Women's Basketball Closes Non-Conference Action vs Saint Francis

Sunday, December 14

Cincinnati, Ohio

1 p.m.

Xavier University

Saint Francis

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Women's Basketball Closes Non-Conference Action vs Saint Francis

12.12.25 | Women's Basketball

Live Stats ESPN+Varsity Network XU Notes (PDF)

Tip-off is slated for 1 p.m. from Cintas Center on Sunday, Dec. 14

By: Greg Lautzenheiser, Xavier Athletic Communications

CINCINNATI - Xavier women's basketball closes non-conference action vs Saint Francis on Sunday, Dec. 14. Tip-off is slated for 1 p.m. with the game being aired on ESPN+ and The Varsity Network.

A win on Sunday would give the Musketeers four-straight wins for the first time since the 2022-23 season (won five straight games to open the season). A win would also be Xavier's seventh non-conference win of the season, the most non-conference wins since 2022-23 (also won seven non-conference games). A win on Sunday would also be Xavier's eighth win of the season, the most wins before Christmas since the 2018-19 season (won nine games before Christmas).

GAME INFORMATION

XAVIER MUSKETEERS (7-3) vs SAINT FRANCIS RED FLASH (0-8)
Game Info - Sunday, Dec. 14 - 1 p.m. ET - Cintas Center (10,224) - Cincinnati, Ohio
Live Stats - statb.us/b/623126
ESPN+ - bit.ly/44ic5Yw
Varsity Network - bit.ly/43a3vKI

PROMOTIONS

Holiday Hoops
Toy Drive
Post-game Layups (Kids 8th grade and under)
Halftime: St. Ursula Villa Girls Basketball Scrimmage

ABOUT THE RED FLASH

2025-26 Record: 0-8 (0-0 NEC)
2024-25 Record: 11-19 (9-7 NEC)
2025 Postseason: None
Series History: Xavier leads, 3-0
Last Meeting: Xavier 78, Saint Francis 52 (Nov. 13, 2022 - Cincinnati, Ohio)

NOTABLES
• Saint Francis was picked to finish 10th in the NEC Preseason Coaches' Poll. The Red Flash are led by first-year head coach Chynna Bozeman.
• Xavier is playing its third NEC opponent this season in Saint Francis (also payed New Haven and Long Island).
• Saint Francis ranks 345th in the NCAA in scoring offense (53.6) and 299th in scoring defense (71.1). The Red Flash also rank 326th in the NCAA in field-goal percentage (.352) and 331st in field-goal percentage defense (.445). Saint Francis ranks 74th in the NCAA in three-point field-goal percentage defense (.267).
• Aleah James leads the team in scoring (11.3), total assists (27), total steals (13) and three-pointers made (11). She has added 4.1 rebounds per game.
• Sonia Sato has added 10.3 points and 4.0 rebounds per game. Shelby Ricks is averaging a team-high 5.3 rebounds per game to go along with 9.7 points per game.

SERIES HISTORY

Xavier leads the all-time series with the Red Flash, 3-0. The Musketeers won the last meeting, 78-52, at Cintas Center on Nov. 13, 2022.
Xavier won the first meeting between the two schools, 79-65, on Dec. 8, 2001 at the Provident Bank Xavier Invitational.

SERIES HISTORY
Nov. 13, 2022 - XU 78, SFU 52 (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Dec. 31, 2003 - XU 70, SFU 64 (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Dec. 8, 2001 - XU 79, SFU 65 (Cincinnati, Ohio)

LAST TIME OUT

Xavier is coming off a 64-57 win vs Long Island. MacKenzie Givens posted her first career double-double, scoring a team-high 18 points and pulling down a team-high 11 rebounds (also a career high).
Vivien Nejašmić added a career-high 17 points in 22 minutes of action off the bench. She also pulled down a career-high seven rebounds.
Audia Young added a season-high 10 points in 26 minutes of action off the bench. Meri Kanerva finished with nine points, five assists and two rebounds.
Petra Oborilova had eight points, seven rebounds and three assists. Mariyah Noel finished with six rebounds.
Xavier won the battle on the glass, 49-44. The 49 rebounds are the most in a game by the Musketeers since pulling down 50 vs Old Dominion on Nov. 19, 2022 at Cintas Center (W, 65-49).

