ATLANTIC CITY, NJ – Siena Women's Basketball's 2023 postseason journey is set to begin Thursday afternoon at the 2023 MAAC Women's Basketball Championships in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The No. 4 seeded Saints (18-12, 12-8) will battle No. 5 Fairfield (15-14, 11-9) in a 3:30 PM tip-off at Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall, with the winner advancing to the MAAC Semifinals.
Thursday's contest can be viewed live on ESPN+ with Geoff Brault and Dianne Nolan on the call, and can be heard locally on 88.3 FM The Saint or anywhere on iHeartRadio. Pregame coverage tips off at approximately 3:00 PM, with Joe Mixie and longtime color commentator Steve Amedio on the call. Fans can also follow along with the corresponding live stats link, while continuous in-game press row updates will be provided via the women's basketball team's official twitter page @Siena_WBB. Join the conversation by using the hashtags #MarchOn, #SienaSaints, and #MAACHoops.
Siena enters its 33rd MAAC Tournament, with the program holding an all-time mark of 28-32, including 16-13 in the quarterfinal round, 5-9 against Fairfield, 1-2 as the #4 seed, and 2-1 against the #5 seed. The Stags enter Thursday's contest as Siena's most frequently played postseason foe, with the pair last matching up in the 2020 MAAC Quarterfinals to the tune of a 72-56 Fairfield win. Siena is 2-3 all-time at Boardwalk Hall, and will look to avenge last year's 60-59 quarterfinal loss to #4 Niagara. The Saints will aim to advance to the MAAC Semifinals for the first time since 2018, with head coach Jim Jabir owning a 2-2 all-time mark in MAAC postseason play.
Should Siena advance, it will face 2022-23 Regular Season Champion #1 Iona in the MAAC Semifinals on Friday, March 10 at 11 AM.
The Saints closed out the regular season on a high note, taking a 76-58 win at Canisius in Buffalo last Saturday to lock up the #4 seed in the postseason. Freshman Teresa Seppala dropped her third 20-point game of the season with 22 points to lead all scorers, while junior Ahniysha Jackson and sophomore Anajah Brown also went for double figures with 15 and 14 points, respectively.
Siena matched the second-most All-MAAC selections in program history during last Monday's MAAC Postseason Award announcement. Brown and freshman Elisa Mevius were named Third-Team All-MAAC honorees, while Mevius and freshman Teresa Seppala were selected to the MAAC All-Rookie Team. Mevius went on to earn the program's sixth MAAC Rookie of the Year award during Wednesday's MAAC Major Awards Show.
Siena has recorded its most wins in a campaign since 2014-15 (22), and matched its highest regular season win output (18) in 20 seasons.The Saints have collected six true road victories and seven total away from home this season, matching the most since the 2014-15 campaign (11 true road). The team ended the regular season with five sweeps over conference opponents (Marist, Fairfield, Rider, Saint Peter's,Canisius) matching the most since the 2002-03 season.
Siena currently leads the MAAC in scoring offense (68.3) and ranks second in rebounding (39.9), defensive rebounds per-game (26.1), and steals per-game (9.5). Individually, Mevius is the league's top free throw shooter (81.7), while Brown leads the league in offensive rebounds per-game (3.6) and ranks second in rebounds per-game (226), total rebounding (224), and total blocks (41). Brown's 41 blocks so far this season have her tied for the eighth-most in a single season in program history entering the final contest of the regular season.
Aside from the 15th meeting in the postseason, Siena and Fairfield will square off for the 84th time overall since 1987, with the Saints owning a 51-32 advantage in the all-time series. Siena earned one of its first series sweeps over MAAC opponents this season against the Stags, beginning with a 61-46 home win on Jan. 5 and culminating with a thrilling 55-51 overtime victory on Jan. 19. Sophomore Emina Selimovic turned in arguably two of her best performances of the season thus far against Fairfield, leading all scorers with 19 points in the first meeting, and recording her only double-double to-date with 12 points and ten rebounds in the second meeting. Siena has now won three of its last four matchups with Fairfield, and took home its most recent win in unlikely fashion on Jan. 19. With only six active players and down to five for the final 17 minutes of the game, Siena carved out a 55-52 overtime win at Leo D. Mahoney Arena, overcoming a 13-point deficit in the process.
Fairfield enters the postseason as the defending MAAC Champions, and will aim to become the first repeat MAAC Women's Basketball Champions since Quinnipiac won three straight from 2017-19. Led by first year head coach Carly Thibault-DuDonis, the Stags ended the regular season at 15-14 and with losses in five of its final seven games. The team boasts First Team All-MAAC selection Callie Cavanaugh, who ranks third in the league in scoring (15.9) and field goal percentage (42.2). Point guard Janelle Brown took home Third Team All-MAAC honors, and ranks fifth in the league in steals per-game (2.43).
