(ASHLAND, Va.) – The annual R-MC Tip-Off Tournament will see some old and new faces as Christopher Newport, Lebanon Valley and Averett all visit the Center of the Universe this weekend. It will also give fans a chance to see a future rivalry as Averett is set to join the ODAC in 2022-23, as well as teams with national attention as the Captains enter unbeaten and ranked No. 20 nationally.

Tickets will be provided on digital/mobile formats through Ticket Spicket only. General admission costs $7 for those ages 13 and older and will be good for both games for the designated date.

The Basics

Schedule:

Friday -  *Lebanon Valley vs. No. 20 Christopher Newport - 6 p.m.
             *Randolph-Macon vs. Averett – 8 p.m.
Saturday - *Loser of Game 2 vs. Loser Game 1 – 1 p.m.
                *Winner Game 2 vs. Winner Game 1 – 3 p.m.

* = Will be considered the home team

Venue: Crenshaw Gymnasium

Series Record: Randolph-Macon 3, Averett 2

Last Meeting: Randolph-Macon 88, Averett 55 – November 17, 2006 at Crenshaw Gym

The Yellow Jackets opened up the 2006-2007 campaign with a dominating win over the Cougars in the Tip-Off Tournament. RMC led from start to finish and was up by double digits six minutes into the game. Lindsay Riesbeck was nearly unstoppable as she scored 14 points on 7-of-8 from the field and pulled down nine rebounds as the Lemon and Black outrebounded the Cougars 54-34.

Christopher Newport 62, Lebanon Valley 50 – March 12, 2011 at Lebanon Valley

The only meeting between these two teams was a memorable one as they collided in the regional championship. The Captains edged out the Flying Dutchmen for the crown and clinched a spot in their first ever Final Four. CNU eventually won the national consolation game to finish No. 3 that year.

Last Time Out: Randolph-Macon 62, Shenandoah 52 – Wednesday, Nov. 17, at Shenandoah

Catherine Kagey (So., Roanoke, Va. / Faith Christian) and Juliana Park (Fr., Fairfax Station, Va. / Davidson Day) came off the bench to lead the Yellow Jackets to a win in the ODAC opener. Kagey was perfect from the field as she went 5-for-5, while Park almost matched her and was 5-for-7 with a pair of 3-pointers.

Averett 55, Huntingdon 58 – Saturday, Nov. 13, at Piedmont University
The Cougars fell to Huntingdon by a nose in the consolation game of Piedmont's tournament. The two teams were tied at 49 with 5:30 to go, but the Hawks took advantage of Averett being in foul trouble and made seven of their final nine points from the line, including two with just three seconds to go to set up the final. Courtney Hunt led the Cougars with 13 points and was 5-of-9 from the field.

Lebanon Valley 70, Penn State Harrisburg 30 – Sunday, Nov. 14, at Lebanon Valley
The Flying Dutchmen cruised to victory after they shutout the Lions in the second quarter and scored 20 points themselves for a 33-11 lead at the break. The third quarter was almost as dominant as Lebanon Valley won the frame 27-8. The Dutchmen outrebounded the Lions 42-18 and were led in scoring by Kate Fitzpatrick with 14 points. Kennedy Kuffa added a double-double with 10 points and 10 boards.

No. 20 Christopher Newport 113, Goucher 42
The Captains blew by the Gophers and hit the century mark for the second time this season. The defensively sound squad forced the Gophers into most of their 34 turnovers thanks to 20 steals. The Goucher turnovers then turned into 49 points. A quintet of Captains reached double figures in scoring with Katy Rader and Hannah Orloff leading the way with 17 each.

Inside The Numbers

• Aimee DeBell (Sr., Studley, Va. / Saint Gertrude) leads the Jackets in scoring with an average of 13.0 points across two games. Becca Anthony (Sr., Amelia, Va. / Amelia) also averages double figures with 12.5 points.
• As a team the Yellow Jackets are outrebounding the opposition 45-35.
• Park currently leads the ODAC in field goal percentage after last night's game with a 61.5% mark. DeBell is fifth in the same category at 56.5%.
• Cheridan Hatfield (Sr., Fishersville, Va. / Wilson Memorial) is third in the ODAC with an average of 5.9 assists per 40 minutes among players averaging at least 13 minutes per game.
• Christopher Newport enters the weekend with the fifth-best scoring offense in the nation with an average of 95.0 points per game. The Captains are also second in turnover margin with a mark of 18.00 per game.
• Lebanon Valley is currently No. 10 in turnovers per game with 11.5 committed on average. The Dutchmen are also No. 12 in the nation in assist turnover ratio at 1.35.
• Averett has done well in forcing turnovers and are ranked No. 27 nationally with a 27.5 average.

Home Openers

• The Yellow Jackets have historically played well in home openers. Since 2003, they have only lost twice in their first home game. RMC has won eight of the last nine during that stretch with the last loss coming two years ago against William Peace.

No Place Like Home

The win at Shenandoah was Lindsey Burke's first road contest as head coach. All four games last year were played at home. The last true road game for the Lemon and Black came on March 6, 2020 when the Jackets upset No. 9 Transylvania in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in Lexington, Kentucky.

Regular Season Success

With Wednesday's win, the Yellow Jackets have now won 12 consecutive games in the regular season dating back to February 4, 2020 with a 70-54 win over St. Mary's.

Head Coach Lindsey Burke
Second Season at Randolph-Macon
2020-21 4-0, 3-0 ODAC

Overall at R-MC           6-0 (1.000)
ODAC                           4-0 (1.000)
Home                           5-0 (1.000)
Away                            1-0
Neutral                         0-0

All-ODAC and All-State
Becca Anthony and Cheridan Hatfield (Sr., Fishersville, Va. / Wilson Memorial) return to the lineup as VaSID All-State selections a year ago. Anthony was also the lone All-ODAC selection for the Yellow Jackets.

Preseason Polls               

Averett was picked sixth out of 10 teams in the USA South East Division Coaches Preseason Poll and received one first place vote. The Captains were picked to win the Coast 2 Coast Conference. The Dutchmen were picked seventh out of nine teams in the MAC Commonwealth.