New Britain, CT – Despite a career night by freshman Kerstie Phills (Charlotte, NC / Charlotte Christian), who scored 20 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, the Wagner women's basketball team dropped a 66-53 decision at Central Connecticut State in the Northeast Conference (NEC) opener at Detrick Gym this evening.
 
This marks the second straight game that Phills, who is the reigning NEC Rookie of the Week, has had a career-high scoring night as she was coming off of a 16-point outing at Ivy League power Princeton last time out on December 21. In addition to posting career bests in both points and rebounds tonight, the 5-9 Phills also recorded her second career double-double as she totaled 10 points and 11 rebounds vs. Towson back on November 17.
 
Junior guard Tanasia Russell (Vineland, NJ / Vineland) had the range for the second consecutive game as the 5-8 guard followed a 17-point effort vs. Princeton with a season-high 18-point outing. For the game, Phills and Russell combined to shoot 16-of-29, with Phills going 8-of-14 from the field and Russell converting 8-of-15 attempts. Sophomore guard Julia McClure (Secaucus, NJ / Secaucus) played a solid all-around floor game with eight points, to go with a career-high 12 rebounds and a career-tying four assists.
 
For Central Connecticut, the Blue Devils placed three players in double figures with Cebria Outlow's 18-point, 17-rebound affair leading the way while Kiana Patterson and Aleah Epps added 14 and 10 points, respectively. The Seahawks made Outlow work hard for her points as the 5-9 freshman forward was just 6-of-20 from the floor.
 
The score was tied at 9-9 after one quarter with seven of the Seahawk points coming from Phills. Central outscored Wagner 25-13 in the second quarter, despite eight points from Russell, in taking a 34-22 lead at the intermission.
 
The Green & White played their best basketball in the third quarter, outscoring Central 17-12 in cutting the deficit to seven at 46-39 entering the final stanza. Wagner would get to within five points, at 46-41, following a pair of Phills free throws to being the fourth. Central, however, answered with a 9-0 run, capped by an Outlow layup with 7:47 left, to increase its lead to 59-45 en route to posting the 66-53 win.
 
Wagner played tight defense throughout this contest, holding the Blue Devils to 31.8 percent shooting (21-of-66) but the Seahawks were undone by committing 21 turnovers while CCSU turned the ball over just 11 times.
 
The Green & White shot 39.6 percent  (21-of-53) from the floor and held their own on the glass, as the Blue Devils held a slim 42-38 edge in the rebounding department. Points in the paint were even at 24-24, Wagner led 15-12 in second-chance points, but those 21 turnovers led to a critical 24-11 CCSU advantage in points off turnovers.

With the loss, Wagner falls to 1-11 on the season, 0-1 in NEC play, while the Blue Devils move to 2-10 overall, 1-0 in league.

The Seahawks have a quick turnaround as they make the long trek to Emmitsburg, MD to meet the Mountaineers of Mount St. Mary's on Saturday, December 31. The New Year's Eve contest at Knott Arena will tip off at Noon and will be followed by the schools' respective men's teams meeting in a 2:00 p.m. start.

Wagner will then ring in the New Year with a home tilt vs. Fairleigh Dickinson on Saturday, January 7 at the Spiro Sports Center at 1:00 p.m. 

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