GAME NOTES--SAMFORD VS. WESTERN CAROLINA (PDF)

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Samford women's basketball team will play its Southern Conference home opener when the Bulldogs play host to Western Carolina Thursday evening at 6 p.m. in the Pete Hanna Center.
 
The Bulldogs and Catamounts have met 33 previous times, with Samford owning a 29-4 series lead. Last season, Samford won both meetings, earning a 59-47 win at home and a 72-63 victory on the road.
 
The Bulldogs come into this game with a record of 8-9 overall and 0-2 in SoCon play. The team dropped a 75-52 decision at Chattanooga on Saturday.
 
 So far this season, sophomore Carly Heidger leads the team in scoring, averaging 10.6 points per game. Sophomore Masyn Marchbanks averages 9.8 points per game. Graduate transfer Lexie Pritchard averages 7.3 points per game. She also leads the team in assists, dishing out 3.6 per game. Graduate transfer Sadie Stetson is averaging 8.5 points per game. She also leads the squad in steals, claiming 28 so far this season. Emily Bowman averages 7.6 points and a team-high 8.3 rebounds per game. She leads the SoCon and ranks 13th in the nation in blocked shots per game, averaging 2.65 per contest.
 
Entering this game, Samford ranks second in the Southern Conference in blocked shots, averaging 4.12 per game. Individually, in addition to Bowman, Pritchard ranks second in the league in assist-turnover ratio (1.3) and ranks fourth in assists per game (3.6), while Stetson ranks third in steals (1.6 pg.).
 
Western Carolina comes into Thursday night's game with a mark of 5-12 overall and 0-2 in Southern Conference play. The Catamounts most recently played host to Wofford on Saturday, falling to the Terriers by a score of 75-56.
 
Western Carolina has been led in scoring by Chelsea Wooten, averaging 11.4 points per game. Zanoria Cruz is currently averaging 8.1 points per game for the Catamounts. Lonasia Brewer is Western Carolina's leading rebounder, grabbing 5.8 boards per contest.
 
The game can be seen live on ESPN+ and live stats will also be available. For links to follow all of Samford's games this season, click here: WBB SCHEDULE.
 
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 /SamfordWomensBasketball (Facebook), @SamfordWBB (Instagram) and @SamfordWBB (Twitter).