CHARLOTTE, N.C - The Queens University of Charlotte women's basketball team (5-9, 4-9 SAC) will be back in the Queen City to take on Mars Hill University (1-13, 1-11 SAC) on Saturday, Jan. 22 at 2 p.m. inside Curry Arena. The Royals will be looking for their first home-and-home series sweep of the year in the South Atlantic Conference game.  

 LAST TIME OUT
- The Royals defeated Tusculum on the road on Wednesday evening snapping an eight-game skid to the Pioneers that dated back to the 2016-17 season.
 
- Kalaya Hall led all players on the court with 18 points while Finley Lefevers recorded 11 points and 11 rebounds for her first double-double as a Royal. Taylor Stevens finished with 11 points, five rebounds, four assists, and four steals while Kristy Hamze added eight points. Malea Garrison recorded seven rebounds.

ABOUT THE ROYALS
-Queens is currently led by Kalaya Hall who is averaging 18.3 points per game this season, while she ranks fourth in the league for points per game. Hall has recorded double figures in scoring in 10 games so far this season for the Royals, scoring a career-high and single-game program record 41 points against Anderson University.

- Additionally, Kristy Hamze is averaging 10.9 points per game. Kiana Barkhoff tops the nation, league, and Royals with 3.8 blocks per game. Her season total of 42 blocks ranks seventh nationally. Barkhoff is also averaging 7.7 rebounds per game, while Taylor Stevens ranks first in the league with 4.4 assists per game.

-The Royals opened their season with a win over Emory & Henry. It is the first time that Queens has kicked off their season in the win column since 2015. Two of their opponents since then have been nationally ranked.
 
-Head Coach Jen Brown is in her second season leading the Royals. Queens is in rebuilding mode welcoming six newcomers to a squad of nine returners this season.

ABOUT THE LIONS
- In their last meeting, Mars Hill suffered a 74-44 loss to Anderson. De'Ja Marshall (18 points) and Maddie Gillie (14 points) were the only players to score in double-figures for the Lions.
 
- Marshall leads the Lions on the court averaging 15.9 points per game shooting 41.8-percent from the floor. Zanah Boyd is chipping in 11.6 points per game while Gillie is scoring 9.5 points per game.

SERIES HISTORY
- Saturday afternoon marks the 21st meeting between these two programs with the series sitting tied, 10-10. The Royals are on a two-game winning streak in the series.
 
- In their last meeting, the Royals defeated the Lions, 68-65, on Dec. 4, 2021. Hall finished with 23 points to lead all on the court, while Hamze added a season-high 18 points. Barkhoff totaled six points and 11 rebounds.

Be sure to follow the Royals on Twitter @queenswbb and Instagram @queenswbb to stay up to date on all the latest news surrounding the women's basketball program. Additionally, follow Queens Athletics on all social media platforms by searching @QueensAthletics.