UAlbany Announces 2011-12 Basketball Non-League Schedule; Women Travel to Iowa & Florida

Albany, N.Y. - University at Albany Vice President and Director of Athletics Lee McElroy announced on Thursday, Aug. 25 the school's women's basketball non-conference schedule for the 2011-12 season. The team will host five non-conference opponents at SEFCU Arena in the early part of the season, while also making trips to Iowa, Ohio and Miami, Fla. as a participant in a tournament hosted by Florida International.

The Great Danes open up the season on Nov. 11, visiting Fordham. The home slate begins on Sunday, Nov. 13, welcoming LaSalle to the 4,538-seat SEFCU Arena. The Great Danes then embark on a three-game road swing, venturing to Iowa City on Wed., Nov. 16, for a match up with Big Ten Conference opponent Iowa before visiting Brown in Providence, R.I. on Sat., Nov. 19. UAlbany wraps up the swing with a trip to Toledo on Nov. 22. The Great Danes return to their home court on Sun., Nov. 27, hosting St. Francis (N.Y.) and finish off the month of November with a contest at Long Island on the 30th.

UAlbany takes the short drive to downtown Albany's Times Union Center on Dec. 3 to take on crosstown-rival Siena. Two straight home games follow, as the Great Danes host Niagara (Dec. 6) and Sacred Heart (Dec. 18) in return games from last season's schedule. Before breaking for the holidays, UAlbany will visit Canisius on Dec. 22. The Great Danes will close out 2011 portion of the schedule at Florida International's Sun and Fun Classic, where they will face off against the host Panthers on Dec. 29 and either Auburn or Charlotte on Dec. 30.

Head coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson returns all-conference performers Ebone Henry and Julie Forster from a team that finished the 2010-11 campaign with a record of 16-14, capping the highest win total in 14 years and the most in its Division I history. Nine of these wins were achieved during America East Conference play, another record number for the program. Henry, an America East Conference first-team member, was the league's defensive player of the year after finishing third in the conference in scoring, averaging 14.4 points a game, and second in the conference in steals with 2.6 per game. Forster led the America East Conference in rebounds, averaging 9.8 boards a game, and was ranked as high as 15th nationally in that category.

Courtesy: UAlbany Athletics