Matchup	Merrimack (6-5) at Saint Rose (5-6)
Date/Time	Saturday, Dec. 30, 2017 (2:00 p.m.)
Venue	Daniel P. Nolan Gymnasium // Albany, N.Y.
Multimedia	Live Stats // Video // Twitter // Instagram

NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – The Merrimack College women's basketball program will close the calendar year  with its non-conference finale on Saturday afternoon, with the Warriors traveling to Albany, N.Y. for a 2 p.m. contest against the College of Saint Rose from Daniel P. Nolan Gymnasium. 

Last Time Out:

• Merrimack used a balanced offensive effort that featured four Warriors finishing in double figures in last Tuesday's 69-57 win against Bridgeport
• Junior Lindsay Werner (Groton, Mass.) led all scorers with 23 points on 8-of-18 shooting. The sharpshooter hit a trio of three-pointers, but also was effective from inside the arc, shooting 5-of-8 from two-point range
• Making her first start since returning from injury, sophomore forward Denia Davis-Stewart totaled a season-best 12 points with eight rebounds and a team-high four blocks. With eight block in two games, last year's Northeast-10 Conference leader in rejections took over the team lead in blocks
• The freshmen duo of Alyssa Casey (Andover, Mass.) and Mayson Kimball (Webster, N.H.) combined for 26 points, scoring 13 apiece. The former added nine rebounds, nearly corralling her fourth double-double of the season

'Mack Facts:

• Three Warriors enter the close of 2017 averaging in double figures, led by 18.2 points per game for Werner. The shooting guard leads Merrimack and is tied atop the league rankings with 33 three-pointers, shooting at a 35.9 clip from beyond the arc
• Casey's averages sit at 16.9 points and 7.5 rebounds per game. She leads the Warriors in field goals (78) and total rebounds (82)
• Junior point guard Karlee Alves (Ellington, Conn.) leads Merrimack and the NE10, while ranking fifth nationally, with 6.8 assists per game. She also paces the conference with 2.8 steals per outing, playing in a team-best 32.5 minutes per game. Alves has already set a career high in assists (75) and is on pace to break her previous markers in rebounds and steals
• Merrimack ranks fifth in the NE10 in scoring offense (65.4) and eighth in scoring defense (59.5)

The Golden Knights

• Saint Rose has also played 11 games entering Saturday, holding a 5-6 overall record and a 3-3 mark against the Southwest Division
• The Golden Knights have endured three straight loses, all coming in non-league play. Two of the three were against nationally ranked opponents
• Saint Rose averages just 56.1 points per game, tied for 14^th in the NE10 in scoring offense. Three Golden Knights average in double figures, with leading scorer Courtney Clasen (11.0 ppg) playing in their last two games after missing a month of action prior to December 16
• Defensively, Saint Rose has forced its opponents to shoot just 36.4 percent from the field, the sixth-best rate in the NE10. Merrimack boasts the third-best field-goal percentage defense (34.8) in the league

The Series:

• The non-league tilt will be the first of two meetings between Saint Rose and Merrimack this season. The Golden Knights make a return trip to Hammel Court for a NE10 tilt in late January
• In 26 all-time meetings, the Golden Knights hold a 15-11 edge including a 59-47 win in Albany last January.
• Merrimack last beat Saint Rose in the 2014-15 season, a 22-point win at Nolan Gym (81-59)

Up Next
Merrimack returns to action on Wednesday when the Warriors begin cross-divisional play by hosting Southern Connecticut State at 5:30 p.m. from Hammel Court.