2022 Hercules Tires MAAC Basketball Championships Program

2021–22 QUINNIPIAC MEN’S & WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

QUICK FACTS LOCATION HAMDEN, CT NICKNAME BOBCATS COLORS NAVY AND GOLD YEAR FOUNDED 1929 PRESIDENT DR. JUDY OLIAN ATHLETIC DIRECTOR GREG AMODIO HOME ARENA PEOPLE’S UNITED CENTER (3,570)

MEN’S ROSTER

WOMEN’S ROSTER No. Name

No.

Name

Cl. Gr. So.

Pos.

Ht.

Wt.

Hometown

Cl. So. So.

Pos.

Ht.

Hometown

0 1 2 3 4 5

Kevin Marfo

F

6-9 245 Bergenfield, NJ

0 3 4

Tiera White

F

6-0 Port Orange, FL

Tymu Chenery

G/F

6-6 6-4

190 195

Philadelphia, PA

Halee Smith

G 5-10 Alexandria, PA

Matt Balanc

R-Jr. R-Jr.

G G

Silver Spring, MD

Grace LaBarge Cat Almeida Rose Caverly

Fr.

F

6-3 Inverness, IL

Savion Lewis Brody Limric Tyrese Williams

6-1

175 Dix Hills, NY

11 12 14 15 21 22 23 24 30 32 40

Jr.

F/C 6-5 Clifton Park, NY

Fr.

F

6-9 200 Glastonbury, CT

Sr.

G 5-10 Brick, NJ

Sr.

G G G

6-3

186

Beacon, NY

Jillian Casey

So.

G 5-10 Horseheads, NY

11 12 14 15 20 22 23 25 53

Dezi Jones

So.

5-10 167 Hannibal, MO

Cur’Tiera Haywood

Jr.

F

6-2 Yukon, OK

Bernie Blunt

Fr. Fr.

6-0 175 Morgantown, PA

Jackie Grisdale

Fr.

G 5-9 Poland, OH

Quinn Guth

F

6-2 185 Brookfield, CT

Mackenzie DeWees

Sr.

G 5-9 Westminster, MD G 6-0 Cliffwood, NJ G 6-0 Syracuse, NY F/C 6-2 Springfield, OH G 5-7 Raleigh, NC G 5-10 Ellington, CT

Luis Kortright

So.

G

6-3 6-7 6-9 6-6 6-6

204 Manhattan, NY

Sajada Bonner

Jr.

PLAYER TO WATCH The reigning 2020–21 MAAC Player of the Year, Mackenzie DeWees has lived up to her unanimous preseason All-MAAC First Team billing. Tops in the nation in steals as of January 24, 2022, DeWees enters the 2022 MAAC Championship with huge performances under her belt this season. DeWees posted nine steals vs. Saint Peter’s on Jan. 13, the second most thefts recorded in a single-game in program history. Prior to that she nearly posted a triple-double recording on Dec. 7, tallying 12 points, 12 rebounds and seven steals in a win over Northeastern. NOTABLE ALUMNI After graduating with 1, 196 career points scored and the program’s all-time leader in blocked shots (205), Paula Strautmane returned to her home club of TTT Riga in Latvia in 2019. In 2021–22, Strautmane signed with Cadí La Seu of Liga Femenina in Spain, where she is currently averaging 5.1 points, 3.4 rebounds, 1.0 assists and 1.0 blocks per game.

Brendan McGuire

Jr. Jr.

G/F

205 218 245 215 150

Garden City, NY Sacramento, CA Philadelphia, PA

Amani Free

Sr.

Elias King JJ Riggins

F F F

Mikala Morris

Jr.

R-So.

Reiven Douglas

Fr. Fr. Fr.

Jacob Rigoni

Gr.

Adelaide, AU

Rose Caso

Brendan Martin

Sr.

G

5-7

South Setauket, NY

41

Korin Mereste

F

6-2 Harwich, MA

44

Makenzie Helms

Jr.

