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Game Notes: Wagner I Sacred Heart

Fairfield, CT  – The Wagner women's basketball team, led by sophomore guard Jasmine Nwajei (Rockaway Park, NY/Murry Bergtraum), who's now ranked No. 2 nationally in scoring at 24.3 points per game, looks for its second consecutive win on Monday when the Seahawks travel t o Sacred Heart in a 7:00 p.m. tip.The only player in Division I women's basketball that is averaging more points per game than Nwajei is Ohio State 5-8 freshman guard Kelsey Mitchell who checks in at 25.5 points per game.

The victory over the Terriers snapped a seven-game losing streak for the Green & White who are now 3-8 in Northeast Conference (NEC) play and 5-17 overall.

Last Time Out
Sophomore guard Jasmine Nwajei (Rockaway Park, NY/Murry Bergtraum), the nation's fourth-leading scorer entering the game,  scored 25 of her 33 points in the second half and accounted for 20 of the Seahawks' final 23 points in leading the Wagner women's basketball team to a stirring 63-60 comeback victory over St. Francis Brooklyn this afternoon. After trailing by a 37-26 count at halftime, and by 10 at 52-42 with under eight minutes to play, the Seahawks stormed back, outscoring the Terriers 21-8 the rest of the way, with 18 of those points coming from Nwajei. The Seahawks took their first lead of the game when Nwajei penetrated the lane, drawing two defenders, before dishing to sophomore forward Jackie Dluhi (Middletown, NJ/Middletown South) who banked in the layup to put Wagner ahead 57-56 with 3:22 left. Eilidh Simpson then hit an off-balance runner in the lane to out the Terriers back on top, 58-57, at the 2:46 mark.

On Wagner's ensuing possession, Nwajei was fouled on the floor following a missed three-point try with 2:27 to go. This was the Terriers' seventh team foul, sending Nwajei to the line for a crucial one-and-one, and the 5-8 sophomore knocked down both free throws to put the Seahawks ahead, 59-58.Following a Simpson turnover, Nwajei drilled an 18-foot jumper to make it 61-58 with 1:59 left. Wagner's trapping defense then forced Sarah Benedetti into a turnover along the baseline, giving Wagner possession with 1:33 left. After Nwajei went 1-of-2 from the line at the 1:25 mark to make it 62-58, Bendedetti answered with a driving layup at 1:09 to make it a 62-60 game.

After Nwajei missed a three-point try, the Terriers came down trailing 62-60 with a chance to tie or take the lead but another Benedetti turnover gave the ball back to Wagner. Junior guard Jordyn Peck (Shaker Heights, OH/Shaker Heights), who finished with 11 points, was then fouled with 14 seconds left. The lefthander, however, missed the front end of the one-and-one, giving St. Francis Brooklyn a chance. Down 62-60, the Terriers quickly worked the ball down the court but a Benedetti three-pointer from the top of the key was off the mark with freshman forward Samantha Sullivan (Manasquan, NJ/Manasquan) corralling the rebound in traffic with two seconds to play.Following a timeout, and with the Terriers now in the double-bonus, Sullivan made 1-of-2 free throws to make it 63-60. Following a St. Francis timeout, the Terriers were unable to get off a shot at the end, with Nwajei swiping the ball from DiBenedetti with one second left as Wagner held on for the win.

All-Time Series
This is the 31st all-time meeting between the schools and Sacred Heart holds a 21-9 lead in the all-time series, including the 73-59 win at Wagner on February 3.
 
Second Meeting vs. Pioneers in Six Days
February 3, 2015
Sacred Heart 73, Wagner 59
Staten Island, NY - Hannah Kimmel recorded her second double-double in as many games, pacing the Pioneers with 18 points and grabbing 11 rebounds, off-setting Jasmine Nwajei's 35-point outburst for Wagner,  as Sacred Heart defeated Wagner 73-59 in the Spiro Sports Center.  The red-shirt junior was one of four Pioneers who reached double digit scoring in Tuesday's contest. Gabrielle Washington and Adaysha Williams put 14 points on the board each for Sacred Heart, while Lerae Ettienne  totaled 10 as SHU improves to 10-9 on the season and 5-4 in NEC play.

