BOX SCORE
Staten Island, NY – Central Connecticut State opened the second half with a 13-2 run before holding off a ferocious Wagner rally in a hard-fought 68-57 victory at the Spiro Sports Center. The Seahawks cut a 17-point second half deficit to six but could get no closer in falling to 6-15 and 2-9 in the Northeast Conference (NEC) while the Blue Devils improve to 13-8 and 8-3 in the NEC.
With CCSU holding a 52-37 lead with 7:51 to play, Wagner embarked on a 10-2 run.
Lindsay Corcoran (Fr., West Chester, PA / Villa Maria Academy) hit a layup before
Ashley Olsen (So., Staten Island, NY / Notre Dame Academy) drilled a pair at the line.
Kanifa Hicks (Fr., Paterson, NJ / Passaic County Tech) then scored on a fast break layup. PJ Wade momentarily stopped the Seahawk momentum with a pair from the line as
Nyoto Patterson (Teaneck, NJ / Manhattan Center (NY)) and
Andrea Reed (Jr., Pocomoke City, MD / Pocomoke) responded with lay-ups to make it 54-47 with 5:07 to go. The Blue Devils quickly answered with six-straight points to extend the lead out to 60-47 with 4:06 remaining. However, in a game of runs the Seahawks came right back with an 8-1 spurt to make it 61-55 with just 1:13 to go. Senior
Casey Stokes (Hummelstown, PA / Lower Dauphin) and
Helen Swartley (Staten Island, NY / St. Joseph's Hill) hit shots before Reed scored on a pair from the line and a jumper. That would be as close as the Green & White would get as CCSU ended the game by outscoring Wagner 7-2 in taking the 68-57 decision.
The Blue Devils shot 42.2 percent (19-45) for the game, including 50.0 percent (5-10) from long range and limited the Green & White to just 30.9 percent (21-68) and 16.7 percent (2-12) from three point land. CCSU also knocked down 75.8 percent (25-33) from the line while Wagner was good on just 52.0 percent (13-25). The Seahawks stayed in the game thanks to a relentless defense that forced 18 turnovers, leading to a 20-13 advantage in points off turnovers.
Olsen paced the Green & White with 10 points and eight rebounds while freshman
Brittney Thorpe (Newport News, VA / Heritage) added eight points with six rebounds. Six other student-athletes scored at least four points and all 10 Seahawks that played scored.
Wade notched 16 of her game-high 18 in the second stanza - including the first 10 Blue Devil points after halftime - and Kerianne Dugan matched her with 18 to lead the visitors. Leanne Crockett added 11 points and a game-best 11 rebounds while Gabrielle Oglesby rounded out the double-digit scorers with 11 points off the bench. Wade and Oglesby also combined to go 17-18 from the line.
CCSU started the game on a 15-4 run before the Seahawks called their first timeout of the game at the 13:22 mark. During the initial spurt, the Blue Devils shot 7-11 from the floor while holding the Seahawks to just 2-10 shooting. With 4:57 to go in the initial stanza and CCSU up 23-14, Wagner ripped off a 7-3 run over the next 1:46 to the cut the lead to five at 26-21 with 3:11 to go before heading into intermission down 29-23.
NOTES: Reed did not start for the first time since late in her freshman year after sitting out practice yesterday due to an illness … She still scored eight points with five assists and four rebounds … Sophomore
Stephanie McBride (Mechanicville, NY / Catholic Central) also missed the game due to illness … Wagner matched CCSU with 43 rebounds – including a 19-9 advantage on the offensive end - after being outrebounded 37-28 in the first meeting … The Seahawks are next in action on Saturday, February 7 at 7 pm against Saint Francis (PA) … Wagner's 1988-1989 NEC Champion Women's Basketball Team will be honored during the game.
