Jan. 8, 2007

Quick Hits...The Winston-Salem State University Lady Rams return to the road as they travel to Radford, Virginia and the campus of Radford University to face the Highlanders. The Lady Rams have not faced the Highlanders in regular season action, but the two teams have met in exhibition action. WSSU (4-15) will face the Highlanders (6-6) at the Dedmon Center (5,000) on Tuesday, January 9, 2007 at 7:00 pm.

Setting the Scene... The Lady Rams enter Tuesday's contest seeking some answers as the team has taken fi ve straight losses, including three losses away from home. The

Lady Rams will have to face a Radford team that is heading in a different direction after a pair of back-to-back home wins.

A Quick Look Back...The Lady Rams posted a 10-18 overall record last season and posted a 5-11 conference record in their fi nal year of membership in the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA). WSSU lost in the opening round of the CIAA Women's Championship tournament in Charlotte, NC to the Bowie State University Lady Bulldogs by the score of 52-51 as they closed out 25 years of CIAA basketball play before departing Division II for the ranks of Division I.

Last Action...The Lady Rams took a tough 61-72 loss to the Livingstone Lady Blue Bears, Tuesday. It was a tough second half that cost the Lady Rams with the team giving a 43-27 edge to Livingstone in the half, and ending the day with the loss despite a 34-29 halftime lead. Sophomore forward had a career game against Livingstone with 15 points and 16 rebounds in the game. The Highlanders head into Tuesday's game following a dominating 90-37 win over Lees-McRae last Thursday night. Junior guard Serena White led all scorers with 20 points, while junior forward Corrie Fertitta added a double-double 17 points and 10 rebounds.

Tuesday's Opposition...Radford heads into Tuesday's game seeking their third straight win and seeking to top the .500 mark for the season. The Highlanders have been strong at home this season with a 4-1 record at the Dedmon Center this season. Three RU players lead the team's offensive attack with Kelli Darden averaging 10.5 ppg and 6.4 rebounds per game. Sarah Stephens adds 10.3 points per game, while junior Corrie Fertitta adds 10.1 points per game and is also the team's leading rebounder at 7.8 rebounds per contest.

The Series vs. Radford...The Lady Rams and Highlanders will meet for the first time

in the regular season, Tuesday, but the two teams have met in exhibition play. Radford took a 62-45 win over Winston-Salem State in November of 2004. The Lady Rams are in the second year of a five-year transition from NCAA DivisiII to Division I and will join the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference in 2007-08. This season the Lady Rams compete at the Division I level as an Independent.

WSSU Radio Coverage...None for Tuesday's game. The WSSU Department of

Athletics will broadcast all the home women's basketball games on WSNC 90.5 FM with Maurice "Big Mo" Stanfi eld calling all the play-by-play action and LA Batchelor providing color commentary. The games are also available on the Internet at www.WSSU.edu by clicking on the link "Listen to WSNC 90.5 Online". The next WSSU broadcast will be on

Saturday January 13, 2007 at 2:00 pm when WSSU takes on the University of Maryland-Eastern Shore.

Radford Radio Coverage...The Highlanders and Lady Rams' matchup will be broadcast

on WRAD 1460 AM. John McGraw will call the play-by-play action. Broadcasts will begin 30 minutes prior to tip-off. Live audio will also be available via the internet on www.RUHighlanders.com.

Websites...The Official Site of WSSU Athletics is www.WSSURAMS.com. The

Official Website of the Highlanders is www.RUHighlanderscom.

A Quick Look at Radford ...Radford University is a founding member of the Big

South Conference and is located in Radford, Virginia, a city with an urban population of

15,859 people.

First Neutral Site Contest...Last Friday's action versus the Wildcats of New Hampshire at the Lady Luck Classic in Blacksburg, VA) marked the Lady Rams' first contest at a neutral site during the 2006-07 season. WSSU dropped the contest by the score of 63-55 to fall to 0-1 on the season at neutral venues.

