The Emory Athletics Weekly Preview for January 29th – February 4th. This preview is to serve as a weekly snapshot of all upcoming Emory athletic events for the coming week.
Women's Basketball:
The No. 9 ranked Emory women's basketball team (15-3, 5-2 UAA) spent this past weekend on the road, going 1-1 on the trip. The Eagles started the weekend with an 81-57 win over Brandeis before falling to the No. 1 ranked NYU Violets. After facing Brandeis and NYU on the road last weekend, the Eagles will welcome both teams to the WoodPEC for another shot at their UAA foes this weekend.
Emory has been led by graduate student Claire Brock this year, who is putting up a UAA-best 18.2 points per game. While Brock has served as a steady source of points this year, freshman Alexandra Loucopoulos has emerged as of late, averaging nearly 10 points per game in her past four UAA contests. In addition to her offensive prowess, she's been exceptional on the defensive side, racking up 10 blocks — the most of any guard on the team.
Loucopoulos' high school teammate, Katherine Martini, has also emerged in a more prominent role in the past few games. Martini led the Eagles in scoring against the Violets this past Sunday, scoring 13 to go along with four rebounds and two blocks. The New Jersey native has gotten the start in the past four games, all coming against UAA opponents. Martini's 1.6 blocks per game is tied for second in the UAA, behind just NYU's Natalie Bruns.
The Eagles have won games in convincing fashion this year, with an average score differential of 12.4, the second-best mark in the UAA and trailing only No. 1 NYU's 28.2-point margin. Part of the reason for these big wins is the Eagles' ability to knock down threes. Emory is converting 36.2% of shots from beyond the arc, the fifth best mark in the entire nation. Meanwhile, opponents are hitting just 20.6% of their shots from deep, good for the third best among Division III teams.
Emory will start their weekend of conference play on Friday with a game against Brandeis. The Eagles took down the Judges last weekend behind a few big runs on offense. Sophomore Lily Kennedy sparked a scoring run to kick off the second quarter, widening the Eagles' lead to 17 and putting the Judges in a hole they could not climb out of. Brandeis was led by Caitlin Gresko, who shot 5-12 from the field and scored 15 points to go along with her five rebounds.
The Judges sit at 4-14 heading into their game on Friday, including an 0-7 mark in UAA play. Emory has the edge in the all-time series between the two conference foes, leading the Judges with 41 wins to their 27. The game with Brandeis will be the second iteration of Emory's Friday Night Basketball Event, with attractions such as the Island Chef food truck, beer garden, live DJ, 404 Emory t-shirt giveaways, a $100 Amazon gift card raffle, and more.
The Eagles did not find as much success against the Violets, falling 74-41. NYU's suffocating defense and attention towards taking away clean looks for Brock proved to be too much as the Eagles scored their season low. NYU went up 7-0 quickly and never took their foot off the gas. Bruns was impressive, putting up a double-double with 16 points and 13 rebounds. The Eagles shot just 28.3% and uncharacteristically struggled from beyond the arc, shooting just 23.5%.
Luckily for the Eagles, they don't have a long wait to get another shot at the Violets as they're set to visit the WoodPEC this Sunday. Emory will once again have their hands full, as NYU scores over 80 points per games and averages a national-best 20.4 assists per game. The Violets lead the all-time series between the two 48-20. The game against the Violets will feature a Swoop Beanie Hat giveaway for the first 200 students in attendance.
When/Where:
- Friday, February 2nd – vs Brandeis – 5:30 PM – Woodruff P.E. Center (Atlanta, GA)
- Friday Night Basketball (Island Chef Food Truck, T-Shirt Giveaway, Amazon Gift Card Raffle, and more)
- Sunday, February 4th – vs NYU – 2:00 PM – Woodruff P.E. Center (Atlanta, GA)
- Swoop Beanie Hat for the first 200 students
Coverage:
- Brandeis
- NYU
Men's Basketball:
The No. 20 ranked Emory men's basketball team (12-6, 3-4 UAA) is coming off a weekend in which they split their road trip with a win over Brandeis on Friday before falling to No. 13 NYU. After heading north last weekend to pay visits to their UAA foes, the Eagles will welcome both Brandeis and NYU to the WoodPEC for another shot to climb the UAA standings.
The Eagles have been led by the sophomore guard duo of Jair Knight and Ben Pearce. Knight and Pearce have served as the catalyst to the Eagles' fast-paced offense, scoring 17.1 and 15.8 points per game, respectively. Pearce is also one of the nation's best facilitators on top of his ability to score, averaging 5.7 assists per game, the 10th best mark in the nation.
Emory boasts a pair of junior forwards, Logan Shanahan and Cale Martens, who can both knock down three-point shots with the ability to score in the post as well. Shanahan is knocking down a team-best 52.3% of shots from the field and 35.1% from beyond the arc while also leading the team with 160 rebounds. Martens is right behind Shanahan, shooting 47.0% from the field and pulling down 131 boards this year.
A pair of freshmen have made their way into the fold for Emory as well, with Ethan Fauss and AJ Harris both seeing time in all 18 games this year. Fauss has started 16 games this year, averaging 8.5 points per game. Head Coach Jason Zimmerman has called upon Harris in crucial moments to hit big shots and he's delivered several times. Harris has knocked down 42.2% of his threes and 39.5% of his shots from the field.
