FINAL STATS

Easton, PA – Four Seahawks recorded season highs and nine different players hit the scoring column but a spirited second-half comeback that drew Wagner to within three points with less than four minutes to play came up short as Lafayette scored the last eight points of the game for a 66-55 win in the first round of the inaugural Thanksgiving Classic.

With the loss, the Seahawks fall to 1-4 on the season while Lafayette improves to 2-3.
 
The Thanksgiving Classic features a pair of doubleheaders that pit Northeast Conference teams vs. Patriot League teams within a 48-hour period. In the nightcap Monmouth earned its first win of the season, a  thrilling 75-73 victory over Lehigh, to move to 1-3. The Classic resumes on Sunday in Staten Island when the four teams reconvene at the Spiro Sports Center on Sunday, November 27 with Monmouth meeting Lafayette at 2:00 pm followed by Wagner hosting Lehigh (1-5) at 4:00 p.m.

Senior center Kelly Clark (Neptune, NJ/ St. Rose) and junior guard Veronick Fournier (Gatinea, Quebec/ Montmorency) tallied 10 points apiece to pace Wagner. For Fournier, the 10 points were a season high. Also recording season highs for the Seahawks were senior forward Brittney Thorpe (Newport News, VA/ Heritage) with eight points, redshirt junior guard Kanifa Hicks (Paterson, NJ/ Passaic Count Tech) with six and freshman forward Stephanie Blais (Sherbrooke, Quebec/ Montmorency),with three points (also a career-high).
 
The Leopards were led by their 6-7 sophomore center Danielle Fiacco who was a handful in the low post for the Seahawks, shooting 9-of-16 from the field en route to posting game highs with 20 points and eight rebounds. Skilled 6-0 forward Sarah McGorry also did her share of damage, mostly from in close as well, as she shot 7-of-11 from the field on her way to an 18-point, six-rebound game. Guard Madeline Fahan was the third Lafayette player in double figures, finishing with 10.
 
Lafayette seized a 32-23 halftime lead as the Seahawks found themselves in early foul trouble. By the 14:22 mark of the first half, Wagner's two starting post players, Clark and redshirt junior Chanez Robinson (Newark, NJ/ Shabazz), were on the bench with two fouls apiece.  At the 10:38 mark of the opening half, Wagner went over the limit. While the Seahawks were being whistled for their seventh foul, the Leopards had yet to commit a foul. The first foul called on Lafayette came with 7:37 to go in the half when Clark was hacked while driving to the basket.  At this point, the fouls were 8-1 and by halftime Wagner was saddled with 12 fouls to the Leopards' three.
 
The Seahawks came out roaring at the outset of the second half, embarking on a 12-4 run in a 3:56 span. The run was kick-started by a by a long three-ball from junior forward Marie-Laurence Archambault (Montreal, Quebec/ Montmorency) and capped by a Clark layup at the 16:04 mark off a pretty feed from  freshman guard Jacqui Thompson (Southampton, PA/ St. Basil Academy) that drew Wagner to within 37-35.
 
After Lafayette's Sarah McGorry and Thompson traded jump shots to make 39-37 with 15:02 left, the Leopards went on a 12-3 burst in opening a 51-40 lead with 10:52 left. Wagner responded with its best basketball of the night in fashioning a 13-5, punctuated by a Thompson three-pointer at the 4:38 mark that drew the Seahawks to within 56-53. After Fiacco made two free throws, Fournier countered with a long two-point jumper from just inside the arc with 2:20 left to make it a 58-55 lead. Lafayette made the final run of the game, however, outscoring Wagner 8-0 over the final 2:20 in registering the 66-55 win.
 
For the game, Wagner outshot Lafayette from the floor 43 percent to 40 percent while the Leopards held a healthy 38-29 edge on the glass. The 29 rebounds grabbed by the Seahawks were a season low. Where the Leopards enjoyed the largest advantage was the free throw line as Lafayette was 22-of-26 from the charity stripe while the Seahawks attempted just 13 free throws, making eight.
 
NOTES – Fournier and Archambault were active on the defensive end as each registered career highs in blocks with three. Wagner's eight blocked shots were a season high. For the most part, this was a clean, well-played contest with the teams combining for just 26 turnovers, with Wagner committing 14 while Lafayette turned it over 12 times. Tonight's game marked the fourth straight for Wagner where the Seahawks hit the double figure mark in assists as Wagner was credited with 11 helpers vs. Lafayette (on 22 made field goals). In its three previous games, Wagner had 11 assists at Saint John's (11/22), 15 at NJIT (11/19), and 13 vs. Columbia. The only game this season that Wagner did not have double-digit assists was in the season opener at Army (11/11) when the Seahawks had eight assists. This was the eighth all-time meeting between the Seahawks and the Leopards and Lafayette now holds a 5-2 advantage. Prior to tonight, the last time these teams met was on Nov. 21, 2006 when the Seahawks came away with a 72-65 home win.