SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. — The Slippery Rock University women's basketball team will see its challenging schedule continue when it heads to nationally ranked Seton Hill University 1 p.m. Saturday.
 
The Rock are hoping to put together an upset bid against the No. 10 Griffins as they bring a 7-12 overall record and a 4-9 mark within Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference competition. Seton Hill is continuing to have its best season in program history at 18-2 on the year and 12-1 in the PSAC.
 
ALUMNAE GAME ANNOUNCED FOR FEB. 8
The Slippery Rock women's basketball team invites all Rock women's basketball alumnae to Morrow Field House Feb. 8 as The Rock will host California (Pa.) on Alumnae Day.
 
All Rock women's basketball alumnae will get free admission into Slippery Rock's game against Cal, which tips off at 1 p.m. The alumnae will be recognized at halftime of the game and enjoy a meet and greet with the 2024-25 team as well as a reception in the Collaboration Room at Morrow Field House.
 
For more information and to RSVP, please email Slippery Rock head coach Ryenn Micaletti at ryenn.micaletti@sru.edu.
 
GAME 20 of 26
Opponent: #10 Seton Hill
Date: Saturday – 1 p.m.
Location: Greensburg, Pennsylvania
Venue: Katerine Mabis McKenna Center
Live Video: Westmoreland Sports Network
Live Stats: Seton Hill Athletic Communication
In-game Updates: X (@Rock_Athletics)
All-Time Series: 8-19
Current Streak: L7
Last Played: Jan. 3, 2025 at SRU (#11 Seton Hill won, 82-57)
 
TOP ACTIVE SRU CAREER PER-GAME STATS vs. SETON HILL
Regan Atkins – 15.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 0.7 steals, 0.3 blocks (3 GP)
Brooklyn Jones – 8.0 points, 3.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 2.0 steals (1 GP)
Tahmala Thorpe – 7.0 points, 1.0 rebound, 2.0 assists (1 GP)
Sophia Hook – 6.0 points, 3.0 rebounds, 1.0 assist (1 GP)
Kayley Joseph-Bernard – 6.0 points, 2.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 2.0 blocks (1 GP)
 
SERIES HISTORY
The Rock will see the Griffins on the court for the 28^th time in program history Saturday, looking to cut into an 8-19 series record. Seton Hill enters the weekend with seven straight wins over Slippery Rock, not having lost to SRU since Feb. 15, 2020.
 
While Slippery Rock is seeking to end its five-year winless drought against the Griffins, SRU is also looking for its road win against SHU in nine years. Behind 16 points from Lexi Carpenter and the team's 17-of-19 shooting at the foul line (.895), Slippery Rock picked up a 72-59 win at Seton Hill Dec. 30, 2016.
 
The two sides are also playing for the second time this season, signaling Slippery Rock's start to the second portion of PSAC West round-robin play. A then-11^th-ranked Seton Hill squad claimed an 82-57 decision at Morrow Field House Jan. 3. Regan Atkins led SRU with 12 points, six rebounds, two assists and two steals.
 

TEAM COMPARISON
THE ROCK	STAT	#10 GRIFFINS
63.0	Points per Game	82.3
66.7	Opp. Points per Game	69.4
39.9%	Field Goal Pct.	44.6%
39.2%	Opp. Field Goal Pct.	40.9%
31.9%	3-Point Pct.	30.7%
31.1%	Opp 3-Point Pct.	24.8%
6.6	3-Pointers Made per Game	7.6
71.2%	Free Throw Pct.	70.6%
37.4	Rebounds per Game	41.4
39.2	Opp. Rebounds per Game	36.3
-1.8	Rebounding Margin	+5.1
13.6	Assists	15.7
-2.5	Turnover Margin	+2.4
6.3	Steals	12.9
3.3	Blocks	4.3
Per game averages

 
THE ROCK BY THE NUMBERS   |   Roster   |   Stats
Overall Record: 7-12
PSAC Record: 4-9
Home Record: 4-6
Away Record: 2-5
Neutral Record: 1-1
Last Five: 1-4
Streak: L4
PSAC West Rank: 7^th of 8
Head Coach: Ryenn Micaletti | Second season at SRU (9-35, .205)
 
LAST TIME OUT
Slippery Rock suffered a 74-57 wire-to-wire loss against Edinboro Jan. 29 at Morrow Field House. Sophia Hook was The Rock's top scorer for the fourth time in her career with 13 points and five rebounds. Brooklyn Jones joined her in double digits with 10 points.
 
