Pittsburgh, PA - The La Salle women's basketball team heads west on Saturday afternoon for an Atlantic 10 matchup at Duquesne, as the Explorers look to gain momentum in conference play against the Dukes.
Scouting the Dukes
Duquesne enters Saturday's contest still searching for its first Atlantic 10 victory, sitting at 0-10 in league play following recent losses at Richmond and against Saint Joseph's. Despite the conference struggles, the Dukes own a Power Four non-conference win over Pitt, capturing the City Game earlier this season. In their most recent outing at Richmond, freshman Raevin Washington led Duquesne offensively with a team-high 12 points on perfect shooting. The freshman forward, who ranks third in the Atlantic 10 in blocks, also added two rejections to pace the Dukes defensively.
La Salle and Duquesne have met 47 times, with the Dukes holding a narrow 25-22 advantage in the all-time series. Despite the loss in the most recent meeting, Ashleigh Connor and Joan Quinn combined for 29 points and 15 rebounds to lead the Explorers.
Big 5 Roo 'Ki' of the Week
For the second time this season, redshirt freshman Kiara Williams earned Big 5 Rookie of the Week honors following her performances at Loyola Chicago and St. Bonaventure. Williams poured in a career-high 20 points on just 13 shot attempts at Loyola before adding 10 points in the win over the Bonnies, marking her 10th and 11th double-digit scoring games of the season. La Salle is 6-6 when the Palm Bay, Fla. native scores 10 or more points.
Power in Numbers
Four Explorers scored in double figures in Wednesday's loss to Saint Joseph's, marking the seventh time La Salle has accomplished the feat this season. The Explorers are 5-2 in such games, with both losses coming against the Hawks.
Hometown Hero
Saturday's matchup marks a hometown debut for Ashleigh Connor, who will play a collegiate game in Pittsburgh for the first time. The Mount Lebanon High School graduate was named the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Player of the Year in 2022.
Stealing the Show
Aryss Macktoon continues to climb the national steals leaderboard, ranking fourth in the country with 78 steals while leading the Atlantic 10. She has recorded at least one steal in every game this season and is on pace to break La Salle's single-season record of 90, set in 2010–11. Teammates Joan Quinn and Ashleigh Connor also rank among the league's top 15 in steals, helping La Salle lead the conference in team steals.
Connor Keeps Creating
Ashleigh Connor matched her career high in assists in Wednesday's loss to Saint Joseph's. The redshirt junior previously set new personal highs in three consecutive games earlier this season and has helped guide the offense consistently. La Salle is 5-3 this season when Connor records at least five assists.
