CAMDEN, N.J. (Feb. 29, 2016) – The 2015-16 season has seen a rejuvenation of the women's basketball program at Rutgers University-Camden, and the Scarlet Raptors haven't finished leaving their mark in history.
 
Rutgers-Camden learned today that it has been selected for a berth in the ECAC Division III Metro/Upstate tournament, where it will be the No. 2 seed in the four-team field, which will be hosted by top-seeded Brooklyn College. The Scarlet Raptors will play a semifinal game Saturday at 7:15 p.m. against No. 3 seed College of Staten Island.
 
In Saturday's first game, Brooklyn (18-8) will host No. 4 seed Centenary College (14-12). The Raptors will face the Dolphins of the College of Staten Island (18-8).
 
ECAC bracket

In a season full of accomplishments, the ECAC selection marks the first time the Scarlet Raptors will play in that tournament since the 2001-02 season. That year they finished as the ECAC Metro NY/NJ runner-up for the second consecutive year, losing 78-66 to New York University in the title game. During the 2000-01 season, they dropped a 70-60 decision against Richard Stockton College in the ECAC Metro NY/NJ championship game.
 
This year's ECAC tournament will mark the sixth time the Scarlet Raptors have played in that event. They won ECAC titles during the 1991-92 and 1994-95 seasons, going 2-0 in the tournament each year. They lost their lone game in the 1996-97 ECAC Metro NY/NJ tournament and went 2-1 in the tournaments following the 2000-01 and 2001-02 seasons.
 
Nine days ago the Scarlet Raptors competed in the New Jersey Athletic Conference playoffs for the first time since they won the NJAC title during the 2002-03 season. That year they earned the only NCAA tournament berth in program history. The Raptors lost their lone NJAC playoff game this season, 61-54 on Feb. 20 at Stockton University. The Ospreys went on to earn an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament.
 
Rutgers-Camden brings a 15-10 overall record into the ECAC tournament after compiling a 10-8 mark in the NJAC. Both records were the best marks for the program since the 2002-03 team went 22-7 overall and 12-6 in the NJAC regular season.
 
The Scarlet Raptors enter the ECAC tournament led by NJAC Player of the Year Kamari Talley (Camden, NJ/Creative Arts), who is averaging 21.1 points and 13.5 rebounds per game. A five-time NJAC Player of the Week and three-time ECAC Div. III Metro Player of the Week this season, the senior guard/forward produced 20 double-doubles in her 22 games. She had a career-high 38 points against Bryn Athyn College on Jan. 4 and set the Rutgers-Camden single-game program record with 30 rebounds against William Paterson University Dec. 12.
 
With 298 rebounds and 465 points this season, Talley is 11th and 12th, respectively, on the single-season program charts. She also enters the ECAC tournament eighth all-time in scoring average and sixth in rebounding average among the program's single-season leaders.
 
Talley has had plenty of help from her fellow tri-captains, sophomores Cara Racobaldo (Pennsauken, NJ/Camden Catholic) and Michelle Obasi (Camden, NJ/Camden Catholic). Racobaldo's 138 assists are the fourth-highest single-season total in program history, only one behind third-place Erin James (2003-04 season). Earlier this season, Racobaldo joined James and Karla Robinson as the only Rutgers-Camden players to ever record a pair of 100-assist seasons, and her career total of 244 assists already ranks sixth on the all-time list. In addition to her assists, she leads the team with 74 steals, while averaging 9.0 points and 6.3 rebounds.
 
Obasi, who joined Talley in being named NJAC Player of the Week this season, is averaging 10.3 points and 7.4 rebounds, third on the team in both categories. She also has a team-high 20 blocked shots and has added 38 steals and 28 assists.
 
Junior forward/center Caroline Santiago (Buena, NJ/Buena Regional) is second on the team in rebounding (8.8 rpg) and fifth in scoring (8.2 ppg), while freshman guard Gabby Greene (Howell, NJ/Howell) is second on the team in scoring (11.2 ppg) and assists (83), while placing third in steals (51). She owns 47 of the 57 three-point field goals the team has hit this season, and also has the best free throw percentage (.652) of any player shooting more than 10 foul shots.
 
All five of the Rutgers-Camden starters were honored as the school's Raptor of the Week at least once this season, marking the first time that has ever happened.
 
Staten Island and Brooklyn are both members of the City University of New York Athletic Conference (CUNYAC) and met in the conference semifinals Feb. 24, with Brooklyn taking a 76-70 victory. Brooklyn went on to fall in overtime in the CUNYAC finals against Lehman College, which earned the conference's automatic berth in the NCAA tournament.
 
The Dolphins' loss in the CUNYAC semifinals snapped a five-game winning streak. Staten Island faced two NJAC teams earlier this season, losing to both Kean University and William Paterson University. Rutgers-Camden lost twice to Kean and split with Paterson this season.
 
Staten Island is paced by sophomore guard Christina Pasaturo (Brooklyn, NY/Notre Dame Academy), who is averaging 18.3 points, leads the club with 168 assists and is second in both steals (72) and rebounding (6.6 rpg). Sophomore forward Samantha Flecker (Staten Island, NY/St. John Villa) is averaging 15.6 points and has a team-leading 8.5 rebounding average.