Le Moyne (2-11, 0-0 NEC) vs. Saint Francis (0-11, 0-0 NEC)
Info: Friday, Jan. 2 | 6:00 P.M. | Syracuse, N.Y. | Ted Grant Court
Watch: NEC Front Row
Listen: FOX Sports 92.5 FM/1490 AM
Live Stats: https://lemoynedolphins.com/sidearmstats/wbball/summary
SFU's Links: Schedule | Roster | News

Syracuse, N.Y. – The Le Moyne College women's basketball team is set to open 2025-26 NEC action at home against Saint Francis University on Friday, Jan. 2. The 6:00 p.m. tip off will be broadcast on NEC Front Row and FOX Sports 92.5 FM/1490 AM from Ted Grant Court. 

Season Summary:
The Dolphins are 2-11 after the conclusion of their 2025-26 season-opening non-conference, with ten games coming on the road and just three 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 Nov. 9. Le Moyne then fell to seventh-ranked Baylor, 99-43, in Waco, T.X. on Nov. 16 before traveling to Pitt and coming away with a 87-65 defeat on Nov. 18. 

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

Since the beginning of the month, Le Moyne dropped a home set against St. Bonaventure on Dec. 6 with the Bonnies coming out on top, 66-57, before hitting the road for two games at Marquette (89-42) and Bowling Green (74-46) on Dec. 14 and 16. The squad then dropped a pair of games in the Hawk Classic from Dec. 21-21 against host St. Joe's, 100-40, and Akron, 94-68.

Le Moyne closed out their non-conference schedule with a home win over SUNY Geneseo, 67-55, this past Tuesday, Dec. 30. 

Stat Leaders:
Sophomore guard Eli Clark leads all Dolphins in scoring with 9.8 points per game while shooting .377 from the field with a 36.5% rate from three-point range. She also sits atop the stat sheet with both 29.9 minutes per game and 33 assists while ranking tied for third with 2.9 rebounds per game (Peyton Dincher). Clark is currently 18-21 (.857) from the free-throw line, as well, ranking first among all players with double-digit attempts this season. 

Clark currently ranks ninth in the NEC in assists, seventh in three-pointers made per game (1.8), 12th in minutes played, and 15th in scoring.

Junior forward Ashley Buragas (8.8) and senior guard Sierra Linnin (8.2) sit behind E. Clark in scoring for Le Moyne while fellow freshman guards Peyton Dincher (6.3) and Kayden Clark (5.9) round out the 'Phins with more than five points scored per contest this season. 

Buragas and K. Clark also sit first and second on the team in field goal percentage as Buragas is shooting at a .505 clip and K. Clark at .417. 

Buragas leads all 'Phins with 5.8 rebounds per game on average while Dincher, Linnin, and E. Clark sit atop the stat sheet with north of 20 made threes apiece, respectively.

Buragas currently ranks 11th in the NEC in rebounding while Linnin and Dincher rank fourth and eighth in three-pointers made per game. 

Last Time Out:
Le Moyne hosted SUNY Geneseo and came away with a 67-55 victory over the Knights at Ted Grant Court on Tuesday afternoon. The matchup marked the Dolphins' first regular season game against an NCAA Division III program since they defeated St. Lawrence, 54-32, in November 2004. 

Junior forward Ashley Buragas led all players with 16 points and seven rebounds through 25 minutes on the court. She shot 5-8 (62.5%) from the field and 6-7 (85.7%) from the charity stripe en route to being named an NEC Prime Performer on Dec. 31, her second such honor this season. 

Sophomore guard Eli Clark sat just behind Buragas with 15 points, tying Geneseo's leading scorer, while shooting 6-10 (60.0%) overall and 3-5 (60.0%) from deep. Senior guard Sierra Linnin and freshman forward Praise Matthews finished with 7 and 6 points, respectively, while 10 total 'Phins contributed in the score column. 

Le Moyne shot 20-23 (87.0%) from the free-throw line, their best total since Dec. 7 of last season when they went 21-25 against UMass Lowell. They also added a season-high 14 steals, their most in nearly two seasons (3/2/24 vs Saint Francis; 15) against the Knights. 

The Dolphins shot 20-55 (36.4%) from the field while tallying 20 points in the paint, 14 points off turnovers, and 20 bench points in the loss.

Series History:
Saint Francis currently holds a 3-2 series advantage over Le Moyne dating back to the 2023-24 season, the Dolphins' first in the NEC and during their transition to NCAA Division I. 

The two squads split their matchups during the 2023-24 season, each earning a win at home before the Red Flash swept the regular season series last year. 

In their most recent matchup, however, the #5 Dolphins came out on top, 62-51, against the fourth-ranked SFU squad in the quarterfinal round of last season's NEC Tournament. 

Current starters Eli Clark (14) and Sierra Linnin (11) both scored in double-digits in that game, Le Moyne's first road playoff win since the 2018-19 campaign.

Common Opponents:
Aside from their NEC rivals, the Dolphins and Red Flash both took on Lafayette and Pitt earlier this season.

Le Moyne earned their first win of the season at Lafayette, 82-79 in OT, on Nov. 9 while Saint Francis fell, 69-55, at home against the Leopards one week later.

The Dolphins then came up short at Pitt, 87-65, on Nov. 18, exactly one month before SFU dropped their matchup with the Panthers, 98-46, also on the road. 

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 four NEC Prime Performer honors so far this season.

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

Prime Performers:
Ashley Buragas (Nov. 10, Dec. 31)
Kayden Clark (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. 

Red Flash Rundown:
SFU concluded their 2025-26 non-conference schedule on Sunday, Dec. 21 with an 0-11 record. The Red Flash are led by first-year head coach Chynna Bozeman.

In their most recent matchup, Saint Francis traveled to the Bronx and fell to Fordham, 86-61, on Dec. 21. Three members of the Red Flash finished with double-digit points, including graduate forward Cassandra Hawthorne who set a new career-high with 24 points on 5-8 shooting from deep.

Through 10 games, graduate point guard Aleah James leads the Red Flash in scoring with 12.0 points per game just ahead of graduate forward Shelby Ricks who also sits in the double-digits with 10.9 and graduate forward Sonia Sato who is just outside with 9.4. 

Ricks also leads SFU with 6.3 rebounds while senior guard Assefa Bati sits atop the rankings with a .405 mark from the field. James' .455 rate from three-point range and 33 assists lead the team through 11 games.

Saint Francis returns just two players from their 2024-25 season that saw the Red Flash go 11-19 overall, earn the #4 seed in the NEC Tournament, and fall to Le Moyne, 62-51, in the quarterfinal round. They are joined by nine transfers and one freshman newcomer (point guard Makyiah Ward) this season.

The Red Flash were voted to finish 10th in the NEC's Preseason Coaches Poll after going 9-7 in conference play a season ago.

What's Next:
Le Moyne will host Mercyhurst at Ted Grant Court at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 4.