ALBANY, N.Y. -  The University at Albany women's basketball team opens conference play this weekend with two games at UMBC, marking the final stretch of five-game road swing to open the season.
 
Game Info
Saturday, December 19 at UMBC (1:00 pm)
Live Stats | ESPN3
 
Sunday, December 20 at UMBC (1:00 pm)
Live Stats | ESPN+
 
Leading the Pack

• UAlbany ranks second in the America East in FT% (.727)
• Kyara Frames leads the America East in FT% (.909)
• Frames needs two assists to hit 250 for her career
• Ellen Hahne ranks third in scoring (14.7), fourth in rebounding (9.3), and ninth in assists (2.7)
• Since 2007, UAlbany is 7-6 at UMBC

 
Scouting UMBC
UMBC has opened their season 0-2, with losses to UAlbany has won four of the last six against UMBC.  The Retrievers opened on November 25, the first day of the season, falling at Morgan State, and on December 5 lost at Mount St. Mary's.  UMBC hasn't played since, as their next two games, December 10 at Howard and December 16 vs. Coppin State, were cancelled.  The Retrievers lost All-Conference First Team selection Te'yJah Oliver to graduation, who averaged 17.6 points per game and led the America East with a .359 3FG%.  This year's team features nine new players, including three freshmen and six transfers.  UMBC was picked fifth in the America East Preseason Coaches' Poll, one spot behind UAlbany.  Since 2007, UAlbany is 7-6 at UMBC.
 
Last Time vs. UMBC
UAlbany fell to UMBC in Baltimore 54-44 in the second of two meetings last season.  Helene Haegerstrand highlighted the Great Danes' performers, recording her first career double-double, scoring 16 points with 10 rebounds.  Despite the Great Danes holding a slight lead after the first quarter, UMBC outscored UAlbany 15-3 in the second to take command of the game.  UAlbany outscored UMBC 16-9 in the fourth, but their comeback attempt fell short.  The Retrievers outscored UAlbany 30-16 in the paint and 20-9 off the bench.
 
Last Time Out
Playing their third game in five days, and their third-straight on the road, the UAlbany women's basketball team fell to Marist 67-48.  Lucia Decortes scored a career-high 11 points, and Ellen Hahne recorded her third-straight game in double-figure scoring.  Marist held a modest halftime lead but pulled away in the third quarter, outscoring the Great Danes 21-6.  The Red Foxes shot 53.7% from the floor during the game, and outscored UAlbany 42-18 in the paint.
 
Around the America East
The rest of the conference will join New Hampshire and NJIT in playing their conference openers this weekend.  The Wildcats and Highlanders have been locked atop the America East standings since playing their first series against one another two weeks ago.  Maine remains undefeated at 2-0, the lone team in the conference without a loss.  Stony Brook jumped into third place with their second victory of the season, while UAlbany is tied with UMass Lowell in fifth at 1-2.  Binghamton and UMBC are winless, and Hartford and Vermont have yet to play.
 
Saturday's America East Games
UAlbany at UMBC, 1:00 pm
Binghamton at Stony Brook, 2:00 pm
UMass Lowell at Vermont, 3:00 pm
 
Sunday's America East Games
Maine at Northeastern, 12:00 pm
UAlbany at UMBC, 1:00 pm
Binghamton at Stony Brook, 2:00 pm
UMass Lowell at Vermont, 2:00 pm
 
Upcoming Milestones
Kyara Frames: 94 appearances, 767 points, 248 assists
 
Down the Stretch
Against Seton Hall, Kyara Frames scored nine of UAlbany's final 11 points, including seven-straight, and shot a perfect 6-6 from the line to clinch a five-point victory against the Pirates.  UAlbany went 10-10 from the line as a team, and ultimately held Seton Hall to 35 points under their season average to date.  Helene Haegerstrand scored 26 points, a career high, on 9-11 shooting.
 
Double-Double II
Ellen Hahne once again recorded a double-double, her second in her first two games at UAlbany, at Seton Hall, scoring 17 points and grabbing 11 rebounds.  Hahne also added five assists on the day, as part of a 19-assist team effort against the Pirates.
 
Late Addition
A disruption in Saint Peter's MAAC schedule had forced the Peacocks to postpone their road series at Niagara, opening up an opportunity for the Great Danes to secure another game at home.  Coming together in less than 24 hours, UAlbany added Saint Peter's to its schedule, moving the home opener up three days to December 13.  Originally, the Great Danes were schedule to open at home against Marist on December 16, a game that was cancelled just before news of Saint Peter's availability broke.  A day later, Saint Peter's pulled out in favor of starting their conference schedule at Iona, leaving UAlbany without an opponent for Sunday.  The Great Danes, Friday evening, secured a road matchup with Seton Hall instead.
 
