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New Haven at Dominican
Saturday, Nov. 9 - 1 p.m.
Orangeburg, N.Y. - Hennessy Center
Live Video | Live Stats

Coming off of one of the biggest turnarounds in the nation last season, the University of New Haven women's basketball team looks to continue the trend and compete for a Northeast-10 Championship in the 2013-14 campaign. The Chargers' roster boasts 12 returners, including four student-athletes who started 17 or more games last winter, in the first season under Head Coach Ty Grace.
 
Grace, a 1999 graduate of the University of New Haven, returned to her alma mater in July of 2013 as the 16th head coach in program history. Most recently the top assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at Seton Hall University, she has logged 13 seasons of Division I coaching experience and previously served as head coach at Ramapo College of New Jersey. As a student-athlete, Grace is one of only two Chargers to have recorded more than 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds in her career.
 
Backcourt
Northeast-10 All-Rookie Team honoree Briana Bradford (Waterbury, Conn./Holy Cross) will once again run the point in her sophomore campaign. Bradford ranked second on the team last winter with 12.7 points per game, adding 4.1 rebounds and 2.9 assists per contest. She has already established herself as a clutch performer, knocking down a pair of game-winning three-pointers in conference wins over Adelphi and Massachusetts-Lowell during her rookie season.
 
Aquillin Hayes (Harlem, N.Y./Wings Academy) returns to her position out on the wing after averaging a double-double in 2012-13 with 10.3 points and a team-leading 10.4 rebounds per game, including more than four rips per contest from the offensive glass. Hayes ranked third in the conference on the boards last season and slotted at fourth in the NE-10 with 1.7 blocks per game. The junior will be a versatile weapon on the perimeter with both a solid mid-range game as well as the ability to get to the rim.

Another flexible assist in the backcourt is the 2011-12 Northeast-10 Rookie of the Year, Bria Moore (West Haven, Conn./Hill Regional Career). Now a junior, Moore ranked third on the team last winter with 10.8 points and 5.4 rebounds per game as one of three Chargers to start all 27 contests. Also a threat from long-range with 28 made triples in 2012-13, Moore scored a career-high 27 points sparked by five treys in the Dec. 8 home win over crosstown and conference rival Southern Connecticut State.

Significant time on the wing will also go to Lauren Hebert (North Reading, Mass./North Reading), who appeared in all 27 games with four starts in her rookie campaign. Hebert averaged 6.6 points and 3.6 rebounds per game and knocked down 22 three-pointers last winter.
 
Elizabeth Cruso (Westerly, R.I./Westerly), another true point guard, took the court in 17 contests in 2012-13. She totaled 26 points and 11 assists in 7.7 minutes per game and is expected to see an increased role running the Chargers' offense in her junior season.
 
After missing the entirety of 2012-13 due to injury, Audrey Cunningham (Germantown, Md./Seneca Valley) re-enters the mix in the New Haven backcourt this season.  She played all 26 games of the 2011-12 campaign, including eight starts, averaging 4.8 points and 2.2 rebounds while draining 28 three-pointers.
 
The Chargers will get additional depth around the perimeter from returner LaTanza Britts (Minneapolis, Minn./DeLaSalle / Iowa Wesleyan) as well as the squad's lone newcomer, Jasmine Gibson (Brooklyn, N.Y./Spring Valley).
 
Frontcourt
Poised for another strong season in the post is junior Ashley LeBlanc (Methuen, Mass./Methuen). The 6-2 center averaged 7.1 points and ranked second on the team with 5.6 rebounds per game last season. She poured in a career-best 25 points at Saint Rose during her freshman campaign and, last winter, hauled in a career-high 16 rebounds at perennial NE-10 power Franklin Pierce.
 
Rykema Stone (Bronx, N.Y./Wings Academy) also appeared in every game for New Haven in 2012-13, including 17 starts. She netted 3.9 points and 3.2 rebounds per contest, hauling in 11 boards on Feb. 6 as the Chargers competed a home-and-home season sweep of division foe Adelphi.
 
Graduate student Ayana Duncanson (Elmont, N.Y./Francis Lewis) scored 2.5 points per game and snagged 3.7 rebounds last winter, appearing in 20 games for New Haven. With 55 career contests played for the Blue and Gold, she brings additional experience to the post in her final season with the Chargers.
 
Returning to the mix after missing all of 2012-13 due to injury is Ana Obella (Miami, Fla./Cypress Bay). Obella has played 34 games in two seasons of competition with the Chargers, totaling 29 points and 33 rebounds in an average of 10.9 minutes per appearance.

New Haven will look for additional depth down low from Amber Martinez (Seymour, Conn./Seymour). Martinez has appeared in five career contests.
 
Coaching Staff
Joining Grace on the sidelines will be assistant coaches April Phillips and Nikita Reddy. Phillips most recently worked alongside Grace as Coordinator of Basketball Operations at Seton Hall. As a student-athlete, she appeared in three NCAA Tournaments at Xavier University and won a pair of Atlantic 10 Championships.

Reddy was a tri-captain for the Chargers last season and appeared in 61 career games for the Blue and Gold. Also a Dean's List student, she graduated from the University in May of 2013 and is currently pursuing an MBA at New Haven.
 
Schedule
The Chargers' 26-game slate is highlighted by a trip to the Rollins Thanksgiving Tournament and 12 games played within the confines of Charger Gymnasium. The Northeast-10 calendar includes preseason No. 1 Bentley and nationally-ranked Stonehill, as well as Assumption and Franklin Pierce – both of whom joined the Falcons and Skyhawks at the 2012-13 NCAA Div. II East Region Championship. Outside of the conference, New Haven will meet reigning NCAA National Finalist Dowling and could challenge perennial South Region contender Rollins at the Tars' home tournament in late November.