FINAL STATS

Fairfield, CT – Wagner battled Sacred Heart, the first-place team in the Northeast Conference (NEC), outscoring the Pioneers in the second half, but could not overcome a sizeable early deficit in falling, 67-57.
 
The Pioneers displayed balanced scoring, placing three players in double figures, led by Callan Taylor who tossed in a game-high 15. Blair Knoniszewski had the hot hand early, draining four first-half three-pointers en route to a 14-point night while Ericka Norman added 10.
 
For Wagner, senior center Kelly Clark (Neptune, NJ/ St. Rose), who went over the 1,000-point mark for her career last time out at Quinnipiac on Saturday, had 11 points and eight rebounds. Junior forward Marie-Laurence Archambault (Montreal, Quebec/ Montmorency) matched Clark with 11 points, all of which came in the second half. Known for deep-shooting prowess, took the ball to the hole strong on several occasions during a 5-for-9 shooting night.
 
With the victory, the Pioneers improve to 16-5 on the season, 9-1 in the NEC, while the Seahawks are now 2-19 overall, 1-9 in league play.
 
Wagner held a 34-33 edge in rebounding and the shooting numbers were nearly identical, with Sacred Heart going 43 percent (26-of-61) while the Seahawks checked in at 42 percent (20-of-48). Once again, Wagner was plagued by turnovers, committing 24 on the evening while causing Sacred Heart to turn the ball over just 13 times. In fact the margin of victory exactly matches points off turnovers as the Pioneers held a 19-9 edge in that department.
 
It was turnovers that led to Wagner's early deficit as the Seahawks turned it over six times in the game's opening 6:06 as Sacred Heart jumped out to an early 11-2 lead. Sacred Heart eventually built its largest lead of the half and game of 19 at 35-16 on a three-pointer by Knoniszewski en route to seizing a 41-25 halftime lead.
 
After Ericka Norman hit a jumper to open the second half and build the lead to 43-25, Wagner responded with an 8-1 flurry, capped by a pair of Archambault layups to slice the deficit to 44-33. The Pioneers then answered with an 11-5 burst to open a 55-38 lead with 12 minutes left, In control with a 67-49 lead and 2:33 to go, Wagner ended the game on an 8-0 run to fashion the final score at 67-57.
 
Senior forward Brittney Thorpe (Newport News, VA/ Heritage) scored seven points as did 6-3 freshman center Ugo Nwaigwe (Valley Stream, NY/ Valley Stream) who continues her fine play as she scored eight points at Quinnipiac on Saturday.
 
Sacred Heart built its 41-25 halftime cushion largely behind the three-point shooting of Koniszewski, who drained 4-of-6 from beyond the arc, leading the Pioneers in scoring during the opening stanza.  Taylor and Kiley Evans scored six first-half points apiece for Sacred Heart. 
 
In the first half, Wagner was paced by Clark's seven points and four rebounds. The Seahawks were hurt by committing 15 first-half turnovers. The Pioneers out-shot the Seahawks 49 percent to 42 percent in the opening 20 minutes.
 
The Seahawks return home to the friendly confines of the Spiro Sports Center for three consecutive games, beginning with a date vs. Robert Morris on Saturday, February 4 at 4:00 pm. Wagner will then host Saint Francis (PA) on Monday, February 6 before rounding out the three-game home skein with a meeting vs. Mount St. Mary's on Saturday, February 11 at 4:00 p.m.