Le Moyne (1-8, 0-0 NEC) vs. Bowling Green (6-4, 0-0 MAC)

Info: Tuesay, Dec. 16 | 11:00 A.M. | Bowling Green, Ohio | Stroh Center
Watch: ESPN+
Listen: FOX Sports 92.5 FM/1490 AM
Live Stats: https://bgsufalcons.com/sidearmstats/wbball/summary
Marquette's Links: Schedule | Roster | News

Bowling Green, Ohio. – The Le Moyne College women's basketball team will round out their two-game road set at Bowling Green with tip-off scheduled for 11:00 a.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 16. The matchup will broadcast on ESPN+ and FOX Sports 92.5 FM/1490 AM from the Stroh Center. 

Season Summary:
The Dolphins are 1-8 through their first nine non-conference games of the 2025-26 season, with seven coming on the road and two taking place at home at Ted Grant Court. 

They opened the season against St. John's on Nov. 3 and dropped the matchup, 68-53, before downing Lafayette, 82-79, in overtime in their lone win of the season thus far on the following Sunday, Nov. 9. Le Moyne then fell to seventh-ranked Baylor, 99-43, in Waco, T.X. on Sunday, Nov. 16 before traveling to Pitt and coming away with a 87-65 defeat on Tuesday, Nov. 18. 

To finish out November, the Dolphins dropped their home-opener to Cornell, 52-51, in overtime at Ted Grant Court on Saturday, Nov. 22 and a road matchup at Bucknell, 65-41, on Tuesday, Nov. 25 before dropping another road meeting against Illinois, 100-28, on Sunday, Nov. 30.

Since the beginning of the month, Le Moyne has fallen in back-to-back contests, first at home against St. Bonaventure on Saturday, Dec. 6 with the Bonnies coming out on top, 66-57, and then most recently on the road at Marquette (89-42) this past Sunday. 

Stat Leaders:
Sophomore guard Eli Clark leads all Dolphins in scoring with 9.6 points per game while shooting .349 from the field with a 30.4% rate from three-point range. She also sits atop the stat sheet with both 31.4 minutes per game and 26 assists while ranking third with 3.4 rebounds. Clark is currently 14-15 (.933) from the free-throw line, as well, ranking first among all players with more than six attempts this season. 

Clark currently ranks fourth in the NEC in assists, ninth in minutes played, 10th in three-pointers made per game (1.6), and 18th in scoring.

Junior forward Ashley Buragas (8.3), senior guard Sierra Linnin (7.3), and freshman guard Peyton Dincher (7.3) sit behind E. Clark in scoring for Le Moyne. Buragas and Dincher also sit first and second on the team in field goal percentage as Buragas is shooting at a .493 clip and Dincher at  .442. 

Buragas leads all 'Phins with 6.2 rebounds per game on average while Dincher and Linnin sit atop the stat sheet with 18 made threes each.

Buragas currently ranks ninth in the NEC in rebounding and 23rd in scoring while Dincher and Linnin sit tied for fifth in three-pointers made per game with 2.0 each. 

Last Time Out:
The Dolphins hosted and traveled to Marquette for a non-conference matchup and came away with an 89-42 loss to the Golden Eagles on Sunday afternoon.

Sierra Linnin, Ashley Buragas, and Eli Clark all tied to lead Le Moyne with eight points. Linnin and E. Clark each shot 2-4 from behind the arc with the former adding two free throws, one rebound, and one steal while the latter registered one more bucket, one board, and two assists. 

Buragas went 3-8 from the field with three rebounds, one assist, and one block. 

Ava Johnson and Kayden Clark sat just behind with six points each for the 'Phins, with Johnson tallying one rebound, one assist, and a team-high two blocks and K. Clark recording a team-high four rebounds, one assist, and one block.

Sydney Postell tied E. Clark for the team-lead in assists with two Amya McLeod led with two steals in the loss. 

Series History:
Le Moyne and Bowling Green will meet for the first time in their programs' histories on Tuesday.

Common Opponents:
The Dolphins and Falcons have one common opponent this season in Marquette University.

Bowling Green traveled to the Golden Eagles on Friday, Nov. 14 and fell, 71-55, before the Dolphins followed suit, 89-42, this past Sunday.

Year #3:
Le Moyne is in its third year transitioning to the Division I level and is the only institution in the nation in its transition "class." The Dolphins went 18-15 in their first season at the Division I level in 2023-24, including 14-2 in NEC action to earn the second seed in the postseason tournament before advancing to the conference title game. The team then posted a 7-24 overall record last season, including going 6-10 in conference play, en route to their second straight NEC tournament, this time as the fifth seed. 

