Men's and Women's Basketball to Compete in Patriot League Tournament

WORCESTER, Mass. – The Holy Cross men's basketball teams continues play in the 2009 Patriot League Tournament when it takes on Colgate in the semifinals at the Hart Center on Sunday, March 8. The Crusaders stand 17-13 overall, and placed second in the conference with an 11-3 mark in league games. The Raiders have an overall record of 10-19 on the season, and tied for fifth in the Patriot League with a 5-9 mark in the conference. Tickets are available through the Holy Cross Ticket Office.

This will be the 66th meeting between the Crusaders and the Raiders on the hardwood, with Holy Cross leading the all-time series 49-16. The Crusaders swept the regular season series this year, but Colgate swept the regular season series is 2007-2008. Over the last 15 years, Holy Cross holds a 20-14 lead in the series, but previously the Crusaders had won 29 of the first 31 meetings between the schools. For games played in Worcester, Holy Cross holds a 27-5 advantage, with an 18-5 mark at the Hart Center. The schools first met on Feb. 11, 1947, with Holy Cross posting a 67-39 victory at the Boston Garden.

The Holy Cross women’s basketball team begins play in the 2009 Patriot League tournament on Saturday, March 7, when they play Army in the quarterfinals at 2:30 p.m. Holy Cross is the fourth seed in the tournament, while the Black Knights are seeded fifth. The winner of the Holy Cross-Army game will move on to face the Lehigh-Colgate winner in the semifinals on Sunday, March 8, with the championship game set for Wednesday, March 11. This year’s Patriot League tournament is being hosted by Lehigh at Stabler Arena in Bethlehem, Pa.

This will be the 43rd meeting between the Crusaders and the Black Knights on the hardwood, with Holy Cross leading the all-time series, 28-14. Last time out, Army edged the Crusaders, 63-62, in West Point, N.Y. on Feb. 11. In the first meeting of the season,  Holy Cross ended a seven-game losing streak to Army, posting a 57-41 victory in Worcester on Jan. 14. For games played in the Patriot League tournament, Holy Cross leads, 3-1. The last time the teams met in the tournament was in the championship game on March 8, 2006 with Army winning, 69-68, at Christl Arena in West Point, N.Y.  The Crusaders’ last win in the post season against the Black Knights was in Worcester on March 12, 2003, picking up a 78-65 victory in the championship game.

Briana McFadden has been named to the 2008-2009 All-Patriot League first team in women’s basketball, as voted upon by the conference’s head coaches. In addition, Bethany O’Dell was named to the All-Patriot League second team. This is the second first team honor for McFadden and the third time O’Dell has made the second team.