Double-Double
In her debut as a Great Dane, junior guard Ellen Hahne scored 15 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for a double-double to lead UAlbany in both categories in their season opener at Hofstra.  It mirrored the season opening double-doubles last season against Columbia, from Alexi Schecter (31 points, 11 rebounds), and fellow Swedish national Amanda Kantzy (10 points, 10 rebounds).
 
Late Start
December 11 is the latest date on record that the UAlbany women's basketball team has played its first game.  In prior years, the Great Danes have started as late as November 25, most recently in 1986.
 
Preseason Disruptions
Since returning to campus, the Great Danes have seen their team activities interrupted multiple times due to COVID-19 protocols.  On September 11, a cluster of presumptive positive cases within the UAlbany athletics community paused all athletic-related activities for a total of 24 days, with full activities not resuming for another seven when the pause was finally lifted.  On November 10, an increase in cases within the campus community triggered SUNY's remote learning protocols, including pausing athletics activities.  The women returned to practice on November 25.  Less than a week later, the women had to pause again after presumptive positive tests within the team's Tier 1 personnel, before returning to practice on December 4.
 
Captains
This year, the team has selected three captains to lead the program through the unprecedented 2020-21 season.  Redshirt-senior guard Khepera Stokes, senior guard Kyara Frames, and sophomore forward Helene Haegerstrand will take up leadership roles for the Great Danes this year.  Stokes and Frames are the longest-tenured Great Danes in the program, and the only two on the roster with postseason experience in the NCAA Tournament or the WNIT.
 
Reunited
Swedish nationals Helene Haegerstrand and Ellen Hahne have reunited as teammates at UAlbany after playing together previously on Sweden's national team.  Haegerstrand is a sophomore this season and in her second year with the team and Hahne joined the team this year as a transfer from Wake Forest.
 
Last Holdout
Redshirt-senior Khepera Stokes is the only player on the roster who was a member of the Great Danes' last America East title and NCAA appearance.  Stokes was a freshman when UAlbany defeated Maine 66-50 in the 2016-17 America East finals to win the program's sixth-straight conference championship.  Stokes appeared in all 33 games for UAlbany that season, starting 19 after moving into the starting lineup halfway through the season.  She finished the year with 95 assists, second in program history for a freshman, behind only then-teammate Mackenzie Trpcic, who finished the year with 103.
 
First Years
Including this year's seven new recruits, 13 of 16 players on the roster have just one year or fewer in the program.  Only Khepera Stokes, Kyara Frames, and Lucia Decortes have two or more seasons under their belts.  Only Stokes and Frames have made postseason appearances in the NCAA Tournament or the WNIT.
 
Transfers
In addition to a freshman class of four, UAlbany welcomes three transfer players in guards Ellen Hahne (Wake Forest), Grace Heeps (UMass), and Fatima Lee (Providence).  Heeps hails locally from East Greenbush, N.Y., and played high school at Northfield Mount Herman.
 
Roster Changes
The Great Danes return three starters from last season, but will have to replace top scorer Alexi Schecter and top rebounder Amanda Kantzy, who combined accounted for 38% of UAlbany's total scoring.  Returning this year are second and third leading scorers Helene Haegerstrand and Kyara Frames, as well as fifth-year senior guard Khepera Stokes.  Stokes is the only player on the team this season who appeared and started in all 30 games for UAlbany last season.
 
Picked Fourth
The Great Danes were selected to finish fourth in this year's America East Preseason Coaches' Poll.  UAlbany drew 54 points overall, clear of Binghamton and UMBC's 53, tying for fifth.  Ahead of UAlbany was Maine (78 points and six first-place votes), Stony Brook (76 points and four first-place votes) and UMass Lowell.
 
America East Announces Basketball Schedule Format
On October 19, 2020, the America East debuted its revised schedule format for the 2020-21 season.  The conference season will begin on December 19-20, with teams playing back-to-back games at the same site against the same opponent on Saturdays and Sundays.  There are built-in off weekends to accommodate potential postponements throughout the season.  It will also be the first year that the conference schedule expands to 18 games to account for NJIT joining the conference.
 
Next: UAlbany's next scheduled games are January 2-3 against Vermont for their 2020-21 home opener.