NOTABLES

Mariyah Noel is averaging 15.9 points per game, ranking fourth in the BIG EAST and 121st in the NCAA. The junior guard entered the season with a 1.8 points per game scoring averaging in 39 games at Ole Miss. She also ranks second on the team in rebounding (6.2), while ranking eighth in the BIG EAST. Noel is one of three players who rank in the top-10 in the BIG EAST in both rebounding and scoring.
Savannah White is averaging a team-high 7.2 rebounds per game to go along with 7.7 points per game. She ranks sixth in the BIG EAST in rebounding and 186th in the NCAA. The forward also ranks third in the BIG EAST and 52nd in the NCAA in blocks per game (1.7). White has added a team-high 13 steals.
Meri Kanerva is averaging 8.7 points per game. She has added a team-high 37 assists and 13 steals. The guard is averaging 37.1 minutes per game, ranking first in the BIG EAST and second in the NCAA.
Xavier ranks second in the BIG EAST and 30th in the NCAA in free-throw percentage (.771). The Musketeers only hit 65.2 percent of their free throws last season, ranking 11th in the BIG EAST and 321st in the NCAA.
The Musketeers rank fourth in the BIG EAST in blocks per game (4.2) and free throws made per game (11.8). Xavier also ranks third in the conference in field-goal percentage defense (.369), while ranking 80th in the NCAA.
Sophomore MacKenzie Givens is averaging 13.1 points and 5.5 rebounds per game this season. She averaged 2.2 points and 1.3 rebounds per game last season. Givens ranks first on the team in field-goal percentage (.500), while ranking 97th in the NCAA. Her 13.1 points per game average ranks 10th in the BIG EAST.
Xavier is one of only three schools to have two players ranked in the top-10 of the BIG EAST in scoring average (UConn and Seton Hall are the other two schools).
Mariyah Noel posted back-to-back games with 22 points on Nov. 7-11, becoming the first player to score 20 or more points in consecutive games since A'riana Gray in 2020 (scored 20 points in back-to-back games on Jan. 10-12).
Xavier posted a 74-53 win vs Ohio on Nov. 20 at Cintas Center. The 21-point margin of victory was Xavier's largest margin of victory since Dec. 15, 2023 vs SIUE (W, 68-43).
Xavier scored 74 or more points in a home game for the first time since Nov. 22, 2022 (W, 84-68 vs McNeese State).
Xavier had two players with 11 or more rebounds in a game for the first time since Dec. 19, 2021 (W, 65-58 vs Southeast Missouri) vs Ohio on Nov. 20.
Xavier had 20 assists vs Ohio on Nov. 20, the first time the Musketeers posted 20 or more assists in a game since Dec. 15, 2023 (23 assists in a 68-43 win vs SIUE).
Xavier had 12 steals vs New Haven on Nov. 4, the 11th time the Musketeers have posted 10 or more steals in a game over the last two seasons.

BIG EAST WEEKLY HONORS

Nov. 24 - Mariyah Noel - BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll
Nov. 17 - Mariyah Noel - BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll
Dec. 8 - MacKenzie Givens - BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll

KANERVA NAMED TO ALL-BIG EAST TEAM

Meri Kanerva was named to the 2025-26 Preseason All-BIG EAST Honorable Mention Team on Oct. 21 at BIG EAST Media Day at Madison Square Garden. She is the first Musketeer to pick-up preseason all-conference honors since A'riana Gray in 2020.

