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Game Notes: Wagner I The Mount

Emmitsburg, MD – Led by the nation's No. 1 scorer in sophomore guard Jasmine Nwajei (Rockaway Park, NY/Murry Bergtraum), who checks in at 24.8 points per game, the Wagner women's basketball team looks to keep its 2015 Northeast Conference (NEC) Tournament hopes alive when the Seahawks travel to Mount St. Mary's on Saturday for a 4:30 p.m. tip-off at Knott Arena
 
Five teams, Fairleigh Dickinson (6-10), LIU Brooklyn (6-10), the Mount (5-11), Wagner (4-12), and Saint Francis U (4-12) are battling for the final three spots in the eight-team tourney.
 
 2014-15 NEC Women's Basketball Standings (Through 2/25)
 

	School	NEC	Pct.	Overall	Pct.	Streak	Home	Away	Neutral
1.	Bryant *	13-3	0.813	20-7	0.741	W5	11-1	9-6	0-0
	Central Connecticut *	13-3	0.813	17-10	0.630	W2	10-4	7-6	0-0
3.	Robert Morris *	12-4	0.750	14-13	0.519	L2	7-3	7-10	0-0
4.	Sacred Heart *	10-6	0.625	15-11	0.577	W2	9-3	6-7	0-1
5.	St. Francis Brooklyn *	7-9	0.438	10-18	0.357	L1	6-7	2-9	2-2
6.	Fairleigh Dickinson	6-10	0.375	9-18	0.333	L1	4-7	5-11	0-0
	LIU Brooklyn	6-10	0.375	9-18	0.333	W2	6-8	3-10	0-0
8.	Mount St. Mary's	5-11	0.313	7-20	0.259	L9	5-6	2-14	0-0
9.	Wagner	4-12	0.250	6-21	0.222	L3	5-9	1-12	0-0
	Saint Francis U	4-12	0.250	5-22	0.185	L2	3-9	2-13	0-0
* Clinched NEC Tournament berth

 



























Peck, Nwajei Now 15^th and 16^th, Respecively, in All-Time Scoring
Wagner's high-scoring guard combination of Nwajei and  junior Jordyn Peck (Shaker Heights OH/Shaker Heights) are now with six points of one another in career scoring. Peck has scored 1,184 career points, which ranks 15th on the Seahawk all-time scoring list while Nwajei is right behind her in 16th place with 1,178 career points scored. Nwajei has now scored 645 points on the season which is just nine shy of the all-time Seahawk single-season record of 654 points tallied by Stephanie Samuels in 1985-1986.

1.    Jasmine Nwajei, 2014-2015                           661
2.    Stephanie Samuels, 1985-1986                      654

Nwajei No. 1 in Single-Season Scoring
On Monday night vs. Bryant, Jasmine Nwajei became Wagner's all-time single-season scoring leader with 661 points, surpassing the previous mark of 654 points scored by Hall of Fame member Stephanie Samuels.

Nwajei Has Six of Top Seven Scoring Games in Wagner History
Top Scoring Games in Wagner History
1.   Stephanie Samuels vs. FDU, 2-18-86................ 43
2.   Jasmine Nwajei vs. Columbia, 12-30-14....... 40
3.   Jasmine Nwajei at Vermont, 12-14-14............ 39
4.   Jasmine Nwajei vs. LIU Brooklyn, 1-10-15……  37
5.   Jasmine Nwajei vs. Sacred Heart  2-8-15……  36
6.   Jasmine Nwajei vs. Sacred Heart  2-3-15…….. 35  
7.   Jasmine Nwajei vs. Saint Francis U  1-26-15….34
      Meredith Kerns vs. Drexel, 11-28-01................. .34
      Susan Moffat vs. Cleveland St., 12-28-95.........34
      Stephanie Samuels at Seton Hall, 1-20-86......34
      Tricia Hoff vs. Jersey City State, 2-16-78.......... 34
12. Jasmine Nwajei vs. SFBK, 2-7-15..................     33
   Joy Gallagher vs. Boston U., 12-30-03...............    33
      Jenny Frazier vs. New Hampshire, 12-3-95.......33
      Kristee Chaplin at FDU, 1-26-95....................... . 33
      Jenny Frazier at FDU, 2-16-94.......................... .  33
      Stephanie Samuels at LIU, 1-7-86.....................  33
      Stephanie Samuels at Monmouth, 1-5-85........33
      Tricia Hoff vs. Mercy, 2-18-78........................ ..    33
 
Wagner All-Time Single-Season Scoring Average
1. Jasmine Nwajei, 2014-2015.................................... 24.5
2. Mary Gormley, 1980-1981 .........................................  23.8
    Mary Gormley, 1979-1980 .........................................  23.8
3. Stephanie Samuels, 1985-1986 .................................23.4
4. Tricia Hoff, 1977-1978 ..............................................     23.1
5. Gela Mazella (Mikalauskas), 1974-1975 .....................20.1

Last Time These Teams Met
Wagner will be looking to avenge a tough 60-58 loss suffered at home to these Mountaineers back on January 5 when senior guard Jacqueline Brewer knocked down a 10-foot jumper from the left baseline with 2.2 seconds left in the game to lift the Mount to victory. Brewer, who dribbled the length of the court before pulling up for her game-winner,  capped a hotly-contested contest that featured seven ties and eight lead changes.  Nwajei led all scorers with 21 points despite an off-shooting night while junior guard Jordyn Peck (Shaker Heights, OH/Shaker Heights) added 10. Freshman guard Tanasia Russell (Vineland, NJ/Vineland) came within one point of her career high, finishing with nine points,  while sophomore guard Lyndsay Rowe (South River, NJ.St. John Vianney) and freshman center Sofia Roma (Richmond Hill, NY/Nazareth Regional) added seven points apiece. Brewer, a 5-10 lefthander, and junior center Sarafina Arthur-Williams paced the Mount with 13 points apiece with Arthur-Williams adding a game-high 11 rebounds in posting the double-double.

