Skidmore (5-5, 2-0 Liberty League) vs. Union (5-5, 1-1 Liberty League)
Game Details: Friday, Jan. 6 | 6 p.m.
Location: Saratoga Springs, N.Y. - Williamson Sports Center
Game Links: Live Stats | Video
Skidmore: Roster | Stats
Union: Roster | Stats

Skidmore (5-5, 2-0 Liberty League) vs. Rensselaer (5-6, 0-2 Liberty League)
Game Details: Saturday, Jan. 7 | 2 p.m.
Location: Saratoga Springs, N.Y. - Williamson Sports Center
Game Links: Live Stats | Video
Skidmore: Roster | Stats
Rensselaer: Roster | Stats

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – The Skidmore College women's basketball team looks to improve on its best stretch of basketball this season as the team wraps up its four-game homestand this weekend. The Thoroughbreds will host Union on Friday at 6 p.m., before finishing off the homestand against Rensselaer on Saturday at 2 p.m.
 
Skidmore comes into the weekend with a 5-5 overall record, leading the Liberty League after a 2-0 start. Last Friday, the Thoroughbreds were buoyed by a season-best game from guard Kelly Donnelly, and an outstanding defensive effort by senior forward Migle Vilunaite in the final seconds of a 68-66 victory against Vassar. The next day, the Thoroughbreds made big plays down the stretch to erase a six-point deficit over the final two minutes to knock off previously undefeated RIT 67-66.
 
The battle-tested Thoroughbreds have been in several close games this season, sporting a 4-1 mark in contests decided by a possession (three points or fewer). Skidmore is also 4-2 on home court, the two defeats coming to teams receiving votes in the d3hoops.com Top 25 polls (No. 1 Tufts and Ithaca). Statistically, the Thoroughbreds are second in the league in opponent field goal percentage, allowing teams to shoot just 35 percent all season.
 
The Thoroughbreds are led by Donnelly, who is among the top players in all of Division III statistically so far this year. Donnelly is 10th in the nation with 8.9 defensive rebounds per game and 24th with 20.7 points per game. She is also tied for 20th with her six double-doubles. All three marks lead the Liberty League. On Tuesday, Donnelly was honored as the league's Performer of the Week.
 
Vilunaite is second in among all Thoroughbreds in scoring (8.4 points) and rebounds (7.5), while leading the team with seven blocked shots. Against Vassar, Vilunaite recorded a game-winning block with just seconds remaining. Against RIT, Vilunaite controlled the paint, recording her first double-double of the season. She scored 15 points on an efficient 7-for-9 shooting from the field and added 12 rebounds.
 
Two new additions to the starting lineup have given the Thoroughbreds a boost in league play. In her first start this season against Vassar, guard Veronica Moceri filled the stat sheet, tallying four steals to go along with eight points, seven rebounds, and four assists. In the same game, fellow guard Haley English scored a season-best 12 points on 5-for-8 shooting from the field, adding five rebounds and three assists in what was her second start of the season.
 
Union comes into the contest with a 5-5 record overall and a 1-1 mark in league play. The Dutchwomen opened league play with a 69-60 victory over St. Lawrence on Friday, before falling to Vassar 57-48 on Saturday. It's sure to be a defensive battle, as Union allows the fewest points per game, with teams averaging just 53.6 points. The Dutchwomen also are third in defensive field goal percentage (35.8 percent) and tied for second in 3-point field goal percentage allowed (26.1 percent).
 
Union is led by forward Erin Lyons. The team captain is eighth in the league in scoring, averaging 12.3 points per game, and 11th in rebounds, grabbing six a contest. Guard Nicole Conley leads the Dutchwomen in steals, grabbing 2.1 a game, and shooting percentage, shooting 40.9 percent from the field and 38.6 percent from beyond the arc. Conley is second in the league with 1.7 made treys per game.
 
Last season, Skidmore and Union split a pair of contests, with each team winning on home court.
 
Rensselaer comes into the matchup sporting a 5-6 record overall record. The Engineers dropped both games to begin league play, falling to RIT 58-48 on Friday, and St. Lawrence 69-48 on Saturday. The Engineers will host Clarkson on Friday before heading to Saratoga Springs the next day. Rensselaer is the top offensive rebounding team in the league, averaging 15.3 caroms per game. They've also forced opponents to a league-best 21.5 turnovers per game.
 
Guard Sam Krumbhaar leads the Engineers in scoring, averaging 11.6 points per game, all while coming off the bench. Fellow guard Elizabeth Eckhardt is second on the team in scoring, averaging 10 points per game, while forward Shaina Iton is one of the league's top rebounders, sitting in fourth with 8.6 rebounds per game.
 
Rensselaer and Skidmore split a pair of contests last season with each team winning on its home court. The Thoroughbreds have owned a 6-4 advantage in the last 10 games of the all-time series.