G 5-8 East Haven, CT

Head Coach: Baker Dunleavy (Villanova, ’06) – Fifth Season Associate Head Coach: Tom Pecora (Adelphi, ’83) – Fifth Season Assistant Coaches: Shaun Morris (Lycoming, ’05) – Fifth Season, Dwayne Lee (Saint Joseph’s, ’06) – Third Season

PLAYER TO WATCH Kevin Marfo has returned to the Bobcats for a 5 th year after spending the 2020–21 season at Texas A&M. The New Jersey-native led the nation in rebounding while at Quinnipiac in 2019–20 (13.3 RPG), then transferred to Texas A&M for the ‘20-21 season. This year after returning to Hamden, Marfo has picked up right where he left off. He currently leads the MAAC in rebounding once again (10.5 RPG, as of 1/24/22). Marfo was named MAAC Player of the Week on Jan. 3 rd , after he recorded 14 points, 13 rebounds and five assists on New Year’s Eve vs. Niagara. NOTABLE ALUMNI Cameron Young – the former Quinnipiac AP All- American / 2018–19 MAAC Player of the Year – joined Memphis Hustle of the NBA G League in December of 2021. Young has played in 14 total games for the Hustle, averaging an impressive 18.2 points per game on 49.5% shooting. The 25-year-old made his G League debut on Dec. 5, 2021 in Southaven, Mississippi, scoring nine points off the bench in 22minutes against the LakelandMagic. Hemade his first start for the Hustle on Dec. 14 in Birmingham, stuffing the stat sheet with 24 points, four rebounds and four assists in 44minutes played.

Head Coach: Tricia Fabbri (Fairfield, ’91) – 27 th Season Assistant Coaches: Brian Wilson (Virginia, ’00) – Fourth Season

HEAD COACH BAKER DUNLEAVY Head Coach Baker Dunleavy – a very successful former player and coach under Jay Wright at Villanova – is in his fifth season at Quinnipiac in 2021–22. Dunleavy led the Bobcats all the way to the MAAC Semifinals during his first year with the program in 2017-18 – defeating No. 10 Siena and No. 2 Canisius in the postseason. He has been consistently ranked among college basketball’s top young head coaches. Dunleavy earned a spot on Seth Davis’ “40 under 40” list published by The Athletic in October of 2020, and was also selected to ESPN’s “40 under 40” in May of 2020. Dunleavy joined the Bobcats after spending seven years on the men’s basketball staff at Villanova University, where under Jay Wright, he helped the Wildcats capture the 2016 national championship with a 77-74 win over North Carolina. He began at Villanova as the director of basketball operations in 2010, Dunleavy appeared in 28 games over his four seasons for the Wildcats (2006 graduate). As a senior, he was part of the first Villanova team to earn a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament in 2006. During his playing days – behind future NBA guards Randy Foye and Kyle Lowry – the Wildcats were an Elite Eight team in 2005–06. Director of Basketball Operations: Ryan Harkins (Marist, ’14) – Fifth Season Strength and Conditioning Coach: Brijesh Patel (Connecticut, ’02/’04) – 14 th Season Athletic Trainer: Sara MacDonough-Civitello (Johnson State ’00) – Eighth Season Video Coordinator: Bradley Jacks (Babson, ’18) – Third Season SID/Athletic Communications: Nick Solari (Quinnipiac, ’16) – Fourth Season

Kaitlyn Cresencia (Conn. College, ’15) – First Season, Jen Fay (Quinnipiac, ’19) – Second Season Director of Basketball Operations: Jasmyne Fogle (Franklin Pierce, ’17 – First Season) Strength & Conditioning Coach: Brijesh Patel (Connecticut, ’02/’04) – 14 th Season Athletic Trainer: Becky Mella (Ithaca, ’95) – 11 th Season

HEAD COACH TRICIA FABBRI The all-time winningest coach in Quinnipiac women’s basketball history, Tricia Fabbri, wrapped up her 27 th season on the Bobcats’ sideline in 2020–21 and has earned over 470 victories in her career. At the end of the 2018–19 season, Fabbri had guided her team to eight straight 20-win seasons including four undefeated conference slates in seven years. The team won its fifth conference title in a seven-year span with the 2018–19 MAAC tournament title and advanced to the NCAA Tournament as an 11-seed before falling to sixth-seeded South Dakota State at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, New York. As a player, Fabbri was named to the MAAC 25 th Anniversary Team in 2020 and was inducted into the Fairfield University Athletic Hall of Fame in 1998, as well as the Connecticut Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in 2002.

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72 J I M W H E L A N BO A RDWA L K H A L L | AT L A N T I C C I T Y

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