Kayley Joseph-Bernard registered a well-rounded performance that included six points and team-leading figures of eight rebounds, five assists, four steals and one block. SRU held Edinboro without a field goal for the first 7:26 of the second half but the Fighting Scots continued to convert free throw chances to keep The Rock at bay.
 
Slippery Rock shot 34.9 percent overall (22-of-63) and 29.2 percent from the 3-point arc (7-of-24). Edinboro outrebounded SRU, 38-34, but lost the turnover battle to SRU, 20-19.
 
LEADING THE ROCK
Atkins has guided Slippery Rock's offense this season, now averaging 12.4 points per game. Hook (10.6) and Tahmala Thorpe (10.3) accompany her with double-digit outputs with Joseph-Bernard (7.8), Jones (7.0) and Alyssa Gillin (7.0) rounding out SRU's top six scorers.
 
Joseph-Bernard improved her team-leading shooting percentage to .474 on the season (65-of-137), ahead of Atkins at 42.3 percent (83-of-196).
 
Jones is Slippery Rock's most efficient 3-point shooter at 39.6 percent thus far (19-of-48). Hook leads the team with 2.1 3-pointers made per game, converting 32.7 percent (32-of-98) from the perimeter.
 
Joseph-Bernard continues to serve as the top rebounder for The Rock with 8.1 rebounds per game, good enough to rank seventh in the conference. Atkins is second on the roster with 6.2 rebounds per game, while Hook ranks third at SRU with 4.0 boards per contest.
 
On top of her rebounding, Joseph-Bernard ranks fourth in the PSAC with 3.8 assists and seventh in the conference with 1.2 blocks per game. She also leads Slippery Rock with 1.6 steals per game.
 
EIGHT IS GREAT
Slippery Rock was able to utilize eight different scorers for the second time in three games against Edinboro. Hook (13), Jones (10), Atkins (8) and Gillin (8) led The Rock on offense. Gillin (2-of-4) and Joseph-Bernard (3-of-6) both shot 50 percent from the floor against the Fighting Scots.
 
SRU also had eight different players with at least one assist, eight players with a steal and a total of nine players that recorded a rebound.
 
BROOKLYN ON A TEAR
With 10 points against Edinboro including two made 3-pointers, Jones has now reached double figures in three of the last four games. The graduate transfer from Morgan State University is averaging 10.8 points, 4.0 rebounds and 3.3 assists in that span for The Rock.
 
Jones enters Saturday averaging 7.0 points per game this season, her highest per-game average in seven games.
 
A MEMORABLE DEBUT AT MORROW
Hannah Pugliese produced a career-high six points in her Morrow Field House debut against Edinboro. The freshman guard – who has played in three prior away games in her collegiate career for Slippery Rock – has now averaged 5.0 points per game in her last three appearances for The Rock.
 
Pugliese also pulled down four rebounds against the Fighting Scots, eclipsing her previous personal-best one rebound that she got against Gannon University Jan. 15.
 
WINDOW SHOPPING
With 17 offensive rebounds, half of SRU's 34 total rebounds versus Edinboro came on the offensive end of the floor. That marks the most offensive rebounds collected by Slippery Rock in 12 games. The Rock reeled in 21 offensive rebounds against Tiffin University Nov. 26, 2024 and totaled 23 in SRU's season-opening win against Davis & Elkins College.
 
Hook and Joseph-Bernard led Slippery Rock's efforts against the Fighting Scots with three offensive rebounds apiece, while Atkins and Pugliese each added two. Rebecca Goetz and Endya Robinson both came away from the contest with one offensive rebound.
 
The Rock have now averaged 10.7 offensive rebounds per game throughout their 2024-25 campaign.
 
