Lady Rams Aiming to Keep Streak Alive at Longwood - WINSTON-SALEM STATE OFFICIAL ATHLETIC SITE

Feb. 13, 2007

FARMVILLE, VA - The Winston-Salem State Lady Rams (7-20) are still looking for a strong finish to the 2006-07 season when the team heads to Farmville, Virginia to take on the Longwood Lancers (7-18). The Lady Rams have already posted back-to-back wins last week and will be looking to stay hot and finish the season with a 4-0 record in the month of February.

Setting the Scene . . . The two teams head into Tuesday's game in different directions as the Lady Rams head into the game with a two-game winning streak after defeating Morgan State, 71-66 on the road and Bethune-Cookman, 49-44, at home. The Lancers head into the game with a pair of losses falling to #25 James Madison at home, 80-42 and at Savannah State, 41-56. Both teams are independent and are looking for a strong end to the season with just three games left in the 2006-07 season.

On the Line . . . A 4-0 record in the month of February is in reach for the Lady Rams with a pair of wins last week. The team will fight for a chance to finish the season with a 9-20 record, a solid mark for a team that is in its first season competing as an NCAA Division I team. As with most of the NCAA Division I Independent teams, every game is a championship game since there aren't any post-season tournaments and at-large bids are unlikely. The two teams will head into the game looking for a win right away and will not look past their current opponents. The Lady Rams currently have an unblemished 2-0 record against Longwood and would like to keep the record that way when the two teams meet up, while the Lancers will be looking to break both their current two-game losing streak as well as their 0-2 series record against Winston-Salem State.

Vs. Independents . . . The Lady Rams picked up a win in their only competition against another NCAA Division I Independent team as the team took a 66-58 win at Savannah State in Savannah in January. The Lady Rams will face Savannah State to wrap up the regular season with a pair of NCAA Division I Independent opponents as the team will face Longwood on Tuesday, followed by a home finale against Savannah State on February 21st.

Road Warriors . . . The road has been much kinder to the Lady Rams, especially in recent games. The Lady Rams' last two wins have come on the road winning, 66-58 at Savannah State on January 20th and 71-66 at Morgan State last Saturday night. For the season, the Lady Rams are 4-12 away from home. The team has picked up on the road lately taking wins in two of their last five road games defeating Savannah State and Morgan State on the road. The team has played a really tough road schedule this season playing at North Carolina, Wake Forest, Delaware State, Navy, Virginia Tech, and Georgia Tech. The team has had some of its best performances on the road taking Wake Forest to overtime and coming to within 10 points at Virginia Tech.

Non-Voluntary . . . The Lady Rams will be making their third trip to the Volunteer State when they take on the Lancers. For the season, the team is 1-3 when they head to Virginia this season. The Lady Rams posted a 76-64 win at Norfolk State, but fell to Virginia Tech and New Hampshire in the 2-6

The Match-Up . . . The Lady Rams and Lancers are a pair of evenly matched teams with both squad notching seven wins this season. Both teams average just over 50 points per game and just over 36 rebounds per game. The Lancers will have the height advantage over the Lady Rams with five players at least six feet tall, while the Lady Rams have just one.

Never Scared . . . The Lady Rams have proven that they will not be intimidated by the Atlantic Coast Conference this season as the team has had some great performances in some of the toughest environments to play, falling to Virginia Tech by just 10 points, 33-43, and taking Wake Forest to overtime last Friday. Of the three ACC teams that the Lady Rams have faced this season, only #2 North Carolina has beaten the Lady Rams by more than 16 points.

Last Action . . . The Lady Rams took a hard-fought win over the Bethune-Cookman Lady Wildcats in Winston-Salem last Thursday evening. The team's top-notch defense keyed the victory allowing just 44 points to Bethune-Cookman. The Lady Rams held the aggressive Lady Wildcats to just 17 second half points to pick the victory. The WSSU frontcourt of senior center Shalonda Carter and sophomore forward Lavontay Johnson combined for 22 points and 22 rebounds in the game. Senior guard Latoya Armstrong and sophomore guard Richea Harris had eight points each as well. Longwood took a loss at Savannah State, 56-41 on February 11th. The Lancers took a loss despite a double-double performance by sophomore forward Anne Steg. Steg totaled 11 points and 13 rebounds in the game while guard Becky Fernandes added 10 rebounds. Junior forward Leigh Mascherin was the second leading scorer for the Lancers with eight points in the contest.

WSSU Radio Coverage . . . Tuesday's game will not be broadcast by Winston-Salem State. The WSSU Department of Athletics will broadcast all the home women's basketball games and Friday's game on WSNC 90.5 FM with Maurice "Big Mo" Stanfield 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 February 21st when the team takes on Savannah State in the Lady Rams' season finale.

Longwood University Radio Coverage . . . Saturday's game will be broadcast in Farmviille on WSVS 800 AM.

Websites . . . The official site of WSSU Athletics is www.WSSURAMS.com while the official site of Longwood is www.LongwoodLancers.com. Live statistics from Tuesday's game will be available at http://www.longwoodlancers.com/live/wbball.

A Quick Look at Longwood University . . . Longwood has an undergraduate enrollment of 3,700 students, combining the ambiance of a small, private college with the cost benefits of a public institution. Better still, Longwood was cited recently as one of the nation's best college buys in America's 100 Best College Buys, a national publication that profiles schools that are the highest rated academically but have the lowest annual costs. Small classes (avg.=25) and a favorable faculty/student ratio (1:19) provide an opportunity for both professors and students to develop close, personal relationships.

On the Line . . . While there aren't any championship seedings or conference finishes at stake, Tuesday's game will be a battle as the two teams will fight for every single win with a passion. Longwood will be looking for an end to the team's current two-game losing streak. Winston-Salem State heads into Tuesday's game looking to keep their current two-game winning streak intact and remain undefeated against the Lancers. The Lady Rams will be also look to post a win in their last road game of the season and improve upon the team's 4-12 record on the road. Longwood is currently 5-5 at home this season.

First Neutral Site Contest . . . The Lady Rams' 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 first time in the 2006-07 season that WSSU won a game held on a Thursday. Thursdays have not been kind to the Lady Rams as the team is 1-4 on the fifth day of the week.

First Wins of 2007 . . . The Lady Rams took a bit longer than they would have liked to get their first win of 2007 when they took a 66-58 win over Savannah State. The team had to wait much longer to get their first home win of 2007 with the team taking a 49-44 win over Bethune-Cookman last Thursday.

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. Recently, the Lady Rams have played some solid basketball, but have struggled to score wins posting a 1-7 record since the beginning of January. Last time out, the Lady Rams took a 49-44 win over the Bethune-Cookman Lady Wildcats last Thursday evening.

Making History . . . History was made Monday, November 27th in Norfolk, Virginia as the Lady Rams recorded their first 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 57-71. 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 5-18 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 56-70.

Next Up . . . The Lady Rams' 2006-07 season is winding down as the team has just two game left, following Thursday's contest against the Lady Wildcats. The team will play at Longwood on February 13th before wrapping up the season at home vs. Savannah State on Saturday, February 21st.

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.

Transition Year Two . . . The Lady Rams are currently in the second year of a five-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-fledged 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 11th member of the conference.

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.