Minutewomen Set for WNIT Second Round Clash at Buffalo

University of Massachusetts Women's Basketball Notes & Information
Matchup	Massachusetts at Buffalo
Date \| Time	Mar. 23 \| 2:00 p.m.
Location	Alumni Arena \| Buffalo, N.Y.
Twitter	@UMassWBB
Instagram	@umasswbb
Facebook	UMass Women's Basketball

AMHERST, Mass. -- The Minutewomen (17-14) head to Buffalo, N.Y. for a WNIT Second Round matchup against the Bulls (25-7) on Sunday. Tip-off is set for 2:00 p.m. The Action will be streamed live on ESPN+, with links and live updates available at umassathletics.com or @UMassWBB on X (Twitter).

Last Time Out

The Minutewomen protected home court in dominant fashion in the first round of the WNIT, cruisng to an 86-40 victory over Stonehill on Thursday night. UMass grabbed a season-high 62 rebounds to Stonehill's 20, tying a WNIT singe-game record and setting the highest national postseason singe-game rebound total in program history.
Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Year Yahmani McKayle made Massachusetts history, becoming the first freshman and third Minutewoman in program history to record a triple-double. McKayle notched 14 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists, and two steals on the night.
Megan Olbrys led all scorers with 20 points, adding nine rebounds, one block, and one steal on 7-13 shooting from the field. The Atlantic 10 Third-Team All-Conference honoree now has eight 20+ point games this season and posted 9+ rebounds for the 15th time this year.
Allie Palmieri notched her first career double-double, putting up 11 points and 10 rebounds. The Trumbull, Conn. native added three threes and two steals throughout the contest.
Stefanie Kulesza was the final Minutewoman in double-figures, tallying 15 points for the second-highest total of the game. The senior guard grabbed nine rebounds, four assists, and four steals on the night.

The 2024-25 Season Thus Far

The Minutewomen continue to build on an impressive turnaround season, increasing their overall win total from last year by 11 and nine more conference victories.
UMass earned a first-round bye in this year's Atlantic 10 Championship as the seventh seed.
Massachusetts currently sits at 152 in the NCAA Women's Basketball NET rankings; sitting at 54th in the country in scoring defense, 64th in opponent field goal percentage, 71st in forced turnovers, and 86th in rebound margin.

The Matchup

Massachusetts crosses paths with Stonehill for the first time in program history.
The Skyhawks advanced to the NEC Championship game this season, falling to FDU.
Sharn Hayward (16.3), Brooke Paquette (13.4), and Kylie Swider (12.8) lead the scoring efforts for Stonehill. Swider also leads the team on the glass, averaging 8.9 rebounds per game.

End-of-Season Recognition

Yahmani McKayle was named Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Year, in addition to receiving an All-Rookie team selection while Megan Olbrys received All-Conference Third-Team honors, announced by the conference prior to the start of the A-10 Tournament.
McKayle headlined the A-10 rookie class, averaging 13.4 points, 3.3 assists, and 1.86 steals per game to lead in all three categories among first-years.
The freshman standout ranked 12th overall in the conference in scoring, T-10th in assists, and 4th in steals per game. McKayle's play elevated throughout conference action with averages of 13.8 points, 3.5 assists, 2.7 rebounds, and 1.94 steals.
McKayle becomes the first Minutewomen since Hailey Leidel (2016-17) to earn Rookie of the Year honors.
Olbrys led the Minutewomen in scoring and on the glass, averaging 14.1 points, 8.1 rebounds on a team-high. 53.7% shooting from the field.
Olbrys amassed seven double-doubles on the 2024-25 regular season campaign, including four against Atlantic 10 opponents.
The Junior forward averaged career-bests in points, rebounds, assists, steals, blocks, FG%, 3PT%, FT%, and minutes to cement a breakout year for the Massachusetts newcomer.

Kulesza Cleans the Glass

Senior Stefanie Kulesza grabbed a career-high 22 rebounds in UMass' 72-52 win over Duquesne on Feb. 12, tying the fourth-best single game mark in program history.
The Wilmington, Del. Native secured 18 rebounds in the first half alone, helping the Minutewomen jump out to a 42-16 lead at the break.
Kulesza added 14 points, good for her fourth double-double of the season.
Kulesza earned her first A-10 Player of the Week nod on Feb. 17, averaging 12.0 ppg and 13.5 rpg the week prior.

Meg Doesn't Miss

Junior forward Megan Olbrys shot 89.5% from the field (17-19 FG) last week, earning Atlantic 10 Player of the Week for the first time in her career.
The Norwood, Mass. native averaged 21.5 points, 6.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 2 blocks on the week against the likes of La Salle and Saint Joseph's.

Want Some Fries With That 30-Piece?

Senior guard Allie Palmieri tallied a career-high 31 points against Fordham in her Atlantic 10 debut.
This was the third-highest single-game scoring total by a Minutewoman in the last 11 years.
Palmieri shot an efficient 9-17 from the field, netting 6-10 of her attempts from range.
The Trumbull, Conn. native added three steals on the defensive end, another career-best on the day.

Double-Double Duo

Senior forward Stefanie Kulesa and transfer forward Megan Olbrys became the first UMass pair since Feb. 4, 2023 to each record double-doubles in the same game as the Minutewomen took a 72-55 victory against Saint Louis last Thursday.
Kulesza set a career-high in scoring with 21 points and added 12 rebounds.
Olbrys tallied 18 points and 11 rebounds.

Mani is Money

Freshman point guard Yahmani McKayle had a career-high 21 points, 7 assists, and 4 steals in UMass's first win of the season on Nov. 10 vs. CCSU
The Queens, N.Y. native followed up with 17 points, 6 assists, and 5 rebounds in to help UMass secure a 76-53 win over Monmouth
McKayle is averaging 13.4 points, 3.4 assists, and 1.8 steals per game on the season, earning A-10 Rookie of the Week on December 9th, February 10th, February 17th, and March 3rd.

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Players Mentioned

Stefanie Kulesza

Yahmani McKayle

Megan Olbrys

Allie Palmieri

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