UTICA, NY - The Utica University women's basketball team will open its 2023-24 season this week, hosting Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute on Wednesday, November 8 at 5:30 p.m. in a non-conference contest. The team will then travel to Hamilton College on November 10 to take on the Continentals at 6 p.m. On Monday, November 13 the team will return home to host Union College at 6 p.m. 
 
Follow Along: Those unable to attend the season opener or next week's match against Union can tune in for live video and/or stats here. Hamilton will provide live video here and live stats here.
 
Looking at Last Year: The team went 10-15 and sported a 5-13 conference record which was just one spot out of an Empire 8 postseason berth. Utica's offense was in the top half of the conference in scoring and field goal percentage. On the boards, the Pioneers' rebounding was its strong suit with the team hauling in 43.1 rebounds per game which ranked second in the Empire 8. 
 
At the Helm: Head Coach Michele Davis returns for her 23rd season and looks to continue leading a prestigious program. She sits at 289 career wins, just 11 shy of 300  for her illustrious career. Davis has led the Pioneers to two NCAA Tournaments appearances, two Empire 8 Championships, and four ECAC Championships. Alissa Tuthill returns for her fifth season assisting Davis as well.
 
Schedule Outlook: The Pioneers' regular season will run from November 8, 2023 to February 17, 2024. If qualified, the Empire 8 Conference Tournament will be held from February 20-24, 2023 with the highest remaining seed holding home court advantage. Utica will play 25 games this season and host 12 games during the regular season. The team will begin the season with nine of its first 10 games being non-conference before diving into Empire 8 play. Beginning on Friday, January 5, Utica will play 15-straight conference matches. The Pioneers non-conference matchups feature RPI, Hamilton College, Union College, Manhattanville College, SUNY Poly, Plattsburgh State, SUNY Delhi, Morrisville State, and SUNY Cortland.
 
Key Losses: The team lost four players from last season in Petrina DeMarco (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro), Kimberly Soriano (Queens, NY/Monsignor McClancy Memorial), Kristine Miller (Red Hook, NY/Red Hook), and Sarah Hovey (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro). DeMarco started 87 games over four seasons for the Pioneers and averaged 8.2 points, 3.0 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 1.3 steals per game. The sharpshooter made 170 three-pointers in her career which are the second most in program history. Kimberly Soriano (Queens, NY/Monsignor McClancy Memorial) was another key contributor in her time as a Pioneer. Soriano logged 100 career games and averaged 5.5 points and 2.6 rebounds per game in her career. Soriano was a deft shooter as well, as she made 116 three points in her career, marking her seventh all time in Utica history. Kristine Miller (Red Hook, NY/Red Hook) was a solid interior presence over her three seasons with the program. Miller had her best season in 2021-2022, starting every game and averaging 4.3 points per game and 2.8 rebounds. Sarah Hovey (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) transferred in from Mohawk Valley Community College for her senior season last year and was a leader to the team while averaging 2.0 points per game and 1.7 rebounds per game in her lone season with the Pioneers. 
 
Down Low: Krissy Geraci (Rochester, NY/Greece Arcadia) is back for her third season with the team, having been a key contributor in the paint across her first two seasons. Last season, Geraci started 17 games for the Pioneers and averaged 8.3 points per game and 4.8 rebounds in only 22.2 minutes per game. She was a key piece to the team providing consistent scoring and is a tenacious rebounder. Geraci will look to build on her strong career resume and be a leader for the Pioneers this season. 
 
Veteran Presence: Julia Rotando (Cold Spring, NY/Haldane), Hannah Stack (Dolgeville, NY/Dolgeville), and Hope Halvarson (Cranston, RI/Cranston East) are back for another season and will be key parts of the team. Rotando is back as a graduate student this season for the Pioneers, and figures to make a big impact on the court and as a leader. Rotando started 10 games and played 20.4 minutes per game last season. She has displayed her defensive talent and willingness to battle for loose balls as last year averaged 1.3 steals a game along with 3.0 points and 3.3 rebounds. Stack was a fine scorer and a ravenous rebounder and the team will look to her for both. Her IQ near the rim was a large part in the Pioneers being the second-best rebounding team in the conference last year. Halvarson ended the season strong and became a swiss-army knife for the program with her ability to do everything on the court. The Cranston, RI native was filling out box scores with her scoring, assists, rebounds, steals, and blocks.  Her versatility will be a huge part of Utica's offense and defense.
 