Returners:
The 2025-26 Dolphins will feature six returners; senior guards Sierra Linnin (Valley Cottage, N.Y. / Albertus Magnus) and Michelina Lombardi (Wynantskill, N.Y. / Averill Park), juniors guard Jessica Wangolo (Ottawa, O.N. / Capital Courts Academy / Buffalo) and forward Sydney Postell (Churchville, N.Y. / Churchville-Chili), sophomore guard Eli Clark (Oakhurst, N.J. / Ocean Township), and redshirt sophomore guard Amya McLeod (Rome, N.Y. / Rome Free Academy / Youngstown State).

Newcomers:
The Dolphins welcomed eight new players to the program this year, including six freshman, one sophomore, and one junior. Guards Peyton Dincher (Jersey Shore, Pa. / Jersey Shore), Ava Lucarotti (Erie, Pa. / Cathedral Prep), and Kayden Clark (Oakhurst, N.J. / Manasquan) join forwards Ava Johnson (Richmond, Va. / The Steward School), Rachel Lynch (Cork, Ireland / Putnam Science Academy (Conn.)), and Praise Matthews (Red Lion, Pa. / Dallastown) as 'Phins freshmen this season. Junior forward Ashley Buragas (Hopewell Junction, N.Y. / John Jay / Mineral Area College) joins Le Moyne's program after a two-year stint at NJCAA Mineral Area College in Park Hills, M.O. while sophomore guard Sophia Bonnell (Horseheads, N.Y. / Horseheads / SUNY New Paltz) played one season in NCAA Division-III for the New Paltz Hawks.

NEC Outlook:
Le Moyne's squad was selected to finish fourth in the regular season standings in the NEC preseason coaches' poll, just behind unanimous favorite FDU, Stonehill, and Chicago State. CCSU, Mercyhurst, Wagner, LIU, New Haven, and Saint Francis rounded out the poll behind the Dolphins. 

Eli Clark was named to the preseason All-NEC team, as well, after recording averages of 8.2 points (third on the team), 3.3 rebounds (fifth on the team) and a team-best 2.9 assists over a team-high 31.5 minutes per game as a starter in 27 of 30 games played. During NEC action, she increased her averages to 8.5 points and 3.5 assists to go with 3.1 rebounds as a starter in 12 of 15 games.

2025-26 NEC Weekly Award Winners & Prime Performers:
Dolphins players have earned one NEC Weekly Award and three NEC Prime Performer honors so far this season.

Weekly Award Winners: 
Rookie of the Week - Kayden Clark (Nov. 10)

Prime Performers:
Kayden Clark (Nov. 10)
Ashley Buragas (Nov. 10)
Eli Clark (Nov. 24)

Coach DiPillo:
Nick DiPillo was named the seventh head coach in Le Moyne women's basketball program history on May 23, 2024 after stints as an assistant coach at Bowling Green State University, University of Pittsburgh, Seton Hall University and with the New York Liberty, in addition to a successful head coaching stint at the University of Scranton. 

The Dolphins earned the fifth seed in the 2024-25 NEC tournament in coach Dipillo's first season, eventually taking down #4 Saint Francis, 62-51, in the opening round before falling to #2 Stonehill, 60-41, in the semifinals. 

Falcons Files:
Bowling Green sits with a 6-4 overall record through their first 10 games of the season but is on a current five-game winning streak. Head Coach Fred Chmiel is in his third season coaching the Falcons in 2025-26. 

The Falcons opened the season at the MAC-Sun Belt Challenge where they came away with an 82-67 win over Louisiana on Nov. 3 before falling in their next four matchups against #2 South Carolina (114-47), Wisconsin (90-78), Marquette (71-55), and UC Irvine (75-50) from Nov. 7-21 all on the road. 

The squad got back in the win column with a 67-63 victory on the road against Alaska Anchorage on Nov. 22 before winning their next four against Purdue Fort Wayne (56-53), Kentucky State (103-32), Defiance (118-35), and most recently Lourdes (104-76) from Nov. 30-Dec. 14. 

The team's four most recent games have come at home over the past two-plus weeks. 

Through 10 games, junior guard Paige Kohler leads the Falcons in scoring with 14.6 points per game just ahead of sophomore guard Johnea Donahue who also sits in the double-digits with 12.9. 

Junior forward Taya Ellis leads Bowling Green with 6.8 rebounds and 14 blocks while Kohler also sits atop the rankings with 42 assists in 32.8 minutes of action per game. 

Bowling Green returns nine players from their 2024-25 season that saw the Falcons go 18-13 overall and fall just short to Buffalo, 65-63, in the quarterfinal round of the MAC Tournament. They are joined by three transfers and one freshman newcomer, guard Ky'Aira Miller, this season.

The Falcons were voted to finish sixth in the MAC this season with Kohler being voted to the Preseason All-Conference First Team.

What's Next:
Le Moyne will hit the road once again next weekend as they take part in the two-day Hawk Classic hosted by St. Joe's in Philadelphia, Pa. beginning on Saturday, Dec. 20.