1/23/25
 
SCRANTON, Pa. – After dropping a heavy defeat on the road at a nationally ranked opponent, Lackawanna College women's basketball will look to get back into the win column on Thursday, January 23^rd, when the Falcons travel to take on SUNY Orange CC in non-region action.
 
Tip-off is scheduled for 5:00pm ET inside Schmid gymnasium in Middletown, NY. It's the first game of a doubleheader, with the men's teams competing afterwards at 7:00pm ET. There is a video livestream available via the SUNY Orange Colts YouTube channel, linked HERE.
 
This marks the first and only meeting of the year between the Falcons and the Colts.
 
About Lackawanna College
The Falcons (12-5) had a six-game winning streak halted on Tuesday night in a loss at #4 Union College (NJ), 108-53. Lackawanna struggled to get on track on offense, shooting just 23% from the floor and making just two three-point shots in 25 attempts all night. The Falcons had 35 turnovers, while Union had 16 steals. The Owls shot 47% from the floor and hit 13 three-pointers. You can read the recap HERE.
 
This season, the Falcons are averaging 71.3 points per game, while giving up 71 points per game against. Lackawanna is shooting 34.1% from the floor this season, while hitting 22% from three-point range. The Falcons have struggled from the free throw line, but they have gotten better as the season wears on, up over 60% on the season. Lackawanna's opponents are shooting 36.8% from the floor and have hit 30% of their three-point shots. Lackawanna has a +4.5 rebounding margin, averaging 49 boards per game. The Falcons are averaging 10.5 turnovers per game, while forcing 19.6 per game this year. Lackawanna averages 12 steals per contest, while its opponents average eleven swipes per game. Lackawanna is averaging 4.2 blocks per game.
 
Sophomore forward Salote Franklin (Philadelphia, PA) leads the team with 16.9 points per game this season, seventh in the region and third in DII. Salote is shooting 45% from the floor and averages a team-high 12.2 rebounds per game, first in DII. Franklin is a 70% free throw shooter, first on the team, and has hit nine three-pointers this season. She also has 35 steals, second on the team, and leads the Falcons with 27 blocks this year. Salote had 30 points in the season-opening victory against CCBC Catonsville back on November 1^st, shooting 13-for-21 from the floor, while pulling down eight rebounds. She set a season-high for rebounds with 23 boards and 28 points in the win against Salem back on December 14^th. Salote was 15-for-16 from the free throw line in the contest, going 8-for-8 in the fourth quarter alone, to help secure the win. Salote has scored double-figures in 16 games this year and has 12 double-doubles on the year, including in her last six games. She set a season-high with eight assists in the win against Essex on November 19^th, where she also had 14 points and ten boards. Franklin had 15 points, 12 rebounds, seven assists, and a season-high five steals in the win against Delaware Tech on November 23^rd. In her last six games, Franklin is averaging 18.1 points per game and 16.3 rebounds per contest. She scored 12 points and had 13 rebounds in the loss to Union on Tuesday.
 
Sophomore guard Desiree White (Carlisle, PA) is second on the team with 13.1 points per game through her 12 appearances, missing five games due to injury earlier this year. White has hit 20 three-point shots, first on the team, and is shooting 31.5% from the floor. White averages just under three rebounds a game and has 12 steals. Desi has hit double-figures seven times this year, scoring her season-high against Herkimer on January 11^th, posting 28 points on a season-best ten makes. She hit three three-pointers, made five free throws, and had a pair of assists and a pair of rebounds in the win against Herkimer. Against Catonsville, she had 13 points and four boards. She had 20 points against Mercer on December 10^th, hitting seven shots and knocking down three three-point shots. Her previous season-high was 26 points on 8-for-18 shooting and a season-high four made three-pointers in the loss to Montgomery on November 12^th. Desi has scored in double-figures in her last four games, and had 14 points and a pair of rebounds in the loss to Union on Tuesday. White led the team last season, averaging 16.9 points per game and hitting a team-high 40 three-pointers.
 
Sophomore guard Jayla South (Long Pond, PA) is third on the team with 11.9 points per game this season. South is shooting 32.8% and has made 15 three-point shots, second on the team this season. She averages 6.2 rebounds per game, fourth on the team, and has 39 assists, tied for third on the squad, along with 32 steals so far this season. South has scored double-figures in 12 games this season, scoring her season and career-high with 42 points against Essex on November 19^th, making 15 shots and hitting six three-pointers in the win. She also had eight rebounds and season-highs in assists (7) and steals (5). Jayla set a season-high for rebounds with eleven boards and 12 points in the loss to Montgomery back on November 12^th. She matched that season-high in rebounds with eleven, along with seven points and four assists, in the win against Herkimer. Jayla was held without a point in 19 minutes against Union on Tuesday. It's the first and only time in her Lackawanna career that Jayla was held without a point.
 