First Thursday Win Of `06-'07...The Lady Rams' most recent win, a 59-50 win over the Wildcats of Bethune-Cookman College marked the fi rst time in the 2006-07 season that WSSU won a game held on a Thursday. The win improved WSSU's overall record on

Thursday to 1-3. They look to inch closer to evening that record by moving to 2-3 on Thursday's with a win over Georgia Tech on January 4, 2007.

What's On Tap...The Lady Rams have their most difficult schedule in the 25-year history of the women's basketball program. WSSU opened the season with four road games during the season's first week of play. Winston-Salem State University lost at #2 North Carolina (83-32) on November 12 before traveling to Towson, MD to face Towson on November 14 where they lost 76-51. WSSU traveled to Auburn, AL to face Auburn University on November 17 where they dropped an 85-47 decision, and then traveled to face Alabama State on November 19 (L, 76-63). The Lady Rams' lost their first home contest (November 25) when they fell to Johnson C. Smith University at the C.E. Gaines Center in Winston-Salem, NC by the score of 73-63 and then earned their first win of the season, and first road win when they defeated Norfolk State in overtime 75-64. The Lady Rams fell to Delaware State University by the score of 67-51 and bounced back as they hammered NJIT 72-41. WSSU followed that win up with a close 66-52 loss to Appalachian State University and then fell again last at the University of Maryland-Eastern Shore in overtime by the score of 54-48 on December 9, 2006. The Lady Rams then lost their third consecutive game as they fell in defeat at Elon

University on December 14 by the score of 50-42 before bouncing back this past Saturday with a losing-streak-snapping 56-47 win over Norfolk State University. WSSU's then fell in defeat on December 19 as the Lady Rams played well against a very good Towson

Tiger team before losing 57-50 to drop to 3-10 on the season. WSSU then dropped

a pair of games at the "Lady Luck Women's Basketball Classic" hosted by Virginia Tech this past weekend as they fell 43-33 to the Hokies and fell 63-55 to New Hampshire in the consolation match. WSSU's most recent action came last Saturday afternoon when the team took a 72-61 loss to the Livingstone Lady Blue Bears.

Making History...History was made Monday, November 27 in Norfolk, Virginia as the Lady

Rams recorded their fi rst Division I win in the program's history. Coach Dee Stokes netted her first win as WSSU's head coach and the Lady Rams improved to 1-5 at the Division I level with a win over a Division I opponent on the road at Norfolk State University.

New Head Coach...WSSU is led by Dee Stokes who is entering into her first year as head coach of the Lady Rams. Stokes is no stranger to the Division I coaching ranks as she is entering into her fifth season overall and has posted an all-time mark of 54-65. She comes to WSSU by way of Winthrop University where she spent two seasons as an assistant coach following a four-year spell as the head coach at East Carolina University. Stokes has posted a 4-15 record at WSSU as head coach and earned her first win as head coach at WSSU on November 27 versus Norfolk State. She has posted an overall head coaching record of 54-65.

Not Burning Up The Nets...The Lady Rams are not exactly burning up the nets thus far this season. WSSU has connected on only 357 of their 1,041 fi eld-goal attempts for a shooting percentage of 34.3%, far under the goal of 45% set by WSSU head coach Dee Stokes.

A Second-Half Team...The Lady Rams are a better second half team. That is evidenced by the fact that WSSU has been outscored 600-474 in the first half and has been outscored only 517-590 in the second half this season. However, the second half has not been good to the Lady Rams in their last two games, however, as the team has been outscored 85-49 in the second half of their last two games. The Lady Rams own an 18-13 overtime advantage over their opponents and have posted a 1-1 record in games that have gone to an extra frame despite being a young team.

Hitting the Century Mark...WSSU senior forward Shalonda Carter has played in 100 career games at WSSU. She hit the 100-game mark on Saturday, January 7, 2007 at the C.E. Gaines Center in Winston-Salem, NC when she took the court versus Livingstone College. Unfortunately, her 100th game was cut short as she received her fi fth foul with just under 12 minutes left to play.

