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Staten Island, NY – The Wagner women's basketball team, led by the nation's No. 4 scorer in guard Jasmine Nwajei (Rockaway Park, NY/Murry Bergtraum) who became the first sophomore in school history to reach the 1,000-point career mark on Tuesday vs. Sacred Heart, hosts St. Francis Brooklyn at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday in the first game of a doubleheader with the Seahawk and Terrier men's teams set to meet at 4:00 p.m.

At halftime of the men's game, the late Bob Balut, former Wagner Sports Information Director, will be recognized by the Seahawk athletic department on his entry into the conference's Hall of Fame, which was announced on Thursday. Members of Balut's family, including his widow Erica, a former Seahawk basketball player, are expected to be in attendance

Saturday also marks Play4Kay Day, with all fans wearing pink admitted free of charge, and Hall of Fame Alumni Day, as all living Seahawk Hall of Fame members are welcomed back to Grymes Hill with a reception being held at 3:00 p.m. in Spiro Sports Center's VIP Room.

Looking to snap a seven-game losing streak, the Wagner women enter play with an overall record of 4-17 and an a Northeast Conference (NEC) mark of 2-8, while the Terriers are 7-15 on the season and 4-6 in league play.
 
Nwajei Up to No. 4 Nationally In Scoring Average
Following her 35-point outing vs. Sacred Heart on Tuesday, Jasmine Nwajei leads the NEC in scoring at 23.9 points per game, a figure that ranks No. 4 in the nation in games played through February 5 according the latest NCAA rankings. Her 24.7 average in NEC games is also tops in the league.

Nation's Top 10 in Scoring Average
 

1	Kelsey Mitchell	Ohio St.	25.5
2	Damika Martinez	Iona	24.2
3	Brittany Crain	UC Riverside	23.9
4	Jasmine Nwajei	Wagner	23.9
5	Tay'Ler Mingo	Wright St.	23.4
-	Kelsey Plum	Washington	23.4
7	Lizzy Wendell	Drake	23.3
8	Ashia Jones	UT Martin	23.2
9	Kelsey Minato	Army	22.8
10	Alexa Hayward	Saint Francis (PA)	22.6

Last Time Out
Guard Jasmine Nwajei (Rockaway Park, NY/Murry Bergtraum) scored 35 points, in becoming the first sophomore in school history to reach the 1,000-point career mark, but it was not enough as the Wagner women's basketball team dropped a 73-59 decision to Sacred Heart tonight at the Spiro Sports Center.
In addition to her 35-point outburst, the 5-8 New York City guard pulled down 11 rebounds, dished out seven assists and came up with five steals, while playing the entire 40 minutes. It was her fourth double-double of the season and ninth of her career. For Nwajei, it marked her eighth 30-point plus game of the season and 14^th time this season she has topped the 20-point mark. In 45 career games she has tallied 1,018 career points, with 517 points scored last season and 501 thus far in 2013-2014. The 2013-2014 NEC Rookie of the Year, Nwajei is now averaging 20.3 points per game for her career. Sophomore forward Taylor Butigian (Rockaway Park, NY/Christ the King) and sophomore guard Lyndsay Rowe (South River, NJ/St. John Vianney) added 10 and eight points, respectively for the Seahawks. Wagner hung tough early and trailed by just a 33-28 halftime count before the Pioneers opened the second half on a 17- tear in opening up a 50-30 lead and were never headed. Hannah Kimmel paced four SHU players in double figures with 18 points. Gabrielle Washington and Adaysha Williams added 14 points each while Lerae Ettienne added 10. Already short-handed withoout the services of freshman center Sofia Roma (Richmond Hill, NY/Nazareth Regional) and redshirt-sophomore guard Jazmine Hamlet (New York, NY/Francis Lewis) who were both sidelined with injury, Wagner lost second-leading scorer Jordyn Peck (Shaker Heights, OH/Shaker Heights) to a late first-half injury, from which the junior did not return.

Wagner-St. Francis Brooklyn All-Time Series
This is the 73rd all-time meeting between the schools and the Terriers hold a 54-18 lead in the all-time series.
 
About St. Francis Brooklyn
After an eight game losing streak, the Terriers have won two in a row and four out of their last seven games as head coach John Thurston looks for his 80th win coaching women's basketball and his 245th win in coaching overall. St. Francis Brooklyn is coming off of Monday's 52-46 home win over Mount St. Mary's. For the fifth straight game and ninth time this season, Sarah Benedetti led the Terriers in scoring with 15 points. In her last two contests, Benedetti is averaging 18.5 points per game. She currently ranks 7th on the St. Francis Brooklyn Women's Basketball list with 1,175 points and needs 26 points to move into sixth all-time, passing Kara Ayers. With her 14 points against the Mountaineers, Simpson has 965 career points.  Senior Katie Fox became just the fifth player in St. Francis Brooklyn Women's History to record at least 400 points and 300 assists in her career against Mount St. Mary's in the Terriers' last meeting.  St. Francis Brooklyn ranks number one in scoring defense in the Northeast Conference, holding opponents to 61.5 points per game and ranks first in free-throw percentage, shooting 75.8 percent from the line

Peck Reaches 1,000-Point Mark During Career-High 31-Point Outing vs. Columbia
Junior guard Jordyn Peck (Shaker Heights, OH/Shaker Heights) became the 24th player in Wagner women's basketball history to reach the 1,000-point mark when she made the first of two free throws during the first half of the Seahawks' 97-86 win over Columbia (12/30), en route to a career-high 31-point outing. Peck connected on 8-of-18 shots, including 5-of-7 from three-point range, and 10-of-11 from the charity stripe, vs. .the Lions. The 31-point outburst bettered her previous career high of 30 which the crafty lefthander tallied vs. Central Connecticut (1/11/14).

Peck up to 19th on Seahawk All-Time Scoring List with 1,132 Career Points
Junior guard Jordyn Peck (Shaker Heights, OH/Shaker Heights) enters the St. Francis Brooklyn game having scored 1,132 career points.
 
15.   Joy Gallagher, 2002-2006......................... 1,158                       
 16.  Tricia Hoff, 1976-1979..............................   1,154
17.   Patti Winterfeldt, 1990-1994.................... 1,149                       
 18.  Jeanne Sullivan, 1978-1982...................... 1,144
 19.  Jordyn Peck (2012-Present).............         1,132
 20.  Kelly Clark (2008-2012)............................. 1,117
  21.  Marie L. Archambault, 2009-2013..........1,083
 22.  Jenny Frazier, 1992-1996.......................... 1,051
23.   Toni Roker, 1999-2003............................. 1,049
24.   Brenda Milano, 1991-1995....................... 1,046
25, Jasmine Nwajei (2013-Present)................. 1,018

Nwajei's Top Career Scoring Days
1. 40 - vs. Columbia...............12/30/14
2. 39 - at Vermont.................12/14/14
3. 37 – vs. LIU Brooklyn.........1/10/15
4. 35 - vs. Sacred Heart.........2/3/15
   32 - at VCU........................ 11/14/14
   32 - vs. Yale....................... 12/17/14

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…………….........37
5.   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
9.   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

Seahawks Look to Build on Last Season's 8-10 NEC Mark, Appearance in Conference Tournament
The  NEC's most improved team last season, Wagner closed 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 the previous season with a conference record of 2-16.

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

Follow Wagner Athletics on Twitter (@wagnerathletics) for all the latest news and updates on the athletic department, @Wag_Swagg for news and updates on the women's basketball program.