SARASOTA, Fla. - New College of Florida women's basketball opens its home schedule Friday against NCAA Division III St. Catherine at 7 p.m. before hosting Florida Polytechnic on Saturday at 2 p.m. Both games will be played at Bradenton Christian School's Pentecost Athletic Center.
The Mighty Banyans enter the weekend 2-0 after defeating Andrew College 63-45 and Thomas University 59-57 at the Warner WBB Sunny Southern Classic in Lake Wales.
NCF will look to build on its opening weekend as fourth-year head coach Brian Cruz guides the program's pursuit of its first Sun Conference Tournament berth.
IMPORTANT LINKS
FRIDAY VS. ST. CATHERINE
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SATURDAY VS. FLORIDA POLY
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GAME NOTES
BRINGING TWO WINS HOME: New College opened the season with consecutive victories at Warner. The Mighty Banyans pulled away from Andrew with a 21-7 fourth quarter before holding off Thomas for a two-point victory Saturday.
DIALLO RETURNS STRONG: After missing the entire 2025-26 season because of injury, Aissa Diallo scored 16 points in each of NCF's opening two games. She added seven rebounds and two steals against Thomas while making all six of her free-throw attempts.
TITHERINGTON MAKES AN IMMEDIATE IMPACT: Freshman Alexa Titherington led NCF with 17 points in her collegiate debut against Andrew, adding six rebounds and two blocks while going 5-of-5 from the free-throw line. She followed with eight rebounds and a block against Thomas.
TSOUKALAS KEEPS CLIMBING: Gwen Tsoukalas scored 10 points against Andrew and 14 against Thomas, bringing her career total to 579. The fourth-year Mighty Banyan ranks second in program history, 204 points behind career leader CiCi Moore. Tsoukalas also recorded three steals during the opening weekend.
PACHECO CONTRIBUTES ACROSS THE FLOOR: Julia Pacheco finished with 11 points, five assists and two blocks in the season opener. The 6-foot-4 returner added seven points, six rebounds and two steals against Thomas.
GRADY PROVIDES A LIFT: Geriya Grady collected seven rebounds and three steals against Andrew before scoring eight points on perfect shooting against Thomas. She made all three of her field-goal attempts Saturday, including two 3-pointers, and added five rebounds.
DEFENSE CLOSES THE OPENER: NCF held Andrew to 31% shooting and forced 18 turnovers. The Mighty Banyans recorded 11 steals and four blocks, limiting Andrew to two made field goals in the fourth quarter.
MAKING FREE THROWS COUNT: New College shot 18-of-24 from the free-throw line against Andrew and 14-of-17 against Thomas. Diallo made 12 of her 14 attempts over the weekend, while Titherington went 5-of-5 and Tsoukalas finished 6-of-8.
KNOW THE WILDCATS: St. Catherine competes in NCAA Division III and the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. The Wildcats finished 11-14 overall and 6-12 in conference play last season, averaging 57.6 points while allowing 62.2 per game.
FIRST LOOK AT FLORIDA POLY: Florida Poly enters the weekend 3-0 in its inaugural season. The Phoenix opened with victories over Trinity College, Fort Lauderdale and Atlantis University.
SERIES HISTORY
ST. CATHERINE
All-Time Series: 0-0
Last Meeting: Friday marks the first meeting between the programs.
Key Player: Senior guard Hattie Fox returns after leading St. Catherine with 14.4 points and 5.8 rebounds per game last season. She started all 25 games, shot 89.1% from the free-throw line and earned her third consecutive MIAC All-Conference honor.
FLORIDA POLYTECHNIC
All-Time Series: 0-0
Last Meeting: Saturday marks the first meeting between the programs.
Key Player: Celina Forine is averaging 19.0 points, 11.0 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 2.3 blocks through three games. She has shot 66.7% from the field, highlighted by a 26-point performance against Fort Lauderdale and a 14-rebound outing against Atlantis.
UP NEXT: NCF travels to NCAA Division II Lynn University on Monday at 5 p.m. The matchup will count as an exhibition for the Mighty Banyans and a regular-season game for Lynn.