Next Up...The Lady Rams will return home to take on the University of Maryland-Eastern Shore Lady Hawks, Saturday in a 2:00 p.m. match-up. The game will be a rematch of a thrilling overtime loss by the Lady Rams that saw Carter post an 18-point, 17-rebound effort in the contest. She will once again look to match up with UMES' Kristi Veltkamp, last season's MEAC Defensive Player of the Year as well as the Pre-Season selection to repeat the honor.

Nine Conferences Strong...The Lady Rams will face nine different conferences during the

2006-07 season. WSSU will face the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) three times, the Colonial Athletic Association (CIAA) three times, the Southeastern Conference (SEC) once, the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA - NCAA Division II) twice, the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) nine times, the Southern Conference (SoCON) twice, the Big East once, the Big South once and the Patriot League once. WSSU will also battle five teams that are classified as NCAA Independents.

Right Where She Left Off...Senior forward Shalonda Carter is again picking up where she left off last season. Carter has averaged nearly a double-double for her entire career, a span of 98 career games (of which she has started 94 of them). Carter is averaging 13.5 points and 10.3 rebounds per game this season with a career average of 12.3 points and 10.7 rebounds per game. It took Carter only 77 games to break the 1,000-point plateau at WSSU, something she did as a junior.

Transition Year Two...The Lady Rams are currently in the second year of a fi ve-year transition from the Division II level to the highest level of competition in Division I. The Lady Rams are an independent team that will join the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference in 2007-08. Winston-Salem State University will become a full-fl edged Division I member that is eligible for championships during the 2010-11 season.

12th MEAC Member...On July 20, 2006, the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) announced that it will expand its membership to 12 members next year, as the league voted to admit Winston-Salem State University into the league beginning in 2007-08. "We are elated to welcome Winston-Salem into the MEAC family", said Commissioner Dennis Thomas. "Obviously we think that WSSU is an outstanding academic institution with an excellent athletics program." Winston-Salem State University is currently in the second year of its reclassification from Division II to NCAA Division I status. WSSU will begin a full MEAC schedule in all sports beginning in 2007-08. However they will not be eligible for MEAC Championship play until the 2010-11 football season. The addition of WSSU marks the first expansion for the MEAC since 1997, when Norfolk State University became the 11^th member of the conference.

Road Weary...The Lady Rams must improve their record on the road in 2006-07 as they recorded only one victory on the road in 2005-06 en route to posting a 1-9 record away from home. The Lady Rams have posted a losing record on the road for the last three consecutive seasons. WSSU is currently 2-8 on the road during the 2006-07 season.

Honors Candidate...Despite not offi cially joining the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference until the 2007-08 season, the Lady Rams are eligible for Division I Independent honors in 2006-07. The most decorated of the Lady Rams is senior forward Shalonda Carter (#40) who is a national favorite for playing honors this season. Carter garnered CIAA Rookie of the Year honors and All-CIAA honors her freshman season and again graced the CIAA First-Team last season. Carter averaged nearly a double-double last season as she tallied 12.2 points and 8.8 rebounds per contest. She will again be on the "watch list" for national honors this season.

Experienced Team...Despite the newness of the transition to Division I play, the Lady Rams will have the benefit of a team that has playing experience. The lone freshman on the team is Ja'Pel Sumpter, a 5'7" guard. She joins a team laden with three seniors, one junior, and five sophomores.

Glass Matters...Whoever wins the rebounding battle wins the basketball war. The Lady Rams, who are currently 4-15 on the season, have lost the rebounding battle in 10 of their 13 losses this season. Last season when the Lady Rams were out-rebounded, they posted a record of 2-15 overall. Rebounding may very well be the key to the success, or failure, of this young women's basketball team. When WSSU out-rebounds their opponent they have posted a 3-2 record this season. When WSSU is out-rebounded they have posted a dismal 1-9 record this season.

A New Era; A Proud History...The Lady Rams are entering into a new era at WSSU as they are heading into the Division I ranks. However, the Rams have a history of basketball excellence as they have recorded 12 winning seasons en route to posting an overall mark of 331-337 over the span of 25 years of play.