FORCING TURNOVERS
11 steals against Edinboro marked the most takeaways garnered by The Rock in nine games. Slippery Rock came up with 12 steals against Mansfield in a 70-51 win over the Mountaineers Dec. 17.
 
Joseph-Bernard led The Rock with four steals versus the Fighting Scots, the fifth time this year that an SRU player has recorded four steals in a game. She posted a remarkable 5.0 assist/turnover ratio in the game as well, guiding SRU with five assists while giving the ball up just once.
 
SRU's aggression in takeaways won The Rock the turnover battle for the second time in four games as well. The Rock forced 20 turnovers while committing 19 themselves. The defensive performance drove SRU to force the most turnovers from an opponent in regulation in 15 games – The Rock earned a +5 turnover margin (20-15) at Salem University.
 
ON A BREAKAWAY
Slippery Rock logged a 10-8 advantage over the Scots in fastbreak points, its second such lead for the second time in the last four games. The Rock also gained a 14-12 fastbreak-point win against Gannon. The Rock have now totaled at least 10 fastbreak points in six different games this season.
 
Five of Atkins' eight total points against the Fighting Scots came on the fast break. Pugliese registered three fastbreak points in the game with Hook adding two.
 
ACCUMULATING TREYS
The Rock amassed at least seven 3-pointers for the fourth time in the last seven games with a 29.2 percent showing (7-of-24) against Boro. Atkins (2-of-5), Gillin (2-of-3), Jones (2-of-5) and Hook (1-of-9) all converted 3-point field goal attempts. The Rock held Edinboro to just 26.7 percent from the perimeter (4-of-15) to win the shooting advantage from distance.
 
Despite Slippery Rock's well-rounded showing, The Rock slipped from first to third in the conference in 3-point percentage, now at 31.9 percent on the season.
 
PSAC TEAM 3-POINT LEADERS
1. Gannon (32.2%)
2. Millersville (32.0%)
3. THE ROCK (31.9%)
4. Kutztown (31.7%)
5. Bloomsburg (31.6%)
 
Individually, Hook ranks fifth in the conference and third in the PSAC West by shooting 32.7 percent on the year from the arc.
 
PSAC WEST INDIVIDUAL 3-POINT LEADERS
1. Carissa Dunham, Gannon (36.3%)
2. Hallie Cowan, Seton Hill (35.6%)
3. Sophia Hook, THE ROCK (32.7%)
4. Helene Cowan, Seton Hill (31.3%)
5. Autumn Taylor, Clarion (30.0%)
 
RUNNING THROUGH A GAUNTLET
Slippery Rock will be playing a team listed in the Division II College Sports Communicators Atlantic Region Women's Basketball Poll for the fifth straight game Saturday. SRU traveled to Gannon University Jan. 15, which was ranked 16^th nationally and second regionally before heading to Clarion Jan. 18, a team ranked eighth in the region.
 
The Rock then had to face Indiana University (Pa.) when the Crimson Hawks were ranked fourth in the Atlantic Region and host an Edinboro team that polled sixth regionally by the D2CSC.
 
Saturday's game features a Seton Hill squad that is ranked 10^th nationally and second in the Atlantic Region.
 
This stretch run against IUP, Edinboro and Seton Hill feature three teams whose combined overall record is 49-10 (.831).
 
THE ROCK vs. RANKED OPPONENTS
Slippery Rock will also be facing a nationally ranked opponent for the third time this season. SRU lost to Seton Hill at home when the Griffins were ranked 11^th in the Women's Basketball Coaches Association poll and suffered a road loss to No. 16 Gannon just 12 days later.
 
The Rock also squared off against three nationally ranked teams last season, dropping a road tilt to No. 13 West Chester University before seeing a top-five Gannon team twice in the PSAC West rotation.
 
If Gannon is still ranked when Slippery Rock hosts the Golden Knights Feb. 12, it will be the first time in six years that SRU will see at least four nationally ranked teams in the same season. SRU played five ranked opponents in the 2018-19 season – No. 2 Ashland University and a pair of games against both No. 1/4 IUP and No. 16/10 Cal.
 
