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jasmine nwajei
Dave Saffran
87
Winner Saint Francis U SFU 11-14, 9-5 NEC
74
WAGNER SEAHAWKS WAGNER 4-21, 2-12 NEC
Winner
Saint Francis U SFU
11-14, 9-5 NEC
87
Final
74
WAGNER SEAHAWKS WAGNER
4-21, 2-12 NEC
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Saint Francis U SFU 18 19 26 24 87
WAGNER SEAHAWKS WAGNER 22 16 17 19 74

Game Recap: Women's Basketball |

SFU Pulls Away From Wagner 87-74; Nwajei Hits For 38

Staten Island, NY – The Wagner women's basketball team jumped out to a nine-point first-half lead and led 38-37 at the half, but Saint Francis U opened the second half on a 19-7 run en route to recording an 87-74 comeback win, despite 38 points from NCAA scoring leader Jasmine Nwajei (Rockaway Park, NY/Murry Bergtraum).

Freshman Jessica Kovatch, who entered the game as the nation's 10th-leading scorer at 22.1 ppg., led four Red Flash players in double figures with 24 points, despite being harassed into an 8-for-26 shooting day. Maya Wynn added 17 points for SFU while Courtney Zezza and Katie Reese added 16 and 12 points, respectively.

With the win, the Red Flash improve to 11-14 on the season and are now 9-5 in Northeast Conference (NEC) play while the Green & White fall to 4-21 overall, 2-12 in league play.

Wagner jumped out to a 22-13 lead with 1:32 left in the opening quarter following a layup by sophomore forward Sofia Roma (Richmond Hill, NY/Nazareth Regional. The NEC's top rebounder at 12.2 boards per game (conference games only), Roma sat out Saturday's game at Bryant due to a leg injury. The 6-2 Roma came off the bench today for the first time this season and, despite missing more than a week of practice, fought her way through 35 minutes of play, accounting for five points and 10 rebounds.

After Wagner took that nine-point lead, SFU outscored the Seahawks 24-16 the rest of the half in closing the deficit to 38-37 at the half. Wynn kick-started SFU's opening second half run with a three-pointer that put the Red Flash into the lead for good at 40-38. After trailing by as many as 12 in the third quarter, the Seahawks clawed back to within six at 63-57 on a jumper by sophomore guard Tanasia Russell (Vineland, NJ/Vineland) early in the fourth,  before the Red Flash pulled away for good.

Nwajei's 38-point outburst today, which came on 13-of-31 shooting, upped her NCAA-leading scoring average to 28.3 ppg.,  increasing her NEC average to 33.6 ppg. Thus far this season, season, she has a pair of 50-point plus games to her credit, having scored a school and NEC-record 53 points on January 24 vs. Sacred Heart and also tossed in 52 points in an overtime win at St. Francis Brooklyn on February 1.

All told in 2015-16, the junior guard has eclipsed the 50-point mark twice, the 40-point mark four times, and the 30-point plateau 12 times (22 for her career).  Nwajei, who became Wagner's all-time leading scorer on February 6 vs. Farleigh Dickinson, is now up to 1,942 career points as her march to 2,000 continues.  In addition, she has now scored 20 or more points in 18 consecutive games.

Russell registered her second straight double-digit game this afternoon in following a 14-point outing at Bryant on Saturday with 11 today. Senior guard Jazmine Hamlet (New York, NY/Francis Lewis) also tallied 11, while freshman Julia McClure (Secaucus, NJ/Secaucus) added nine points in her first career start and is now averaging 8.7 ppg. in her last three games.

Wagner outshot the Red Flash, 40.6 percent to 37.3 percent while SFU out-rebounded Wagner 54-42 and led in points off turnovers (17-10), second-chance points (19-11), fast-break points (18-10), and bench scoring (26-16). The Seahawks had the edge in points in the paint (34-26).

The Seahawks are next in action on Saturday, February 20 when they travel to Central Connecticut to meet the Blue Devils in a 3:30 p.m. tip.

2016 Play4Kay Day
Play 4Kay Day, an initiative named for former NC State head coach Kay Yow, which provides an opportunity for a nation of student-athletes and coaches to raise awareness and funds for women's cancer research on the court, across campuses, in communities and beyond. Both teams' and coaching staff's attire on Monday featured the color pink in honor of this day. In addition, all fans wearing pink gained free admittance. Since its inception in 2007, the Play 4Kay initiative has helped the Kay Yow Cancer Fund support $5.18 million in women's cancer research and related projects.

Follow Wagner Athletics on Facebook (facebook.com/WagnerAthletics), Twitter (@wagnerathletics), Instagram (@wagnerathletics) and YouTube (@WagnerSeahawks) for all the latest news and updates on the athletic department. Follow the women's basketball team on Twitter @WagSwagg_WBB for news and updates on the women's basketball program and @CERMIGNANO for news on the fourth-year coach.  
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