SCHEDULE NOTES

Xavier will play seven non-conference home games at Cintas Center, including five straight to open the 2025-26 season. The Musketeers will play a total of 17 home games during the season (10 home BIG EAST games; seven non-conference games).
The Musketeers have won 70 non-conference games over the last eight seasons with a 56-19 mark at Cintas Center.
Xavier will play teams from five different leagues during non-conference action: Mid-American (3), Northeast (3), Horizon, Big 12 and Atlantic 10. The Musketeers non-conference opponents combined to make two postseason appearances last season.
Xavier snapped its two-game losing streak in the Skyline Chili Crosstown Shootout series on Dec. 7 and pick up its first win at Fifth Third Arena since Dec. 11, 2016 (W, 72-61). Xavier is 13-8 in the last 21 meetings vs the Bearcats with a 7-4 record in games played at Fifth Third Arena.
Xavier played two opponents for the first time in program history in New Haven and Long Island.
Xavier played Kent State for the third time in as many seasons.
The Musketeers renewed their rivalry with Dayton on Nov. 11. The two teams played each other for the first time since Feb. 7, 2013.

ABOUT THE MUSKETEERS

Xavier returns six letterwinners from the 2024-25 season, highlighted by Meri Kanerva who was named to the All-BIG EAST Freshman Team. The guard led the team in scoring (11.2) and assists (3.4).
The Musketeers also welcome back starter Petra Oborilova. She averaged 4.2 points and 2.8 rebounds per game, while knocking down 33 three pointers (ranked third on the team).
Third-year head coach Billi Chambers welcomes eight newcomers to the team this summer, including four transfers: Savannah White (Indiana State), Mya Moore (Cleveland State), Audia Young (Auburn) and Mariyah Noel (Ole Miss).
Xavier also welcomes four freshman to the program: Penda Dieng (Louga, Senegal), Denise Neves (Lisbon, Portugal), Payton Richards (Lake Travis, Texas) and Kodee Williams-Sefo (Auckland, New Zealand).
All told, the Musketeers will have players from eight different countries on the 2025-26 roster.

XAVIER BASKETBALL HISTORY

Xavier has made nine NCAA Tournament appearances, most recently advancing to the tournament's second round in 2011.
The Musketeers' best NCAA Tournament finish was in 2001 and 2010 as XU advanced to the Elite Eight.

TV BROADCAST INFORMATION

The upcoming season marks the first of a six-year media agreement, which will span from 2025-26 through 2030-31, encompassing coverage on FOX Sports (FOX, FS1), NBC Sports (NBC, Peacock), and TNT Sports (TNT, TBS, truTV and Max). The agreement will provide major national broadcast, cable, and direct-to-consumer streaming coverage of BIG EAST women's and men's basketball games. ESPN+ will also stream a minimum of 75 women's basketball games.
Xavier will play 27 games on ESPN+ (16 home games; 11 away games). The Musketeers will also play one game on FS1 (Nov. 30 vs UConn) and one game on Peacock (Jan. 8 at UConn).

RADIO BROADCAST INFORMATION

Xavier has added to its broadcast coverage for the upcoming 2025-26 season by providing radio broadcasts on The Varsity Network.
All 17 home games (and select road games) will be aired on The Varsity Network. The free app can be downloaded in the Apple Store or Google Play Store on any mobile device.
John Baldridge ('25) will handle the play-by-play for the Musketeers. He did play-by-play broadcasts for the Xavier women's basketball program during the 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons on the Xavier University Sports Radio Network.
Baldridge served as a broadcaster for the Peoria Chiefs (St. Louis Cardinals High-A Affiliate) in the summer of 2025. Baldridge also has broadcaster experience with the Fond du Lac Dock Spiders (Northwoods League) and the Cincinnati Steam (Great Lakes League).

PRESEASON COACHES POLL

1. UConn - 100 (10 first-place votes)
2. Marquette - 85
3. Seton Hall - 80 (1)
4. Villanova - 78
5. Creighton - 61
6. St. John's - 56
7. Georgetown - 48
8. DePaul - 32
9. Butler - 30
10. Providence - 20
11. Xavier - 15

TICKET INFORMATION

Buy season tickets now at GoXavier.com/Tickets. Single-game tickets are also on sale at GoXavier.com/Tickets.
For more information on season tickets, single-game tickets and group tickets, fans can contact the Xavier Athletics Ticket Office at (513) 745-3411 x7 or tickets@xavier.edu