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2014 NEC Women's Basketball Championship Headquarters

Emittsburg, MD – Sophomore guard Jordyn Peck (Shaker Heights, OH/Shaker Heights) and freshman guard Jasmine Nwajei (Rockaway Park, NY/Murry Bergtraum) scored 17 points each to lead four players in double figures but a gallant effort by seventh-seeded Wagner was not enough as second-seeded Mount St. Mary's pulled away late for a 75-66 win in a Northeast Conference (NEC) Quarterfinal matchup this afternoon at Knott Arena.
                                                                                                        
The NEC's most improved team this season, Wagner ends the 2013-2014 campaign with an overall mark of 9-21, 8-10 in league play second-year head coach Lisa Cermignano, after going 3-26 a year ago with a conference record of 2-16.  The veteran Mountaineers improve to 19-12 overall and entered today's play with a 13-5 conference record.
 
The Mountaineers advance to the NEC Semifinals where they will host third-seeded Saint Francis U on Wednesday, March 12, at 7 pm. The Red Flash reached the semis following an epic 132-124 double-overtime win over Sacred Heart. In this game, SFU's Ali Williams and Alexa Hayward tossed in 47 and 43 points, respectively, accounting for 90 of their teams 132 points. Gabrielle Washington, meanwhile, led the Pioneers with 47 points of her own.
 
Top-seeded Robert Morris got past No. 8 seed LIU Brooklyn 65-49. NEC Player of the Year Artemis Spanou scored 22 points and grabbed 15 rebounds to lead the Colonials who overcame a 31-24 halftime deficit. RMU will host the No. 4 seeded Bryant, which knocked off fifth-seeded St. Francis Brooklyn 58-53.
 
Prior to today's Wagner-Mount game, Nwajei and redshirt-sophomore center Ugo Nwaigwe (Valley Stream, NY/Valley Stream South) were honored with plaques from the NEC for being named the conference's Rookie and Defensive Players of the Year, respectively. Nwajei was named Second-Team All-NEC and to the league's All-Rookie Team while Nwaigwe earned a spot on the All-Defensive Team.
 
This was a tight, competitive game throughout. The Mount took a 36-30 halftime lead and the Mountaineers were unable to put the feisty Seahawks away until the waning minutes. With 10:48 to play, a layup by redshirt freshman guard Jazmine Hamlet (Manhattan, NY/Francis Lewis) drew the Seahawks to within two points at 47-45. The Mount then went on a 10-0 run to build a 55-45 cushion, capped by a Rachel Mathews layup with 8:48 left. After the Mathews bucket, Wagner responded with five quick points to make it a 55-50 game.
 
The layup by Mathews would be the last made field goal of the game for the Mount as the Mountaineers went 20-of-24 from the free throw line over the final 6:33 of the game in staving off the Seahawk comeback bid.
 
Senior forward Laura Amorosa (Kirkland, Quebec/Phillips Academy) buried a three-pointer from the left wing at the 8:33 mark which was followed by a Nwaigwe layup off a pretty drive and dish by Nwajei that made it 55-50 with 6:51 to go. Over the next 2:43, the Mount then made seven free throws while Wagner countered with a Nwajei layup, resulting in a 62-52 Mountaineer lead with 4:08 to play.
 
The never-say-die Seahawks cut it to seven at 62-55 on a three-pointer by freshman guard Lyndsay Rowe (South River, NJ/St. John Vianney) with 3:51 left but the Mount outscored Wagner 13-11 the rest of the way, with all 13 points coming at the foul line, in fashioning the 75-66 win.
 
Playing her final game as a Seahawk, Amorosa delivered a 10-point, five-rebound performance on 3-of-6 shooting in a spirited and productive 24-minute stint. Rowe was the fourth Wagner player in double figures, as she parlayed a 4-of-9 shooting game into a 10-point afternoon.
 
For the game, Wagner was whistled for 27 fouls while Mount committed 16. Although the Seahawks made 26 field goals vs. 21 for the Mount, the Green & White were unable to overcome the discrepancy at the free throw line. For the game, the Mountaineers were 28-of-37 from the charity stripe while Wagner was 6-of-9.
 
The Seahawks hit on 26-of-63 field goals, a 41% clip, while the Mount went 21-of-53 from the floor, good for 40%. Wagner held a 37-36 edge on the glass and a 32-22 advantage in points in the paint, led in fast break points 10-2, and by a 12-11 count on second-chance points. The Seahawks turned the ball over 13 times while the Mount committed just seven turnovers in the contest, resulting in the Mount holding a 15-8 lead in points off turnovers.

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