2023-24 Monmouth Women's Basketball Game One Preview
Monmouth Hawks (0-0, 0-0 CAA) at Rutgers (0-0, 0-0 Big Ten)
Monday, November 6, 2022 - 7:00 p.m.
Jersey Mike's Arena, Piscataway, N.J.
TV
B1G+
OPENING TIP
• Monmouth opens its third season under Head Coach Ginny Boggess and second in the CAA with this match-up.
• This is the sixth meeting all-time between the Hawks and Scarlet Knights but the first since the 2020-21 campaign.
• MU is coming off a 2022-23 season in which it won 18 games, captured the CAA Championship and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 40 years.
• The Hawks are returning three starters and seven players total that secured valuable experience last year.
• Coach Boggess and the Hawks welcome in eight newcomers, including three transfers for this year.
• The Hawks were picked sixth out of 14 teams in the CAA Preseason Coaches Poll.
• MU is opening the season on the road for the fifth straight season.
• Coach Boggess welcomes two new staff members to the nest this season - assistant coach Geoff Lanier and director of program operations - Nijeria Carter.
• Monmouth makes its shortest road trip of the season as the two campuses are separated by just 38 miles.
• Ariana Vanderhoop, who earned Preseason All-CAA Honorable Mention accolades, is the Hawks' leading returning scorer (10.5 ppg).
• Monmouth's leading returner on defense is Belle Kranbuhl who registered 6.1 rebounds per game with 64 blocks.
• Five Hawks played in Canada before joining the Monmouth family - Ella Farrelly, Taisha Exanor, Sandrine Clesca, Rosalie Mercille and Divine Dibula.
• Monmouth returns home following the Rutgers game to behing a three-game home stretch. On Friday, Nov. 10 before the St. John's game, the Hawks will raise the banner and celebrate their CAA title.
HERE WE GO AGAIN
Monmouth kicks off its third season under the watchful eye of head coach Ginny Boggess and its second season in the Coastal Athletic Association (CAA). The Hawks are embarking on their 41 season of Division I women's basketball. Last year during the CAA Tournament, Monmouth won the 600th game in program history.
LOOKING BACK
Monmouth is coming off a season in which it won 18 games and made history by becoming the first seven seed to win the CAA Championship. By upsetting the number one, two and three seeds en route to the title, the Hawks earned a bid to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 40 years.
VANDERHOOP HONORED
Senior guard Ariana Vanderhoop was named Preseason All-CAA Honorable Mention when the league announced its preseason accolades. Vanderhoop is coming off a strong junior season in which she averaged 10.5 points and 5.3 rebounds per game. She had 17 games in which she scored in double figures.
BIG BELLE ON THE BLOCK
Monmouth's top returning defender is senior center Belle Kranbuhl. The center had a team-best 64 blocks last season. That gave her 160 blocks for her career. Kranbuhl enters the year needing just 40 more blocks to reach 200 for her career. She would become the four player in program history to reach the mark and the first since Suzanne Johnson (1988-91).
OH CANADA
Monmouth boasts five players on its roster from Canada in 2023-24. Sophomore Ella Farrelly, who hails from Ontario, is joined on the roster by seniors Taisha Exanor (Quebec) and Sandrine Clesca (Quebec). Also on the roster this year are freshmen Divine Dibula (Ontario) and Rosalie Mercille (Quebec).
TRANSFERRING IN
Head Coach Ginny Boggess has bolstered the roster with the addition of three transfers, who have the chance to make an immediate impact. Point guard Sandrine Clesca and forward Taisha Exanor make their way to West Long Branch after playing the last three years at the University of Pittsburgh. Clesca had 60 assists during her Pittsburgh career while Exanor had 184 rebounds. Guard Jaye Haynes comes to Monmouth after playing the last three seasons at La Salle. She tallied 338 points over the last two years for the Explorers.
FRESHMAN CLASS
Five freshmen make up this season's class, including guards Rosalie Mercille, Kellyn Preira, Diamond Wiggins and Isabella Murray and forward Divine Dibula. This year's class hails from three different states (Preira-Massachusetts, Wiggins-Virgina and Murray-New Jersey) and two from north of the border in Canada (Mercille and Dibula).
NEW STAFF ADDITIONS
Head Coach Ginny Boggess has added two new coaching staff members to her bench this season, with Geoff Lanier and Nijeria Carter coming aboard in West Long Branch. Lanier comes on as an assistant coach with over 25 years of collegiate coaching experience under his belt. He was most recently an assistant coach at Loyola (Md.). Carter takes over the reins as the director of program operations. She spent the last couple of years as a production assistant at the National Basketball Association (NBA) offices.
SCOUTING THE SCARLET KNIGHTS
Rutgers is coming off a season in which it went 12-20. The Scarlet Knights return their top four scorers and rebounders from a year ago, that group includes Kaylene Smikle, who averaged 17.9 points and 4.5 rebounds per game.
UP NEXT
Monmouth returns home to host St. John's on Friday, Nov. 10. The Hawks will unveil the banner to celebrate its 2022-23 CAA Championship before the game.