First-year guard Ania Crocker (Freeport, NY) is averaging 10.6 points per game this season and is shooting 33% from the floor. Crocker averages 5.5 rebounds per game and has 47 assists, first on the team. She is also first on the team with 42 steals. Crocker scored her season-high against Jamestown on November 16^th, exploding for 28 points and a season-best 13 rebounds in the win. Crocker went 13-for-23 from the floor in the win. She set a season-high with seven steals against Richard Bland College on November 2^nd, where she also set her season-high with five assists. Crocker matched that season-high with five assists against Essex on November 19^th, scoring 26 points, grabbing five rebounds, and posting four steals in the win. Crocker has eight games in double-digit points this season. She was held to just four points on a tough 2-for-18 shooting night against Union on Tuesday, but she also managed to grab nine rebounds, dish out four assists, and post four steals.
 
Sophomore forward Saraiah Franklin (Philadelphia, PA) is averaging 8.2 points and 8.1 rebounds per game through her 17 appearances. Franklin is shooting 38% from the floor and has 40 assists on the year, second on the team. Saraiah had one of her best games of the year against Essex in November, scoring 14 points and setting a season-high in assists (5), along with matching her season-high in steals (3) and grabbing 12 rebounds. Against Harcum on November 21^st, she had a season-best 23 points, scoring 13 in the fourth alone, while going 8-for-9 from the free throw line and pulling down eleven rebounds. Saraiah set her season-high in rebounds with 16 boards against Herkimer, where she also put up 13 points and had four assists in the win. Saraiah has three double-doubles on the season and has hit double-figures in scoring in seven games this season. She had ten points and nine rebounds in the loss to Union on Tuesday.
 
Sophomore forward E'ternity Aiken (Wilkes-Barre, PA) is averaging 5.5 points per game through her eleven contests this year. Aiken missed six games due to injury this season. She is shooting 39.6% from the floor and averages 6.5 rebounds per game, third on the team. She also has 14 steals. Aiken had 15 points and eleven boards in the win against Richard Bland College, her lone double-double of the season. She also had four steals and a pair of assists. She tied her season-high with eleven rebounds against Middlesex, along with eight points, two blocks, and two assists. Aiken scored four points, had seven rebounds, and dished out three assists against Mercer. Aiken scored three points and had six rebounds in the loss to Union.
 
Head coach Monica Spence is in her third season at the helm of the Falcons. Spence spent a year as an assistant before taking over the program in 2022. Before her time at Lackawanna, Spence spent time coaching at youth levels and in semi-professional men's basketball. Spence is a Wilkes-Barre native, who played her high school basketball locally at Wilkes-Barre GAR. Spence is 33-30 in her time as the head coach for the Falcons.
 
About SUNY Orange
The Colts (3-13) are in their second season back to action, after missing the 2022-2023 season. Orange lost its first five games of the season, then won two of three to start December. However, the Colts have gone 1-7 in their last eight games since that point, and have lost four in a row entering Thursday night's action. Orange fell in its last game this past Saturday against Jamestown CC, 72-43. The visiting Jayhawks scored 26 points in the third quarter to break open a somewhat tight game, then pulled away for the win. Orange shot just 24.6% from the floor and had 22 turnovers, while the Jayhawks hit 38% from the floor and had 18 steals.
 
Orange is averaging 48 points per contest this year, making 27.4% of its shots and hitting 19% from downtown. Meanwhile, Orange's opponents average 74 points per game, and hit around 41% from the floor and 29.8% from deep. The Colts have a -8.3 rebounding margin, pulling down an average of 34.8 rebounds per game. Orange averages just 6.3 assists per game, along with 24.6 turnovers per game. Their opponents average just under 21 turnovers per game. The Colts average 11.8 steals per game, while their opponents are averaging just under 15.
 
Guard Adriana Vazquez is the lone Colt in double-figures this season at 12 points per game. She's shooting 31% from the floor, and leads the team with eleven makes from downtown. Vazquez is also the team-leader at 60.8% from the free throw line. Vazquez averages 2.9 rebounds per game, a team-high 1.7 assists per game, and is third on the team at 1.8 steals per game this season. Vazquez has scored in double-figures in eight games this season, posting a season-best 28 points in the win against Suffolk CC on December 5^th. She had 28 on 10-for-25 shooting, making a pair of threes and going 6-for-10 from the free throw line. She had 16 points and a season-best six rebounds in a loss to Raritan valley CC on January 11^th. Against Bronx CC in the game before that, a win on January 9^th, she had 23 points and hit a season-best three three-pointers. She set season-highs in assists (7) and steals (6) in the win against the Borough of Manhattan CC on December 10^th, putting up 14 points in the victory. She had eight points on a tough 2-for-11 showing against Jamestown on Saturday, grabbing three rebounds and posting a pair of steals.
 
