Pictured Above: Graduate Student Sierra Clark (Photo by Dave Saffran)
Staten Island, NY – The Wagner women's basketball team will play host to the Bryant University Bulldogs in a 1:00 p.m. President's Day tip-off at the Spiro Sports Center.
Seahawks Posted Noteworthy Win Over Bryant Earlier This Season
The Green & White will be seeking their first-ever season sweep of the Bulldogs as
Wagner earned a 75-66 win in Smithfield, RI on December 29 in the Northeast Conference (NEC) season opener for both teams. This victory over Bryant was significant on a couple levels as it marked just the second-ever win for Wagner over the Bulldogs, and was the first NEC-opening game win for the Seahawks in six years, since December 3, 2011, when the Seahawks topped St. Francis Brooklyn by a 49-45 count on Staten Island. The loss to Wagner dropped Bryant to 1-11 on the season but in the 12 games since then, the Bulldogs are 7-5.
All-Time Series: Wagner vs. Bryant
Wagner and Bryant meet for the 17th time in the all-time series and the Bulldogs hold a 14-2 lead in the all-time series.
The First Meeting:
December 29, 2017
Wagner 75, Bryant 66
Chace Center
Smithfield, RI
Fifth-year senior forward
Sierra Clark tossed in 18 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead four players in double figures as the Wagner women's basketball team earned a 75-66 victory at Bryant in the Northeast Conference (NEC) opener for both teams at the Chace Center. In helping the Green & White record a then season-high 75 points, redshirt freshman guards
Morgan Lenahan and
Taylah Simmons tossed in 17 and 14 points, respectively, while freshman guard
Khaleah Dixon-Edwards added 12. For Lenahan, the 17-point outing was a career high as was Dixon-Edwards' 12, while Simmons' 14 point were one shy of her career best. Wagner took a 22-21 lead after one quarter as senior guard
Tanasia Russell narrowly beat the buzzer with a 10-foot pull-up jumper. The Seahawks then outscored the Bulldogs 16-11 in the second period in building a 38-32 halftime lead. After Dixon-Edwards buried a three-pointer with 8:25 left in the third quarter to give the Seahawks a nine-point advantage at 44-35, before the Bulldogs outscored Wagner 15-10 to make it 54-50 game entering the fourth and final period. Freshman guard
Alayshia Dailey sank two free throws to push Wagner ahead by an eight-point count at 62-54 with 7:57 to play, before the Bulldogs countered with a 6-0 burst, capped by a Hannah Scanlan layup at the 5:10 mark, to draw to within two at 62-60. A pair of Scanlan free throws make it a one-point game at 63-62 with 4:10 left. It was still anybody's game following another Scanlan layup at the 2:38 mark which made it a 67-65 game. After Simmons sank two free throws to make it 69-65 with 2:05 remaining, Clark turned in the play of the game. Bryant guard Masey Zegarowski gained a step on her defender and dribble in for a layup attempt that would have made it a two-point game at the 1:47 mark. But the athletic, 5-11 Clark, swatted the shot away, before corralling the rebound and hitting a streaking Russell in stride for a fast-break layup that made it 71-65 with 1:41 left, and the Seahawks hung on from there. For Clark, the block was her game-leading third of the game, which went along with her two steals.mScanlan, a freshman forward, finished with a career and game-high 27 points on the afternoon, while Sydney Holloway and Zegarowski added 14 and 11 points, respectively.
Former D-II All-American Clark Getting It Done in D-I
Fifth-year senior forward
Sierra Clark, who was recruited to and played for Wagner head coach
Heather Jacobs at Adelphi University where she went on to earn 2016-17 Division II All-American honors, is coming off a 28-point, 10-rebound effort in Saturday's tough 66-64 home loss to Central Connecticut. The 5-11 Maryland native has now hit for 20 or more points 12 times this season, has two 30-point plus games, and 21 double-digit scoring efforts. The Maryland native averages 18.8 points (No. 2 in NEC) and 9.6 rebounds overall (No. 2 in NEC). Overall, Clark, has an NEC-best 14 double-doubles to her credit in 25 games, which ranks No. 12 nationally according to NCAA.com. In addition, the graduate student averages an NEC-best 2.3 blocked shots per game (57 total), which also ranks No. 26 in the nation. In Wagner's 22 NEC games, the she averages 20.6 points and 10.8 rebounds per outing.
Last Time Out
Kiana Patterson scored 24 points and dished out 12 assists to offset a 28-point, 10-rebound effort by Wagner fifth-year senior forward
Sierra Clark as Central Connecticut came from behind to post a 66-64 win on Saturday afternoon at the Spiro Sports Center. For Clark, her 28-point, 10-rebound performance was her NEC-leading 14th double-double of the season. Redshirt freshman guard
Morgan Lenahan and freshman guard
Khaleah Dixon-Edwards added 16 and 10 points, respectively. Wagner raced out to a 16-point second-quarter lead and held a 46-38 advantage at the intermission, in posting its best shooting half of the year (58 percent) and second-highest point total in a half this season. The Seahawks used a 13-3 run to bridge the first and second quarters, capped by a Clark three-pointer, in surging to a 32-16 lead, prompting the Blue Devils to call time out. CCSU outscored Wagner 22-14 the rest of the half in making it a single-digit deficit at the break. Morgan Johnson opened the second-half scoring with a three-pointer which ignited a 14-2 Blue Devil run, capped by a Patterson layup with 2:16 left in the third quarter, that gave Central a 52-48 lead. After Wagner made it a three-point game, Patterson beat the third-quarter buzzer with a three-pointer to give the Blue Devils momentum and a 59-54 lead heading into the final stanza. With CCSU on top 65-60, Lenahan knocked down a three with 3:20 to play, followed by a Clark 1-of-2 effort from the free throw line with 2:24 to go, in clawing to within one point at 65-64. Wagner had a chance to take the lead but Lenahan missed a layup with 1:14 left. The Seahawks had one more chance after Lenahan grabbed a rebound off a missed layup by Andi Lyon. The Seahawks, however, turned it over at the 32-second mark and CCSU's Emma McCamus made 1-of-2 from the line with five seconds left in hanging on for the 66-64 win.
Next Time Out
The Seahawks will host the Mount St. Mary's University Mountaineers on Saturday, February 24 in a 1:00 p.m. Senior Day matchup at the Spiro Sports Center. Prior to the game, three Seahawks will be honored in graduate student Sierra Cark, along with seniors
Tanasia Russell and
Samantha Sullivan.
Western PA Trip To Close Out Regular Season
Wagner will conclude the regular season with the annual two-game Western, PA swing, beginning with a 7:00 p.m. tip vs. Robert Morris on Friday, March 2 and concluding on Sunday, March 4 at Saint Francis U in a 1:00 p.m. start.
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Wagner Athletics
Women's Basketball:
Head Coach
Heather Jacobs:
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