GAME NOTES: Montevallo @ Samford (11.14.21)
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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Bulldogs (0-1, 0-0 SoCon) of Samford University open the home portion of the 2021-22 campaign on Sunday, Nov. 14 at the Pete Hanna Center against the Falcons (3-1, 0-0 GSC) of the University of Montevallo. Tipoff is set for 2 PM and the game will be broadcast on ESPN+ with Curt Bloom and Emily London Swaim on the call.

The Bulldogs and Falcons are meeting for the third time in series history with Samford owning a 2-0 edge in the series. The Bulldogs won both of the previous meetings at home, claiming an 81-60 victory on Nov. 5, 2019 and a 73-47 win on Jan. 8, 2018. Coach Carley Kuhns owns a 4-0 record against Montevallo dating back to her time as head coach at Valdosta State.

The Montevallo Falcons (3-1, 1-0 GSC) opened the season with a 66-59 loss to No. 1 ranked (DII) Lubbock Christian, but bounced back to defeat No. 11 (DII) Tampa 81-67 and Simon Frasier 79-72. UM defeated West Georgia 79-69 on Friday behind 27 points from Jordan Jones.   


SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS:
Despite 15 points from Andrea Cournoyer and 15 rebounds from Annie Ramil, the Samford University women's basketball team fell 91-54 to No. 9 Iowa (2-0) in the season-opener on Thursday, Nov. 11 at Carver Hawkeye Arena. Monica Czinano led the Hawkeyes with 20 points while All-American Caitlin Clark closed the night with 19. Shauntai Battle and Kiersten Nelson added nine points apiece for SU.

Several Bulldogs made their debuts on Thursday at No. 9 Iowa for Samford including Mattie Hatcher, Sussy Ngulefac, Sanaa Redmond, and Olivia Ramil. Hatcher finished with six points while Redmond finished with four points and Ngulefac had two.  

Kiersten Nelson , a 6-1 freshman from New Orleans, La., scored a career-high nine points and grabbed a pair of rebounds against the No. 9 Hawkeyes on Thursday.

Samford will play a formidable non-conference schedule for a third-straight year under head coach Carley Kuhns. The Bulldogs will square-off on the road with No. 9 Iowa (11.11), Southern Miss (11.20), Colorado (11.22), Northern Colorado (11.26), Troy (12.1), Ole Miss (12.17), and LSU (12.27). SU will host Jacksonville State (11.17), Murray State (12.4), Alabama A&M (12.9), UAB (12.12), and Kennesaw State (12.29) before opening SoCon play.

Carley Kuhns enters her third season as head coach of Samford Women's Basketball. What she has done in the last two seasons is remarkable, as the Bulldogs have captured back-to-back Southern Conference regular season championships. The former Valdosta State standout was named the 2020-21 SoCon Coach of the Year after leading the Bulldogs to an impressive 11-2 record. In total, Kuhns enters the year 98-53 overall in six seasons as a head coach including a 32-26 mark at Samford.  

Junior guard Andrea Cournoyer returns to anchor a Samford lineup that went 11-2 en route to a SoCon regular season championship in 2021. The Merryville, La., native, played in 22 games for the Bulldogs while being named the 2020-21 SoCon Player of the Year. Cournoyer averaged a league-high 18.4 points per game while contributing 3.9 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game. Cournoyer was also a unanimous selection to the 2020-21 All-SoCon First Team. She rates as one of the nation's top 30 returning scorers for the 2021-22 campaign.

Entering her final season with the Bulldogs, senior center Natalie Armstrong is looking to solidify one of the most memorable runs in recent Samford history. The three-time All-SoCon Team selection has played in 112 games for the Bulldogs, scoring 1,163 points in her illustrious career while averaging 10.4 points per game. The Norcross, Ga., native, has also cleared 562 career rebounds and blocked 122 shots. She led the SoCon in blocks (43) in 2020-21 while averaging 12.7 points and 6.3 rebounds per contest. In 2019-20, Armstrong was named the SoCon Tournament MVP after draining the game-winning three-pointer to propel the Bulldogs past UNCG and into the NCAA Tournament.

Senior guard Shauntai Battle is back after an injury-shortened 2020-21 campaign. The Mobile, Ala., native, averaged 15.7 points per game before missing the remainder of the year with a lower body injury. Known as one of the league's top defenders, Battle was named to the 2019-2020 All-SoCon Defensive Team after helping lead the Bulldogs to the regular season and tournament titles. The former McGill-Toolen star has played in 86 career games, scoring 553 points (6.4 ppg) and clearing 208 rebounds (2.4 rpg).

Junior forward Annie Ramil is set to play a major role in the paint for the Bulldogs this season. The Binghamton, N.Y., native, played in all 25 games for Samford last year,  making 25 starts at forward, while averaging 11.0 points and a team-leading 8.2 rebounds per game in 26.7 minutes on the floor. She connected on 104-of-198 shots from the field (52.5) while also making 9-of-23 from 3-point range (39.1). The former Binghamton University transfer scored in double figures in 16 games and turned in a career high 28 points and 15 rebounds versus Mercer.  

Samford enters the 2021-22 campaign picked to finish second in both the Southern Conference Preseason Coaches' & Media Polls. The Bulldogs have captured back-to-back SoCon Regular Season Championships in coach Carley Kuhns first two seasons with Samford. Junior guard Andrea Cournoyer was picked to repeat as the league's Player of the Year while senior center Natalie Armstrong and junior forward Annie Ramil were also named to the All-SoCon Preseason Team.  


FACE THE FOE: MONTEVALLO
The Montevallo Falcons (3-1, 1-0 GSC) opened the season with a 66-59 loss to No. 1 ranked (DII) Lubbock Christian, but bounced back to defeat No. 11 (DII) Tampa 81-67 and Simon Frasier 79-72.

The Falcons defeated West Georgia 79-69 on Friday behind 27 points from Jordan Jones. Savannah Lee turned in a double-double with 14 points and 13 rebounds while Shyan Flack (11) and Kiya Sain (10) joined them in double digits. Siera Carter led UWG with 26 points.

Kyla Sain, a 5-7 guard from Jackson, Tenn., is second on the team in scoring at 12.8 points per game. She also ranks third on the team in rebounding at 4.7 per game.

Jordan Jones, a 5-9 guard from Helena, Ala., is also averaging in double digits with a team-leading 15.8 points while Shyan Flack (9.8) and Jennifer Andrews (9.5) are nearing double figures.

The Montevallo Falcons finished the 2020-21 campaign 14-7 overall and 13-4 in Gulf South Conference play. UM advanced all the way to the NCAA Division II South Regional, falling to No. 4 Union 70-65 in the opening round.


UP NEXT: JACKSONVILLE STATE
The Bulldogs welcome the Gamecocks of Jacksonville State to the Pete Hanna Center on Wednesday, Nov. 17. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m.


FOLLOW THE BULLDOGS:
For the latest news and information on Samford women's basketball, visit the official website for Samford Athletics at SamfordSports.com. Fans can also follow the Bulldogs on social media at /SamfordWomen'sBasketball (Facebook), @SamfordWBB (Instagram) and @SamfordWBB (Twitter).