Forward Victoria Harrison is second on the team at 9.9 points per game, shooting 28% from the floor this season. Harrison is second on the team at 5.8 rebounds per game, and leads the Colts at 2.6 steals per contest this season. She has six games in double-figures this season, posting a season-best 24 points on 10-for-23 shooting in a loss to Herkimer back on November 19^th. Harrison scored six points and posted a season-high ten rebounds in the loss to Middlesex back on January 7^th. Against Bronx CC on January 9^th, she had season-highs in assists (5) and steals (6), while also scoring 16 points and grabbing six rebounds in the win. Against Jamestown last Saturday, she had ten points and six rebounds in the loss.
 
Forward Olivia Harrison is third on the team at 9.5 points per game this season. Harrison is a 29% shooter from the floor and is hitting around 55% from the free throw line. Harrison leads the team at 10.5 rebounds per game, and is at 1.4 steals per contest this year for the Colts. Harrison has eight games in double-figures scoring this season, scoring a season-high 15 points and posting a season-high 16 rebounds in the loss to Herkimer on November 19^th. Harrison has six double-doubles this season, and has gone for double-digit rebounds in nine games this season. She matched her season-high rebounds with 16 boards and eleven points in the loss to SUNY Niagara on January 12^th. She scored seven points, had eight rebounds, and posted a season-high five steals in the win against Borough of Manhattan CC on December 10^th. She has had a double-double in her last four games, averaging 11.5 points per game and 13.8 rebounds per game in that stretch. Against Jamestown, she had 13 points and 12 rebounds in the loss on Saturday.
 
Center Alexis Aquino is averaging 5.4 points per game this season, shooting 28.6% from the floor. Aquino is third on the team at 5.3 rebounds per game, and averages 1.3 steals per contest. She also leads the team at 1.2 blocks per game. She has four games in double-figure scoring this season, posting a season-high 15 points and five rebounds in the loss to Raritan Valley on January 11^th. She had nine points, eight rebounds, and a season-high six steals in the loss to Middlesex in January. Aquino posted her lone double-double of the season in her last game, scoring ten points and grabbing a season-high eleven rebounds in the loss to Jamestown this weekend.
 
The head coach for SUNY Orange is Micah Brand, now in his fourth year overall as the head coach, and third season in competition. Brand, who spent three seasons as an assistant with the men's team prior to taking over the women's team, has guided the Colts through a COVID shortened season in his first year, a year of no competition in 2022-2023, and last year's edition, which won eight games. Brand's coaching career started at Middletown HS, where he helped the varsity program with player development for seven years. He is also the owner of Attack the Rim Basketball Academy. As a player, Brand was a top 60 nationally ranked recruit, going to UMass to play for the Minutemen. While at UMass, he was made a third-team All-Atlantic 10, and won a Most Improved Player award from the conference. After graduating in 2003, Brand spent ten years playing overseas, playing in 14 countries throughout his professional career. Brand is a lifelong Middletown resident, where he currently also works as a crisis counselor in the Middletown City School District. In his time with the women's program at Orange, he holds a 14-34 record.
 
The Matchup
This is the first and only match-up between Orange and Lackawanna this year. The two do share some common opponents this season. Orange has played Raritan Valley three times and Middlesex twice, losing all five combined games. Lackawanna beat Middlesex on the road and lost at Raritan Valley earlier this season. Orange lost to Herkimer back in November, a team the Falcons beat in early January. Orange also has losses to SUNY Niagara and Jamestown this month. Lackawanna lost to the nationally ranked Thunder Wolves back in November, but beat Jamestown the day before that loss.
 
Thursday's game is scheduled for a tip-off at 5:00pm ET inside Orange's Schmid gymnasium in Middletown, NY. It's the first game of a doubleheader, with the men's teams competing afterward at 7:00pm ET. There is a video livestream available via the SUNY Orange Colts YouTube channel, linked HERE.
 
Lackawanna remains on the road to close out the week, with another key Region XIX DII contest coming up on Saturday, January 25^th. The Falcons will hit the road to take on the #17 Harcum College Bears in Bryn Mawr, PA. Tip-off is set for 12:00pm ET.