Schedule
#5 Hillsdale (15-11, 11-9 G-MAC) at #4 Walsh (16-12, 12-8 G-MAC) | 5:30 p.m. ET Tuesday, March 3 | Alumni Arena | North Canton, OH
 
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Live Stats, Webcast, Ticket Links
 
Additional Info
Hillsdale Roster | Walsh Roster | Hillsdale Stats | Walsh Stats | G-MAC Standings | G-MAC Stats
 
 
Projected Starters
Hillsdale: #5 Sarah Aleknavicius, So., G/F, Grafton, WI/Grafton (8 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 3.2 apg, 1.3 spg); #15 Maddie Smith, Fr., G, Montgomery, AL/Trinity Presbyterian (1.8 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 2.1 apg); #21 Savannah Smith, Jr., F, Liberty Twp., OH/Lakota East (13.3  ppg, 4.5 rpg); #23 Annalise Pietrzyk, Jr., G, Lockport, IL/Providence Catholic (14.1 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 2.8 apg, 1.1 spg);  #40 Emma Ruhlman, Sr., G, Warren, PA/Warren (7.3 ppg, 6.7 rpg, 2.5 apg)
 
Walsh: #4 Emma Dretke, Sr., G/F, Massillon, OH/Jackson (7.4 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 2 apg, 1.2 spg);  #7 Carlota Lopez, So., G, Oviedo, Spain/Monroe U. (11 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 3.6 apg, 1.7 spg); #22 Sydney Ludvigsen, Jr., G, Kenosha, WI/Union Grove (11.1 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 2 apg, 1.9 spg); #23 Sami Kim, Jr, G, Brunswick, OH/Saint Joseph Academy (6.9 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 3.4 apg, 1.6 spg); #24 Kiley Dyrlund, Sr., F, Canton, OH/GlenOak (20.2 ppg, 9.4 rpg, 4 spg)
 

Scouting the Opposition
Walsh: The Cavaliers are back in the G-MAC Tournament after a two-year absence and have clinched their first winning season since 2021-22. Walsh is now hoping to make a run in the postseason, and hosting at least one tournament game on their home court.

New head coach Montello has helped elevate a cast that features many of the same players as last year's nine-win squad. Kiley Dyrlund, a former All-G-MAC player who missed much of last year with an injury, has blossomed as a senior, leading the G-MAC in points per game and ranking third in rebounds per game while looking like a serious G-MAC Player of the Year contender.

Returning starters Sami Kim, Emma Dretke and Sydney Ludvigsen are excelling in supporting roles to Dyrlund, while two key transfers brought in by Montello have also raised the team's floor, with JuCo transfer Carlota Lopez standing out as a double-digit scorer and Tampa transfer Rory O'Hara playing a significant role off the bench.

While Walsh has a strong six-player rotation, injuries have sapped much of the Cavaliers' depth, leaving Walsh with a short bench. While the Cavaliers were able to overcome that limitation in the regular season, the postseason could be a different story with teams needing to win three games in five or less days to win titles and advance.

Walsh leads the all-time series with Hillsdale 14-11. The two teams split this season, with Hillsdale winning at home 60-53 on Jan. 5, and Walsh taking its home contest 72-63 on Jan. 31.

 
Scouting Hillsdale
 
The Chargers split the final weekend of the G-MAC regular season and earned the fifth seed in the G-MAC Tournament this week, hitting the road to take on Walsh. Hillsdale will look to keep its season going and duplicate its run in the 2017-18 season when the Chargers turned the fifth seed in the G-MAC Tourney into a tournament title.

To do so, Hillsdale will have to turn around its road record, as the Chargers are just 4-10 on the road this season against an 11-1 record at home. Better shooting from the floor will be key, and that means a good week from breakout junior guard Annalise Pietrzyk, who's nearly doubled her scoring output from last season and is among the G-MAC leaders at 14.1 points per game, with three contests with 25 or more. Pietrzyk has gotten big help on the perimeter in recent weeks from sophomore Sarah Aleknavicius, who missed most of January with an injury but has five double-digit scoring games in February and also brings excellent passing and defense to the table.
 
Also playing a big role for Hillsdale offensively is the center rotation of Savannah Smith and Ellie Bruce, who each play roughly half the game and combine to average another 21 points between them. Smith, the leading returning scorer from the 2024-25 squad, has been an impact player in the post and ramped up her scoring contributions recently with five 19-plus point games and nine double-figure contests in her last 11. As her backup, the 6-foot-2 Bruce is among the G-MAC leaders in blocked shots and an imposing two-way force, making sure there's little drop-off when Smith is on the bench.
 