A win over Seton Hill Saturday would snap a 10-game losing streak to nationally ranked challengers. SRU most recently upset No. 10 California (Pa.) Feb. 2, 2019 in a 72-61 victory.
 
The Rock are 2-5 all-time against teams ranked 10^th in the country but are winners against the No. 10 team in two of their last three contests. Slippery Rock also upended a 10^th-ranked IUP Crimson Hawks team Feb. 12, 2000. That game is also SRU's most recent win against any top-10 team prior to the Cal game in 2019.
 
A HEAD COACHING HOMECOMING
Slippery Rock head coach Ryenn Micaletti will be leading The Rock at her alma mater Saturday for the second time in her time at the helm of the program. Micaletti played for the Griffins from 2007-11, appearing in 76 games in the final three seasons.
 
Micaletti helped SHU go 45-16 in her final two seasons with the Griffins, two years that both concluded with NCAA Tournament appearances. She earned her undergraduate degree from Seton Hill in history following her four-year playing career.
 
Coincidentally, Micaletti's first coaching job out of college was as an assistant at Point Park University from 2011-13. One of the players she helped coach was Maeve Gallagher, who is in her second year as Seton Hill's head coach.
 
ROCK STARS OF RECENT
• In addition to her career-best showing in scoring and rebounding, Pugliese recorded her first career steal against Edinboro.
 
• Joseph-Bernard tied a career-high four steals for the third time this season.
 
• Robinson notched her first assist and steal of the season.
 
• Washington registered her second assist in as many appearances for The Rock.
 
• Pugliese has now made two free throws in her last three appearances for SRU. She went 2-of-2 at the line against both Gannon and Clarion and made 2-of-4 attempts against the Fighting Scots. She is now one of seven players for SRU shooting at least 75 percent from the charity stripe.
 
THE GRIFFINS BY THE NUMBERS   |   Roster   |   Stats
Overall Record: 18-2
PSAC Record: 12-1
Home Record: 7-1
Away Record: 9-1
Neutral Record: 2-0
Last Five: 4-1
Streak: W1
PSAC West Rank: 1^st of 8
Head Coach: Maeve Gallagher | Second season at SHU (32-17, .653)
HC Career Record: Same
 
SETON HILL SCOUTING REPORT
The Griffins saw an 11-0 run through PSAC play come to an end after dropping an 89-75 home game to No. 15 Gannon Jan. 25. The Griffins managed to rebound with a 76-67 road win at Pitt-Johnstown this week but did so without star player Christiane Frye for a fourth consecutive game.
 
Seton Hill has compiled 82.3 points per game, the seventh-ranked scoring offense in Division II. The Griffins rank 22^nd in the country with a .446 field goal percentage and line up 13^th in D-II women's hoops with 12.9 steals per game. Two of the few statistics SHU does not rank highly in are scoring defense (69.4) and turnovers per game (19.6).
 
Junior twin sisters Helene (14.6 points per game) and Hallie Cowan (14.3) are the second and third-leading scorers on the team behind Frye. They get great support under the basket from Mia Kalich, a sophomore who averages a double-double on 11.8 points and 10.9 rebounds per game. Kalich is one of 16 players in the nation with 10 double-doubles.
 
The Cowan sisters combined for 35 points on a cumulative 7-of-12 effort from the 3-point arc against Slippery Rock in SHU's 82-57 win Jan. 3. As a team, the Griffins shot 43.5 percent (30-of-69) from the floor and 54.5 percent (12-of-22) from the perimeter.
 
Seton Hill has already clinched a berth in the PSAC Tournament thanks to a 12-1 mark in league play. The Griffins received the sixth and final spot in the PSAC West last year after going 11-11 in conference competition.
 
LOOKING AHEAD
The Rock will welcome back and celebrate their alumnae from the women's basketball program 1 p.m. Feb. 8 as SRU hosts California (Pa.) at Morrow Field House.





To stay up to date with all that happens at The Rock, follow our official athletic communication accounts on 'X' (formerly Twitter, @Rock_Athletics), Facebook (RockAthletics) and Instagram (RockAthletics).