BOX SCORE

Emmitsburg, MD – Senior guard Megan Mahoney (Staten Island, NY/ St. Peter's) scored 14 points but she was the only Wagner player to reach double figures as Mount St. Mary's avenged Saturday's loss on Staten Island with a 59-41 victory.

With the defeat, the Seahawks fall to 11-14 on the season, 4-10 in the Northeast Conference (NEC) while the Mountaineers improve to 7-18 overall and are also 4-10 in league play. The loss damages Wagner's chances of qualifying for next month's NEC Tournament.

Wagner turned in a fine defensive performance, limiting the Mount to 37 percent shooting on 18 made field goals and displayed great energy on the boards, out-rebounding the Mountaineers 40-33. However, the Seahawks struggled mightily on the offensive end all evening long. The 41 points Wagner scored were a season low while their 15 made field goals tied a season low. Wagner's five assists were also a season low. Additionally, Wagner's 28 percent shooting (15-of-53) tied for the second-worst shooting night of the season.

The Seahawks trailed 27-17 at halftime following a half that saw them shoot 22 percent (6-of-27) from the field to go with zero assists and 16 turnovers. The 17 points scored by the Seahawks was their lowest output in a first half this season and marked their second-lowest output for a half this season. In the season-opening 52-48 overtime win over Army, Wagner scored 14 points in the second half.

Senior guard Stephanie McBride (Mechanicville, NY/ Catholic Central) opened the second half by hitting two free throws to draw Wagner to within eight at 27-19 with 19:17 to go. This was as close as the Seahawks would get as Ashley Christie's layup at the 18:42 mark gave the Mount a permanent double-digit lead. The bucket also kick-started a pivotal 11-2 run that was capped by a Jessie Kaufman three-pointer with 13:56 left that gave the Mountaineers a commanding 38-21 lead. Wagner would eventually whittle the lead down to 11 at 47-36 with 3:46 to go on a McBride three-pointer. But the Mountaineers responded with a 12-5 run over the final 3:27 in carving out the 59-41 victory.

In addition to her 14 points, Mahoney added eight rebounds and four assists. McBride was next in scoring with nine points while senior forward Ashley Olsen (Staten Island, NY) and junior center Kelly Clark (Neptune, NJ/ St. Rose) added six and five points, respectively. Olsen matched Mahoney for team-high honors in rebounding with eight.

Kaufman led a balanced offensive attack for the Mount with 13 points while Christie and Mary Dunn finished with 12 and 10 points, respectively.

At the outset of the game, the Mountaineers hit four of their first five shots in jumping out to an early 10-4 lead. After making two of their first four shots, the Seahawks went cold from the field, converting on just two of their next 16 attempts. At the 7:56 mark of the first half, Wagner had hit just 22 percent (4-of-18) from the field in falling behind 18-11.

The Mountaineers then went on a 9-4 run to open their biggest lead of the half of 12 at 27-15 with 59 seconds left in the half following a layup by Tara Lonergan. McBride hit two free throws with 10 seconds left in the half to end a 4:26 scoring drought and fashioned the halftime score of 27-17. Prior to McBride's free throws, Wagner's last points had come on a Clark layup at the 4:36 mark.

Mahoney paced Wagner in scoring with five first-half points followed by Clark, McBride and sophomore guard Veronick Fournier (Gatineau, Quebec/ Montmorency) who tallied four points apiece.

The Seahawks' did a solid job on the defensive end, in the opening half, holding the Mount to 36 percent shooting (9-of-25) and also did a credible job on the glass, out-rebounding the Mountaineers 21-15. Mount St. Mary's was led in scoring by Selina Mann who had five first-half points along with six assists. Kayla Grossett and Lonergan each had four points in the half for the Mount.

The Seahawks are next in action on Saturday, Feb. 19 when Wagner plays host to LIU at the Spiro Sports Center in a 3:00 pm tip-off in the second game of a doubleheader with the men taking on St. Francis (NY) at Noon. The Wagner and LIU women met back on Jan. 15 in Brooklyn and the Blackbirds pulled away late for a 67-50 victory.

NOTES – Tonight's game tipped off at 7:28 pm following a 28-minute delay due to a power failure caused by high winds.