Women's Basketball | 11/16/2017 8:23:00 PM

WHAT: Preseason WNIT Consolation Rounds
WHEN: Friday, 2:30 p.m.
WHERE: EagleBank Arena, Fairfax, Va.
RECORDS: Mason (1-1, 0-0 Atlantic 10); Old Dominion (0-1, 0-0 Conference USA)
SERIES RECORD: Old Dominion leads 50-2
LAST MEETING: Old Dominion defeated Mason 53-39 on Feb. 5, 2013 in Fairfax
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FAIRFAX, Va. – The George Mason women's basketball team plays its first game at home on Friday and will do it against an old foe.

The Patriots host Old Dominion at 2:30 p.m. on Friday in the Preseason WNIT consolation rounds at EagleBank Arena. Mason (1-1) will play either Saint Francis (Pa.) or Southeast Missouri State at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at EagleBank Arena to wrap up the Preseason WNIT.

SCOUTING OLD DOMINION
The Monarchs are coming off a 63-55 loss against Liberty last Friday in the season opener and first round of the Preseason WNIT. Redshirt senior Odegua Oigbokie led the team with 14 points and freshman Victoria Morris had 10 points. ODU begins a new era with first-year head coach Nikki McCray-Penson. She spent the last nine years as an assistant coach under Dawn Staley at South Carolina and won the 2017 national championship with the Gamecocks. McCray Penson also was an All-American at Tennessee and is a two-time Olympic gold medalist.
 
SERIES HISTORY
Mason has played Old Dominon 52 times dating back to the 1975-76 season and the teams were both in the Colonial Athletic Association for many years. But no one on Mason's current roster has played ODU. The teams last played on Feb. 5, 2013. ODU leads the all-time series 50-2.
 
RECAPPING LOYOLA
The Patriots picked up their first win of the season with an 80-72 victory at Loyola (Md.) on Tuesday. The Patriots rallied from a six-point third-quarter deficit thanks to a career-high 23 points from freshman guard Nikki Cardano-Hillary and 20 points and 12 rebounds from center Natalie Butler. Freshman Camarie Gatling added a career-high 13 points and seven rebounds and sophomore Sarah Kaminski scored 12 points on a career-high four 3-pointers. Mason's 80 points were their most in two seasons and most on the road in nearly three years.

THE BUTLER DID IT
Connecticut graduate transfer Natalie Butler has made an impact already in her first two games in a Patriot uniform. The 6-foot-5 center from nearby Fairfax Station, Va., is averaging 16.5 points, 10.5 rebounds and 2.5 blocks. She posted her first double-double at Mason with 20 points and 12 rebounds at Loyola on Tuesday. She also had 13 points and nine rebounds against No. 24/23 Michigan. The former Lake Braddock star is enrolled in graduate school at Mason to pursue a master's degree in global affairs and is eligible to play immediately. She played in 62 games at UConn over the last two seasons, averaging 5.4 points and 5.0 rebounds in 15.9 minutes a game, while helping the Huskies to two Final Fours and the 2016 national championship.  Prior to UConn, she spent the 2013-14 season at Georgetown, where she was named the Big East Freshman of the Year. She averaged 13.9 points and 13.3 rebounds, ranking fifth in the country in rebounding. Her father, Vernon, is the second all-time leading scorer and rebounder at Navy and helped lead the Midshipmen reach the Elite Eight in 1986. Her brother, James, currently plays at Drexel.
 
QUITE AN INTRO
Freshman Nicole Cardano-Hillary has made a name for herself in the early going, averaging 22.5 points and four 3-pointers in her first two games. She leads the Atlantic 10 in scoring and ranks in the top five among all freshmen in the country. In her collegiate debut, she scored 22 points and made five 3-pointers at No. 24/23 Michigan. Her 22 points were the most by a Mason freshman since Moni Akintunde scored 25 against Old Dominion on Jan. 27, 2005. The 5-foot-7 guard from Georgetown, Texas, also nabbed three steals, dished out two assists and was 7-of-8 from the free-throw line. She followed with a career-high 23-point performance at Loyola (Md.) on Tuesday, making 8 of 9 free throws and grabbing five rebounds.
 
BOLT-ON OF LIGHTNING
Sophomore Jacy Bolton returns after a stellar freshman season in which she was named to the Atlantic 10 Conference All-Rookie Team. A 6-foot guard/forward from Drexel, Mo., Bolton averaged 8.3 points and 4.7 rebounds while also leading the team with 41 steals while also leading the team in free-throw shooting (.831). Her 250 points were the most in a season by a Mason freshman since current director of operations Amber Easter scored 334 in 2009-10.