Box Score FINAL STATS

West Long Branch, NJ – Sophomore guard Jordyn Peck (Shaker Heights, OH/Shaker Heights) exploded for 12 of her 21 points down the stretch, freshman guard Jasmine Nwajei (Rockaway Park, NY/Murry Bergtraum) had 20, and 6-3 redshirt sophomore center Ugo Nwaige (Valley Stream, NY/ Valley Stream South) patrolled the paint with eight blocks and 11 rebounds, in leading Wagner to an impressive 70-57 win at Monmouth.
 
With the victory, the Seahawks even their record at 1-1 while their former Northeast Conference rivals fell to 0-2 on the season

"I'm so proud of this team, the way we fought all night, stayed together and played together," said Seahawk head coach Lisa Cermignano. "I thought that Jordyn (Peck) and Jasmine (Nwajei) played off of each other very well, I thought they complemented one another very well. Those two, when they get it going, they're going to be a handful for teams.

"I thought Lyndsay Rowe stepped up and made a lot of really big plays for us," she added. "And what can I say about Ugo (Nwaigwe)? She's her own toughest critic but I've like the way she's played all through the preseason and now in these first two games. She hung tough against Kentucky (8 points, 9 rebounds), did some really nice work in the post, and tonight she was just phenomenal. She even led the way on that fast-break layup in the second half. I'm just so proud of  her. This was just a total team effort and I'm so happy for these kids."

This was a tight, nip-and-tuck affair most of the way until the Seahawks broke it open late and a game that featured seven ties and six lead changes.

Monmouth guard Chevaannah Paalvast tallied 16 of her game-high 22 points in the opening half as the Hawks took a 32-26 lead into the locker room at intermission.

The Hawks opened their largest lead of the game 14 seconds into the second half when Paalvast nailed a 15-footer to put Monmouth up eight at 34-26. Senior forward Laura Amorosa (Kirkland, Quebec/Phillips Academy) answered with a three-pointer to again cut the deficit to five at 34-29. Monmouth maintained a slim lead for the next nine minutes until Nwaigwe made 1-of-2 from the line at the 9:57 mark to forge a tie at 40-40.

With Monmouth leading 48-46, the Seahawks took their first lead since 25-24 late in the first half, when Lyndsay Rowe (South River, NJ/St. John Vianney) buried a three-pointer off a feed from fellow freshman and former Jersey shore scholastic star Jackie Dluhi (Middletown, NJ/Middletown South) with 4:36 to play to out Wagner on top 49-48. Rowe's clutch shot ignited a game-deciding 13-2 run as the Seahawks won going away, making one winning play after another.
 
Following a Hawk turnover, Peck nailed a three-pointer from the right wing to make it 52-48 at 3:53.  With the Seahawks on top 54-50, Peck swished a 25-foot, rainbow jumper from well beyond the top of the key that made it a 57-50 game with 2:51 left.
 
Nwajei then converted an old-fashioned three-point play at the 2:00 mark to extend the lead to 60-50, and then Seahawks demonstrated poise from there, knocking down 9-of-13 free throw attempts over the final 1:26 in sealing matters and forging the 13-point victory.
 
Peck was 5-of-11 from the field, including 3-of-7 from beyond the arc and was a perfect 8-of-8 from the free throw line in crafting her 21-point output. The Hawks made Nwajei work her career-high 20, which was one better than the 19 points she had vs. Kentucky, as the 5-8 New York City product was just 5-of-19 from the floor but 10-of-15 from the charity stripe.
 
Rowe finished with an important 14-point, eight-rebound contribution, going 4-of-9 from the field and 2-of-5 from downtown. The 5-8 Rowe was the only Seahawk to play the entire 40 minutes. Dluhi also made a big impact for the Seahawks, in delivering a gritty five-point, eight-rebound effort
 
The Seahawks outshot Monmouth, 35%-32% and, thanks in large measure to Nwaigwe and Dluhi's combined 20 rebounds, owned a 50-43 edge on the glass.
 
Wagner is next in action on Wednesday, November 20 when the Seahawks travel to New Rochelle, NY to face its second straight MAAC opponent in Iona with tip-off set at the Mulcahy Center set for 7:00 pm.

NOTES
 
Block Party
By halftime of tonight's game, Nwaigwe had already set a career high with five blocked shots. Her previous career best came last time out, a three-block affair, vs. Kentucky. Last season, Nwaigwe was sidelined with a foot injury after nine games, and had a total of five blocks for the season.The eight blocks registered by Nwaigwe tied for the third-highest in school history and are the most since Ali Ridge came up with eight blocks vs. Manhattan (12/28/04). Ridge and Meredith Kerns hold the Seahawk single-game record for blocked shots with 10.
 
Wagner All-Time Single-Game Blocked Shots Records
1. Ali Ridge vs. NJIT, 1-18-07 ...........................................    10
    Meredith Kerns vs. CCSU, 1-4-99 ...............................    10
3.  Ugo Nwaigwe at Monmouth, 11-14-13…………            8
    Ali Ridge vs. Manhattan, 12-28-04 ................................    8

First Win at Monmouth in 11 Years
Tonight's win was Wagner's first at Monmouth since January 18, 2003, when the Seahawks earned a 63-60 victory at Boylan Gymnasium, the former home of the Hawks which sits right next to, and is dwarfed, by the Multipurpose Athletic Complex (MAC) which opened n 2009.
 
First Win Over Monmouth In Five Tries
The victory tonight was the Seahawks' first over Monmouth since February 5, 2011 when Wagner posted a 67-50 win on Staten Island, breaking a string of five consecutive losses to the Hawks
 
Road Rage
The win over Monmouth was Wagner's first on the road since November 11, 2012 when the Seahawks' posted a 61-47 win at Columbia.