal percentage defense (36 percent).

For game notes, please click here.