Senior Emma Ruhlman is an excellent rebounder from the wing, a strong shooter and a critical leader as well for the Chargers, while sophomore Magdalena Sularski and freshman Maddie Smith share point guard duties for Hillsdale and are growing into the role. Emilia Sularski and Sydney Pnacek are both key bench players for the Chargers. Hillsdale is among the best teams in the conference at sharing the ball, leading the G-MAC in assists per game, but must avoid turnovers – the Chargers are 3-6 this season when they turn the ball over 20 times or more.
 
Hillsdale is coached by Brianna Brennan, who is in her third year at the helm and was named the BCAM College Coach of the Year for the state of Michigan after guiding the Chargers to the NCAA Tournament in the 2024-25 season. Abbey McNeil returns for her third season as associate head coach, and alumnus Sophia Pierce is back in Hillsdale for her first season as an assistant coach to round out the staff.
 
 
Other Notes

• This is Hillsdale's fourth consecutive trip to the G-MAC Tournament and sixth overall since joining the league in the fall of 2017. Hillsdale is 6-4 all-time in the G-MAC Tourney, winning the tournament crown in 2018 and reaching the final last season in 2025.  Hillsdale is 2-1 all-time in the opening round as the five seed, winning in both 2018 over Ursuline (81-69) and 2019 over Findlay in overtime (75-74), and falling to Thomas More (50-41) in 2024.
• Hillsdale has guaranteed itself a winning season for the fourth consecutive campaign, the third longest stretch in program history. The Chargers had eight straight winning seasons from 2004-12, and also five straight from 1994-99.
• Senior Emma Ruhlman earned G-MAC Player of the Week honors on Jan. 5 after posting a 16-point, 14 rebound double-double to lead the Chargers to an upset victory over then 19^th-ranked Malone on Jan. 3. A three-year contributor and two-year starter for Hillsdale, Ruhlman has provided invaluable leadership and great 3-point shooting. As a senior, she's also become one of the top rebounders in the G-MAC, leading Hillsdale and ranking 10^th in the conference with 6.7 per game. She had back-to-back games with 15 rebounds in Hillsdale's two wins on Feb. 5 and 7, including her second career double-double in a 63-52 win over Ohio Dominican.
• Junior Savannah Smith has been one of Hillsdale's top players in the month of February, with seven double figure scoring contests in her last nine outings, including a 27 point, 12 rebound double-double in Hillsdale's home win over Ashland on Jan. 17, and 25 point efforts in wins over Tiffin on Feb. 5 and Lake Erie on Feb. 12. Now in the starting lineup after coming off the bench for the early part of the season, Smith has seen her role grow, as she ranks second on the team with 13.3 points per game in just 21 minutes a contest. She makes a strong post tandem with starter Ellie Bruce, who's averaging eight points, five rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game in the minutes when Smith isn't on the floor.
• Annalise Pietrzyk set a new career high for the Chargers with 30 points in a big win over conference title contender Walsh on Jan. 5. She's having a phenomenal season for the Chargers, already earning one G-MAC Player of the Week honor early in the campaign. Always a sharpshooter for Hillsdale, the junior has stayed hot from deep, ranking among the G-MAC leaders in 3-point shooting percentage (34.5%) with 60 makes, but she's now showing the all-around development of her game, ranking eighth in the G-MAC in scoring (14.1) and 10th in assists (2.8) as a leader and tone-setter for the Chargers.
• Hillsdale sophomore Sarah Aleknavicius is making an impact now that she's returned from an injury that held her out for almost all of January, scoring eight of her 11 points against Tiffin in the final 20 seconds of regulation and overtime to lead the Chargers to victory on Feb. 5. She scored in double figures in four out of the final five regular season games to help the Chargers grab the five seed. Her return has been huge for Hillsdale, as she averages 8.1 points per game and also contributes 3.8 rebounds and a team-leading 3.2 assists per game as well, while also being one of Hillsdale's best defenders.
• Hillsdale has been a prolific 3-point team in 2025-26, shooting 33.5% from 3-point range as a team to lead the G-MAC and rank 35^th nationally. Five Chargers players are shooting 33.9% or better from 3-point range with at least 10 makes – Pietrzyk, Aleknavicius, Ruhlman, Magdalena Sularski and Emilia Sularski.
• Part of the reason the Chargers are shooting so well is they're doing a great job of sharing the basketball, leading the G-MAC with 14.81 assists per game. The Chargers are also second in the G-MAC with 3.62 blocks per game, and are among the G-MAC's top defenses, ranking third in opponent field goal percentage (38.3%) and giving up just 63.6 points per game.