All-Time Series History
The Mount holds a 38-15 lead in the all-time series and has won nine in a row vs. Wagner, including three times last season, a pair of regular season wins, followed by a victory in the NEC Tournament Quarterfinals at Knott Arena.

About the Mount
Today's game caps a five-game homestand for the Mountaineer who currently hold the the eighth and final Northeast Conference playoff spot with two games remaining. A win over Wagner, coupled with a Saint Francis U loss at third-place Robert Morris,  would guarantee the Mount a spot in the playoffs. The  Mount will honor seniors Jacqueline Brewer and Jenn Carney prior to Saturday's game with a Senior Day ceremony. Brewer, who scored her 1,000th career point in a Mount uniform on Monday versus LIU Brooklyn, has tallied 1,129 total points including her time as a freshman at VCU. Now in her third season with the Mount, Brewer became the 27th player to score 1,000 career points for Mount St. Mary's. Carney, who is a three-time NEC Academic Honor Roll honoree, is second on the team with 10.8 points per game this season. She has compiled 541 career points and has scored in double figures on 12 occasions as a senior. The Mount trimmed an eight-point deficit down to one in the final minute, but could not complete the comeback in a 48-45 home loss to LIU Brooklyn on Monday night. Brewer scored all of her team-high 14 points in the first half for the Mount. Junior Sarafina Arthur-Williams also turned in a strong night, finishing with her fifth double-double with 10 points to go with a team-best 10 boards. On the other end for the Blackbirds, Sophie Bhasin led all scorers with 15 points.
 
Last Time Out for Wagner
Jenniqua Bailey scored a game-high 19 points to lead three players in double figures as Bryant maintained a share of the top spot in the Northeast Conference (NEC) standings with a 64-47 victory over Wagner in the Seahawks' home finale tonight at the Spiro Sports Center. Breanna Rucker recorded a double-double with 15 points and 12 rebounds while Tiersa Winder added 12 as the Bulldogs improve to 13-3 in the NEC and 20-7 overall while the Seahawks fall to 4-12 in the league and 6-21 overall. Sophomore guard Jasmine Nwajei (Rockaway Park, NY/Murry Bergtraum), the nation's leading scorer entering the game with a 24.8 points per game average, led the Seahawks with 16 points despite a cold-shooting night. Sophomore guard Lyndsay Rowe (South River, NJ/St. John Vianney) added 10 points for the Green & White while freshman Tanasia Russell (Vineland, NJ/Vineland) chipped in with nine.

Heiliger Honored on Senior Night
The Wagner women's basketball program honored its lone senior, Shawn-Marie Heiliger, in a halftime ceremony. A Charlotte, NC native, Heiliger was a guard for the Seahawks during her first two seasons on Grymes Hill before serving the last two years as a manager. Heiliger was joined in the on-court ceremony by her parents, Joni and David, head coach Lisa Cermignano and the entire Seahawk squad.

Playing Tough Non-Conference Schedules is the Cermignano Way
Wagner opened the 2014-15 season with a two-game road swing, beginning with a matchup at VCU of the Atlantic 10 (11/14) followed by a contest at No. 8 Maryland (11/16). The Seahawks' home opener was against No. 17 Rutgers (L 81-53). Led by Hall of Fame head coach C. Vivian Stringer, the 2014 WNIT Champions and the first Big 10 opponent to ever play at the Spiro Sports Center. The demanding non-conference schedule continued with a Nov. 30 game at Big East member St. John's (L 71-49). Third-year head coach Lisa Cermignano believes that last season's tough non-conference schedule helped prepare her team for NEC play and was a big reason for the Seahawks' six-game league improvement. After playing a non-league schedule that included heavyweights Kentucky, Rutgers, VCU and Pittsburgh, the Green & White went 8-10 in the NEC and qualified for the league tournament for the first time since 2010.

Seahawks Picked 4th In NEC Poll, Jasmine Nwajei Named To Preseason All-NEC Team
Brooklyn, NY (Oct. 21)– The Wagner women's basketball team, last season's most-improved Northeast Conference (NEC) squad, was picked fourth in the 2014-2015 Preseason Poll while sophomore guard Jasmine Nwajei (Rockaway Park, NY/Murry Bergtraum) was named to the Preseason All-NEC Team, in a vote of the league's head coaches and announced today at NEC Social Media Day held today at the Barclays Center. Defending champion Robert Morris was picked first, garnering five of the 10 first-place votes. Sacred Heart was chosen second, with four first-place votes, St.  Francis Brooklyn was third, with Wagner fourth and Saint Francis U rounding out the top five. Bryant was picked to finish sixth, Mount St. Mary's seventh, LIU Brooklyn checked in at eighth place with Central Connecticut and Fairleigh Dickinson finishing in a tie for ninth place.

2014-2015 NEC Preseason Poll
1. Robert Morris (5)
2. Sacred Heart (4)
3. St. Francis Brooklyn (1)
4. Wagner
5. Saint Francis U
6. Bryant
7. Mount St. Mary's
8. LIU Brooklyn
9. (tie) Central Connecticut
    Fairleigh Dickinson

2014-15 Preseason All-NEC Women's Basketball
Senior               Jenniqua Bailey - Bryant
Senior               Alexa Hayward - Saint Francis U
Sophomore      Jasmine Nwajei - Wagner
Senior               Eilidh Simpson - St. Francis Brooklyn
Senior               Gabrielle Washington - Sacred Heart

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