THURS. VS. SHORTER: LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO
SAT. VS. LEE: LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO
PENSACOLA, Fla. – The UWF women's basketball team will play its first two home games of the 2022-23 season this week, hosting Shorter and Lee at the UWF Field House.
UWF will face Shorter on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. and Lee on Saturday at 5 p.m. The Lee start time is a change from the originally scheduled time due to the UWF hosting the First Round of the NCAA Division II Football Playoffs at 1 p.m.
WEEKEND PROMOTIONS
* THURSDAY: Free pizza for the first 100 students.
* SATURDAY: Free admission with your NCAA Football Playoff ticket.
WHAT HAPPENED IN WEEK ONE
* UWF was scheduled to play in a Crossover event at Palm Beach Atlantic with games against PBA and Eckerd last week. The event was canceled when PBA closed campus for Tropical Storm Nicole. As a result, Valdosta State agreed to host Eckerd and UWF on Saturday.
* UWF struggled to make shots and lost 53-28 to No. 11 Eckerd on Saturday. The Argos shot just 14 percent on 8-of-58 shooting and were out-rebounded 51-43. Jennifer Andrew had eight points on a pair of baskets and four free throws to lead the Argos in the scoring column. Haylee Luttrell and Claire Sutherland-Case had six points each.
42ND SEASON OF UWF WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
* UWF enters the game with 607 all-time wins dating back 40-plus years to the inaugural season of 1981-82. The Argonauts are 607-527 all-time with six NCAA Tournament appearances, one Elite Eight, four GSC Regular-Season Championships and one GSC tourney title in 19 appearances.
* In 29 seasons of NCAA/GSC membership, the program is 431-334 for a .564 winning pct., ranking fifth among current members and third among those that have been in the league for at least 10 seasons.
WINNING AT HOME
* UWF went 10-3 at the UWF Field House last season, winning their first seven contests. Dating back to the back half of the COVID-shortened 2021-22 campaign, the Argonauts are 13-4 at home.
* In 10 seasons under
Stephanie Lawrence Yelton, the Blue and Green are 91-42 (.684) with seven winning seasons and six seasons with double-digit victories.
YELTON IN SEASON 11 AT UWF, CHASING SCHOOL COACHING RECORD
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Stephanie Lawrence Yelton is in her 11th season at UWF and has a 168-115 record with the Argos … She is 225-199 in her 16th season as a head coach, which includes five seasons at Charleston Southern … The Morrow, Ga. native (suburb south of Atlanta) is a UNC grad from 1996 and was a 4-year letterwinner for the Tar Heels, where she won two ACC Championships and the 1994 NCAA National Championship – she threw the inbounds pass on Charlotte Smith's game-winning buzzer beater in the 1994 title game.
* Yelton was named the GSC Coach of the Year in 2013-14 and 2018-19.
* She is 6-12 against Lee and 14-6 against Shorter.
* Yelton ranks third in the UWF coaching list with her 168 wins. Shannan Bergen won 183 games in 13 seasons from 1999-2012 and the program's first coach, Kathy Davis, collected 175 victories from 1981-94.
UWF PICKED 4TH IN GSC COACHES POLL, JARNOT NAMED PRESEASON ALL-GSC
* UWF was picked to finish fourth in the GSC Preseason Coaches Poll … UWF earned 107 poll points and was behind Union, Lee and Valdosta State in the top three spots, respectively. That trio earned 12 of the 13 first place votes. The remaining vote went to Alabama Huntsville despite being picked tenth by the consensus. Christian Brothers, Mississippi College and West Alabama were the remaining ones in the upper half, followed in order by Delta State, Montevallo, UAH, West Georgia, Auburn Montgomery and Shorter.
* Senior Jaclyn Jarnot was named to the 5-member preseason all-GSC squad. She returns for her final go-around as an Argonaut following a First Team All-GSC and All-Region season a year ago. In 2021-22, the Brooklyn Park, Minnesota native averaged 17.4 points and 13.0 rebounds per game, while recording 18 double-doubles in 25 games. Her rebounding avg. and double-double totals were each fifth nationally in Division 2.
LOTS OF NEW FACES IN THE LOCKER ROOM
* UWF added eight newcomers to the team for the 2022-23 season. That list includes two graduate students, three seniors and three juniors, with three frontcourt players and five backcourt players.
* "Overall, there is a lot to be excited about in this class," Yelton said. "Coming off a 19-8 season where we left a lot on the table, we knew we had to hit the recruiting scene hard and we feel like we did just that. After losing key pieces such as
Charlotte Ellmore and
Gabby Brown who were both starters and others like
Fanny Hulmi who was a four year player for us, there was a lot of experience to replace and key roles to fill. The success of last season was very appealing to the players that we were able to bring in and knowing the pieces that we had returning to our team. They had a great appreciation for the success that we have had and the culture that we have built here at UWF. Ultimately, every single one of them came to UWF to win and compete for championships not only in the GSC, but at the National level as well. With 9 new players, our coaching staff will have to be very proactive in getting them acclimated to what we do here and building team chemistry, but overall this is one of the most talented classes that we have had in years and I am excited to get to work."
* The graduate transfers with one season of eligibility are
Jennifer Andrew from Montevallo and
Haylee Luttrell from North Greenville. The seniors, who all have two seasons of eligibility are
Shania Johnson from New Mexico Highlands,
Claire Sutherland-Case from Central Connecticut and
Moriah Taylor from Georgia State. And the juniors with three years remaining are
Tori Hunter from Western Kentucky,
Jaden Langford from Samford and
Hannah Williams from Point.
ABOUT SHORTER
* Shorter is 0-2 on the season after suffering home losses to Barry (85-47) and Lynn (86-53) last weekend.
* The Hawks added nine freshmen and four transfers to their team after going 5-17 overall and 2-16 in the GSC a year ago.
SERIES HISTORY VS SHORTER
* UWF is 14-6 all-time against Shorter and has won 10 of the last 11, including the last four. The Argos are 8-3 in games played in Pensacola and won the last six at the UWF Field House.
* UWF won both games a year ago, claiming a 5-point win at Shorter in December of 2021 before cruising to a 22-point victory at home in February.
ABOUT LEE
* The Lady Flames went 1-1 last weekend and dropped out of the top 25 after being No. 20 in the preseason. Lee defeated Florida Southern, 97-79, on Friday before falling at Saint Leo, 68-63 on Saturday.
* Lee went 25-8 and 15-5 in league action a season ago. They lost to Union in the GSC Championship game and to eventual region winner Valdosta State in the NCAA South Region Semifinals.
SERIES HISTORY VS LEE
* Lee leads the series 12-6 overall and 6-4 in Pensacola. The teams split the home-and-away series last season with each team winning on the road.
NEW RULES
* The Gulf South Conference will begin using Official Video Review in men's and women's basketball this season.