The Eagles never trailed in their game last week against Brandeis, with Knight's 20 points leading Emory to a 78-65 win. Emory dominated in the paint against the Judges, winning the battle with 30 points to Brandeis' 18. The Eagles knocked down 44.1% of their shots while holding the Judges to just 33.8% shooting. Brandeis' Gilbert Otoo found success offensively, though, shooting 8-13 from the field and knocking down five three-pointers to keep the Judges in the game.
After falling to Rochester on Sunday, the Judges come into the game with an 11-7 overall record and a 2-5 mark in UAA-play. The Eagles lead the all-time series with the Judges 41-30. The game with Brandeis will be the second iteration of Emory's Friday Night Basketball Event, with attractions such as the Island Chef food truck, beer garden, live DJ, 404 Emory t-shirt giveaways, a $100 Amazon gift card raffle, and more.
The Eagles will then gear up to take another shot at the No. 13 NYU Violets on Sunday. Emory fell to the Violets in New York City by a score of 86-77. The Violets were shooting at an incredible clip this past weekend, shooting 50% from the field, with 38 points coming in the paint. NYU's Michael Savarino came out firing, scoring the Violets' first 15 points in under five minutes to put Emory in a 15-3 hole – a deficit the Eagles would not be able to overcome. The Eagles clawed their way back in to cut the NYU lead to just 2 with just over nine minutes left in the game, but Savarino knocked down another three to put water on the Emory comeback attempt.
The Eagles don't have to wait long to get another shot, though, with the loss fresh in their mind. Emory will welcome the Violets for a Sunday matinee with a chance to claw their way back up the UAA standings. NYU leads the all-time series with the Eagles 38-34. The game against the Violets will feature a Swoop Beanie Hat giveaway for the first 200 students in attendance.
When/Where:
- Friday, February 2nd – vs Brandeis – 5:30 PM – Woodruff P.E. Center (Atlanta, GA)
- Friday Night Basketball (Island Chef Food Truck, T-Shirt Giveaway, Amazon Gift Card Raffle, and more)
- Sunday, February 4th – vs NYU – 2:00 PM – Woodruff P.E. Center (Atlanta, GA)
- Swoop Beanie Hat for the first 200 students
Coverage:
- Brandeis
- NYU
Track and Field:
The Emory track and field teams will be back in action again this weekend as they travel to Columbia, South Carolina for the South Carolina Invitational. The Eagles are coming off a weekend in which they competed in the Camel City Invitational and put up impressive numbers at the event comprised of teams across all three NCAA Divisions.
Graduate student Brigid Hanley posted the third-best time in NCAA Division III in the 3000m with a time of 9:48.40 and finishing fifth at the event. Lily Taylor and Madison Tiaffay finished second and third, respectively, in the 1000m. Their times are good for 8th and 9th best in Division III this year. Senior Libby Ranocha finished third in the 800m elite group with a time of 2:13.27, the second-best time in the division this year.
Senior Kenya Sei broke yet another school record in the weight throw with a distance of 16.93m, breaking his own record which he set earlier this month. Senior Dawit Dean also won the 800m elite group placing. Sophomore Henry Brandstadter won first place in the long jump with a distance of 7.23m, the sixth best mark in all of Division III this season.
Senior Tristan Olpin finished first in the 5000m with a time of 15:13.75, the 53rd best in Division III. Theodore Drye took third in the 400m with a time of 50.54, the 80th best time in Division III this year.
The Eagles will have another opportunity to improve their times this weekend when they head north to South Carolina for the two-day event.
When/Where:
- Friday, February 2nd-Saturday, February 3rd – All Day – University of South Carolina (Columbia, SC)
Coverage:
Swimming and Diving:
The Emory swimming and diving teams are heading into the final stretch of their dual-meet schedule as they prepare to take on the Georgia Bulldogs this weekend. The Eagles are coming off of a meet where they won 28 of 30 events against Centre.
The Eagles kicked off the meet with the Mixed 200 Medley Relay where senior Megan Jungers and freshman Maren McDonald teamed up with senior Nicholas Goudie and sophomore Henri Bonnault to take first in the event with a time of 1:37.77.
Junior Crow Thorsen posted two NCAA B-Cuts in the meet, coming in the 200 Butterfly (1:50.10) and the 400 IM (3:58.47). Jake Meyer posted a B-Cut in the 100 Breaststroke (55.32) and Jeff Echols posted a B-Cut in the 100 Butterfly (48.47). As a team, the men won 13 of 14 possible events and won all the swimming events. Not only did they win the events, but they posted at least the top-four finishers in eight individual events.
Senior Megan Jungers posted a B-Cut for the Eagles as well, with the time coming in the 100 Backstroke. She also won the 200 Backstroke event. The women's team also got it done on the boards, with Tess Klugherz winning the 1-meter dive and Ren Watt winning the 3-meter dive. The women went on to win 14 of their 15 events against the Colonels.
The Eagles will have a shot to improve their times as UAA Championships rapidly approach. The meet at UGA will start at 11:00 AM.
When/Where:
- Saturday, February 3rd – vs Georgia – 11:00 AM – Gabrielsen Natatorium (Athens, GA)
Coverage:
- TBA