This Week: Notre Dame College is back in action this week with two Mountain East Conference games. The Falcons travel to Frostburg State on Wednesday, January 8, for a 5:30 p.m. tip before hosting Fairmont State on Saturday, January 11, at 2 p.m.  

Records: The Falcons ended 2019 on a five-game winning streak and are now 11-1 (5-1 MEC) this season. Frostburg State started 2020 with a win, hosting Salem, but it was just their second of the season. The Bobcats now stand at 2-10 (1-5 MEC). Fairmont State completes the trio of teams coming off wins after defeating Glenville State and Wayne State to end the first semester. The Fighting Falcons two wins bumped them above .500 with a current record of 7-5 (4-2 MEC); FSU will play Urbana prior to coming to South Euclid.

Coaches Corner: Lauren Macer is in her third season as head coach of the Falcons. She holds a record of 49-24, 34-16 MEC. Carrie Saunders is in her sixth year at the helm of the Frostburg State program. Saunders led the Bobcats to their first winning season in nine years in 2018-19, and holds an overall record of 50-90. This is her team's first year in Division II and in the Mountain East Conference. Stephanie Anderson is in her first season as a head coach at Fairmont State. She previously served as an assistant coach for five years at FSU before being promoted. She is currently 7-5 (4-2 MEC).

Rankings: None of these teams were ranked in the December 16 Women's Basketball Coaches Association poll.

Series History: The Falcons have not yet played Frostburg State in their NCAA Division II history. Notre Dame is 7-5 against Fairmont State after two losses last season. Lauren Macer swept FSU in her first season, and is looking to come out on top in a series in which she is 2-2.  

Noting the Falcons: At 11-1, Notre Dame currently holds the best record in the MEC. The Falcons 5-1 record in conference play is tied for first with Charleston and Concord. NDC is the only loss on Concord's MEC record, and the team has yet to play Charleston. Notre Dame will look to continue its hot start this week in two somewhat favorable match ups. NDC has utilized defense this season to earn an average scoring margin difference of +10.1. The Falcons rank second in the MEC in both scoring defense (67.9 points allowed per game) and field goal percentage defense (.394). Notre Dame is 9-0 when holding its opponents to below 45 percent shooting from the field. Fairmont State ranks sixth in the MEC with a field goal percentage of 43.3 while Frostburg State is 10th at 39.7 percent.
 
Noting the Bobcats: Frostburg State has evolved its lineup throughout the season to develop more scoring off the bench. In their first six games, the Bobcats averaged just 10.33 points per game from their reserves; in the last six games, they have averaged 27.33 points. During the first half of their season, FSU had just one game where its bench scored more than 15 points; during the second half, 15 points is the lowest mark in six games. But the Bobcats may have a tough time competing with one of the deepest benches in the MEC. Notre Dame averaged 24.5 bench points per game this season, and its bench has been outscored by an opponent's bench just twice in 12 games.
  
Noting the Fighting Falcons: While Fairmont State has a team shooting percentage of 43.3, the Fighting Falcons have three strong shooters that the Notre Dame defense will need to slow down. Of its four players averaging double-digit scoring this season, three are shooting better than .450 from the field. Senior forward Rachel Laskody leads the way with a .602 field goal percentage, which ranks fourth overall in the Mountain East. Also in the top 10 of the MEC is Kamrin Weimer, who is currently making 48.0 percent of her shots. Laskody is averaging 14.9 points per game while Weimer is averaging 15.9, but neither is scoring at the rate of Sierra Kotchman, who ranks third in the conference with 21.3 points per game. Kotchman (.445) and Weimer (.440) both rank in the top three in the league in three-point shooting, but will have to contend with Notre Dame's third-ranked three-point defense, which has allowed just 28.2 percent of shots beyond the arc to score this year.