Last Time Out for Sacred Heart
Katie Shepard led the Pioneers to a thrilling overtime win over the Bryant University Bulldogs with six overtime points Saturday afternoon in the William H. Pitt Center. The senior guard neared a double-double with 13 points and eight rebounds, while Adaysha Williams led the game with 19 points shooting 50.0% (8-16) from the floor. 2:32 into the overtime period, with the shot clock winding down Shepard landed the first basket of a triple giving SHU the advantage. Bryant managed two points from Winder, but Haines sunk one from under the basket improving SHU's lead to 67-64. Rucker hit one of two free throws making it a two point before Shepard drove the lane to slightly widen the leading to 69-65. Rucker found the basket again for a layup making it a two-point game again. But Shepard, who tallied six points in overtime, put the final nail in the coffin making one of two from the line with eight seconds left clinching the win for the Pioneers.

Nwajei Superlatives
For Nwajei, who also tops the NEC in conference games only (25.5), it marked her ninth 30-point plus game of the season and 15^th time this season she has topped the 20-point mark. In 46 career games, she has tallied 1,051 career points (T-22^nd All-Time at Wagner), with 517 points scored last season and 534 thus far in 2014-2015. The 2013-2014 NEC Rookie of the Year, Nwajei is now averaging 20.6 points per game for her career.

The Nation's Top 10 Leading Scorers (Through games of February 7, 2015)

Rank	Name	Team	PPG
1	Kelsey Mitchell	Ohio St.	25.5
2	Jasmine Nwajei	Wagner	24.3
3	Damika Martinez	Iona	24.2
4	Brittany Crain	UC Riverside	24.0
5	Tay'Ler Mingo	Wright St.	23.6
6	Lizzy Wendell	Drake	23.5
7	Kelsey Plum	Washington	23.1
8	Ashia Jones	UT Martin	22.9
9	Alexa Hayward	Saint Francis (PA)	22.9
10	Kelsey Minato	Army	22.8

Nwajei and Peck Now in 1,000-Point Club
Nwajei is one of two 1,000-point scorers on the roster. On December 31, junior guard Jordyn Peck (Shaker Heights, OH/Shaker Heights) tossed in 31 points in a win over Stony Brook and eclipsed the 1,000-point mark in the process.The 5-6 left-handed Peck, who is second on the team in scoring at 12.9 points per outing, enters the Sacred Heart game with 1,143 career points, which ranks 19th on the Wagner all-time list.

WAGNER CAREER SCORING (1,000 Point Club)
   1.   Stephanie Samuels, 1982-1986.......................... 1,835
   2.   Mary Gormley, 1977-1981................................    1,734
   3.   Maureen Coughlin, 1985-1989........................... 1,612                       
   4.   Nia Ryan, 1996-2000......................................       1,565
   5.   Amanda Young, 1995-1999..............................    1,550
   6.   Susan Moffat, 1994-1998................................. 1,481
   7.   Chris Anderson, 1988-1992.............................. 1,429                       
   8.  Meredith Kerns, 1998-2002.............................. 1,397
   9.   Grace Paterno, 1981-1985................................ 1,328
10.   Cynthia Quinlan, 1986-1990.............................. 1,323
11.   Carrie Walker, 2000-2004................................   1,288
12.   Lisa Holoman, 1982-1986................................   1,250
13.   Cindy Bonforte, 1981-1985..............................   1,239
14.   Chelsey Bunyer, 2004-2008.............................. 1,220
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)........................... 1,143
20.   Kelly Clark (2008-2012)...................................   1,117
  21.   Marie L. Archambault, 2009-2013....................... 1,083
 22.  Jasmine Nwajei (2013-present)........................ 1,051
        Jenny Frazier, 1992-1996................................. 1,051
24.   Toni Roker, 1999-2003.................................... 1,049
25.   Brenda Milano, 1991-1995............................... 1,046
     
Nwajei's Top Five 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
5. 34 vs. Saint Francis U….1/26/15
 
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, 2-7-15…… 37
5.   Jasmine Nwajei vs. Sacred Heart  2-3-15………....35  
6.   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
11. Jasmine Nwajei vs. St. Francis Brooklyn, 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 Points
1. Stephanie Samuels, 1985-1986 ..................................654
2. Mary Gormley, 1979-1980 ........................................620
3. Tricia Hoff, 1977-1978 ...............................................600
4. Mary Gormley, 1980-1981 ..........................................571
5. Jordyn Peck, 2013-2014 .................................... 564
6. Jasmine Nwajei, 2014-2015.................................... 534
 
Wagner All-Time Single-Season Scoring Average
1. Jasmine Nwajei, 2014-2015.................................... 24.3
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
 
Rowe No. 2 in NEC in Three-Point FG Percentage
Sophomore guard Lyndsay Rowe (South River, NJ/St. John Vianney) is Wagner's third-leading scorer at 7.5 ppg. and is tops on the team in three-point shooting at 41.8 percent (28-of-67), which ranks No. 2 in the NEC.

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

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