Women’s Basketball Releases 2018-19 Schedule
8/1/2018 10:01:00 AM | Women's Basketball
KENT, Ohio – Kent State women's basketball announced its complete 2018-19 schedule on Wednesday (Aug. 1). The 29-game slate is highlighted by four contests against teams that advanced to the Sweet 16 last season.
Overall, the Golden Flashes will face nine opponents that reached postseason play in 2018, combining for 10 postseason victories. Seven teams won 20-plus games and four finished in the top-50 of the final RPI ranking.
"Our non-conference schedule will be challenging and has a good balance of home and away games," said head coach Todd Starkey. "We feel that we can compete with, and have success against, the opponents that we've scheduled. This year's team will be young with five freshmen and seven total newcomers, so we wanted to make sure our players have gone against quality competition before getting into MAC play. The league is coming off of its best season ever and will feature many talented teams once again."
Kent State will be tested on the opening weekend of play with a trip to Tobacco Road for games at North Carolina (Nov. 9) and North Carolina State (Nov. 11) out of the ACC. The Tar Heels are led by Hall of Famer Sylvia Hatchell and the Wolfpack lost to national runner-up Mississippi State in a Sweet 16 matchup.
The Flashes then welcome Northern Kentucky (Nov. 17) and Oakland (Nov. 18) to the M.A.C. Center for the Kent State Classic. Matchups with Youngstown State (Nov. 20) and Duquesne (Nov. 28) conclude a four-game homestand that brings November to a close. The Flashes will host Clarion in the final non-conference home game on Dec. 31.
"We decided to collaborate with Akron in putting together a tournament with the host school alternating back and forth each year," Starkey said. "Last year's tournament was held at their place, and we are excited to have those games played at the M.A.C. Center this year. This partnership with Akron provides a great opportunity for both schools to play at a neutral site with easy travel every other year and also allows our fan bases to come out for some high-quality basketball."
Kent State hits the road again for games at Wright State (Dec. 2) and Robert Morris (Dec. 7) before breaking for final exams. The Flashes then visit St. Bonaventure (Dec. 17) and NJIT (Dec. 21).
Mid-American Conference play has been pushed back to after the New Year and starts with home games against Eastern Michigan (Jan. 5) and Northern Illinois (Jan. 9). The Flashes drew the Eagles and Western Michigan as the MAC West teams that they will play twice.
The Feb. 2 contest against rival Akron will be the Flashes' alumni game. The second meeting with the Zips as part of the Crystal Clinic Wagon Wheel Challenge is scheduled for March 6 at James A. Rhodes Arena.
Kent State will host its annual Play4Kay game against Bowling Green on Feb. 16. Senior Day will be held on March 9 against Buffalo, which is the regular season finale.
The 2019 MAC Women's Basketball Tournament gets underway with first round matchups at campus sites on Monday, March 11. The tournament then heads to Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland for the quarterfinals on Wednesday, March 13. The semifinals will be played on Friday, March 15 with the championship game airing on CBS Sports Network on Saturday, March 16.
Kent State hosts an exhibition game with Slippery Rock on Nov. 4.
Season tickets will go on sale and game times will be announced in the coming months. Call the Ticket Office at (330) 672-2244 for more information on purchasing tickets.
Be sure to follow the Golden Flashes on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for news and updates about the team.