Sophomore Standouts: Haley Burchhardt (Schenectady, NY/Schalmont), Madelyn Cozzens (Clifton Park, NY/Shenendehowa), McKenzie Simmons (Red Hook, NY/Red Hook), and Cristina Negron (Easthampton, MA/Williston Northampton) had strong freshman campaigns last season and will be called upon once again the 2023-24 season. Burchhardt started 12 games last season, averaging 8.2 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game across 21 minutes a contest. For her efforts she was awarded Empire8 Rookie of the Week twice during the season. She will look to take a leap in her sophomore season as a primary ball handler and scorer for the offense. Madelyn Cozzens (Clifton Park, NY/Shenendehowa) stepped right in as a strong interior player as a freshman, starting in nine games while averaging 5.4 points and 4.3 rebounds per game in just under 20 minutes per outing. She was awarded Empire 8 Rookie of the Week after her 13 point, nine rebound effort in Utica's win over RPI last season opener. Cozzens will look to build on her strong start to her career in what should be a similar role as last season. McKenzie Simmons (Red Hook, NY/Red Hook) transferred into Utica mid-season and made an immediate impact with the team. Simmons started 11 out of her 16 games with Utica in her freshman year, leading the team in points, rebounds, and steals with 11.8 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 1.9 steals per game. The Empire 8 awarded Simmons Rookie of the Week on February 13, 2023 after averaging 16.3 points per game over three contests. Simmons was also named to the Empire 8 All-Conference Third Team. Cristina Negron (Easthampton, MA/Williston Northampton) is also back for her second year and will look to provide the same effectiveness as she did last year where she provided scoring, rebounding, and assists. The Easthampton, MA native tallied 28 points, 21 rebounds, and 15 assists last season and looks to be a key contributor to the team this season.
 
New Faces: The team welcomes 11 newcomers to the squad and is highlighted by a pair of NCAA Division II transfers in graduate student Kelsey McCaskill (Rome, NY/Rome Free Academy) and junior Hayleigh Lagase (Wallingford, CT/Mark T. Sheehan). The team also welcomes nine freshmen. McCaskill brings a veteran presence after appearing in 49 games scoring 147 points and shooting .353 from beyond the arc on over 30 attempts with Alliance University. Her last season was her best of her collegiate career and she looks to be a steady piece in the Pioneers attack. Lagase previously attended Georgian Court University and appeared in 26 games, including 19 last season. The Wallingford, CT native's knack on the glass and her ability to score will be a great addition to the squad. The nine freshmen are Brianelly Cruz (Bronx, NY/Fannie Lou Freedom), Jordan Carmosino (Ringwood, NJ/Lakeland Regional), Sara Hotaling (Ravena, NY/Ravena Coeymans Selkirk), Kieara Kirvan (Ledyard, CT/Ledyard), Hannah Godkin, Jaida Larsen (Clyde, NY/Clyde-Savannah), Vanessa Hall (Whitesville, NY/Whitesville Central), Emma Simmons (Unadilla, NY/Sidney Central), and Kate Mahoney (Clifton Springs, NY/Midlakes). Hotaling averaged 9.5 points per game in high school and will provide some consistent scoring. Kirvan averaged 15 points per game, six rebounds, two assists, and two steals in her high school career and will give Utica a versatile player. Godkin averaged 16 points per game and four rebounds in high school and will be another scoring threat for the Pioneers. The duo of Larsen and Hall should give Utica two prolific scorers with each boasting impressive high school accolades. Larsen scored a career-high 44 points in one high school game and scored over 1,000 career points with Hall being the Whitesville Central School all-time leading scorer and is third all-time in Section V with 2,492 career points. She broke 1,000 points as a sophomore, and 2,000 as a senior while holding the single game scoring record at Whitesville with 48 points. She led Section V in scoring in 2022 and 2023 and averaged more than 20 points per game twice and more than 25 twice in her five-year varsity career.
 
About RPI: The Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Engineers finished off last season with a record of 14-13 overall with a Liberty League Conference record of 10-8. The Engineers finished off regular season play with a four-game win streak and advanced to the semifinals of the Liberty League Semi-finals where they were beat by Ithaca College. The team returns two of its top scorers in Nicole DaPra and Ashlyn O'Neil who each eclipsed over 200 points last season. DaPra led the team in three point shooting .305 from beyond the arc with 40 three pointers made and was also second on the squad averaging 6.5 rebounds per game. The team lost two of its top interior defenders in Heather Converse and Julia Rowe who both had over 15 steals and 12 blocks. The team features a good blend of veterans with three graduate students, two seniors and seven freshmen. 
 
About Hamilton: The Continentals went 12-11 last season and sported a 5-5 conference record while falling to Middlebury College in the NESCAC Championship Quarterfinal. Hamilton returns two of its top three scorers with Taylor Lambo and Emily Hall returning. Lambo scored 312 points last season with 188 rebounds and was a fantastic inside scorer and rebounder for the squad. Hall averaged 10 points and 6.3 rebounds per game and stretches the floor with her ability to shoot from deep. Althea Hill and Courtney Shay are two more strong scorers with each averaging more than 6.9 points per game and each shooting over 31 percent from three with over 90 attempts. 
 
A Look at Union: The Garnet Chargers went 10-15 last season going 8-10 in Liberty League play and ultimately fell to Vassar College in the Liberty League Tournament. The team lost its top two scorers from last season and senior Kennedy Clark looks to fill the void after finishing third last season averaging 7.3 points per game. Jelena Perovic, Maura Conan, and Grace Enselek all return for another season with Conan and Enselek providing scoring as upperclassmen. All three played vital roles for the team with each providing scoring, assisting, and rebounding for Union and look to lead the charge again this season.
 
Up Next: The team will travel to face Manhattanville College on Saturday, November 18 at 2 p.m.