Women's Basketball | 1/27/19
Loretto, PA – The Wagner College women's basketball team concludes its Western Pennsylvania trip this evening as the Seahawks square off against the defending Northeast Conference (NEC) champions, the Saint Francis U Red Flash.
The Seahawks are looking to snap a mini two-game losing streak after falling to Robert Morris, 69-46, on Saturday. SFU is looking for back-to-back wins after defeating previously undefeated Sacred Heart, 85-68, at DeGol Arena on Saturday.
The Green & White are looking for its first win over the Red Flash since the February 13, 2017, when the Seahawks bested the Red Flash, 87-71, at DeGol Arena.
Inside The Numbers:
- 99 - Sophomore guard, Alayshia Dailey, needs just one assist for 100 in her young Seahawk career..
- 46.3 - Wagner is shooting a conference-leading, 46.3 percent from the field in seven league games.
- 17.7 - Redshirt sophomore Taylah Simmons is averaging 17.7 points per game in seven league contests this season, good for fifth among all-conference performers.
- 3 - Over the last five games, three Seahawks are averaging in double-figures: Taylah Simmons (18.6 ppg), Emilija Krista Grava (14.5 ppg), Khaleah Edwards (10.0 ppg).
Last Time Out For Wagner:
- Sophomores Taylah Simmons and Joellen How each scored in double figures but it wasn't enough as Wagner fell to the Robert Morris University Colonials, 69-46, at the North Athletic Complex on Saturday afternoon.
- Simmons finished with a team-leading 15 points on 7-of-14 shooting from the field while grabbing five rebounds, dishing out two assists, and recording two steals in her 30 minutes of action.
- Saturday's double-digit performance by Simmons marked the 25th time in her career that she has scored ten or more points and extends her double-figure scoring streak to eight straight games, as today's output was the 13th time she netted double-digits.
- How, who scored six of her 11 points in the second half, set a career high for points, surpassing her previous best of ten, which was recorded back on March 2, 2018 at Robert Morris. How logged a career-high 29 minutes off the bench.
- Robert Morris had three players score in double figures, led by a pair of 14-point efforts by Honoka Ikematsu and Nina Augustin. This tandem combined to shoot 10-for-21 from the field, including 50.0 percent from three-point range, as each player netted four treys four treys in the contest. Nneka Ezeigbo finished with a double-double, scoring 13 points while grabbing a game-high 17 rebounds.
Inside The Wagner | Saint Francis U Series:
- Wagner and Saint Francis U will be squaring off for the 69th time with the Red Flash holding a 46-22 advantage in the head-to-head series.
- All-time, the Seahawks are 9-24 against SFU at DeGol Arena.
- The Green & White are looking for its first win over SFU since February 13, 2017, in which the Seahawks defeated the Red Flash, 87-71, in Loretto.
- Since 2002, Wagner is just 3-19 against the Red Flash.
Seahawk Tidbits:
- Over the last ten games, sophomore Taylah Simmons leads the Seahawk offense, tallying 15.3 ppg while shooting 52.1 percent from the field and 80.0 percent from the free throw in 27.3 mpg. Simmons is just 46 points away from recording her 500th career point, as she sits at 454 entering the Red Flash contest on Monday evening.
- Senior guard, Nakylia Carter is just 11 assists away from 150 in her Seahawk career while sophomore guard, Alayshia Dailey, needs just one assist for 100 in her young Wagner career.
- Fellow classmate, Khaleah Edwards, who is averaging 9.4 ppg overall, is the team's second leading scorer away from the Spiro Sports Center, tallying 10.8 ppg and 4.9 rpg in 30.8 minutes. Edwards is shooting 45.7 percent from the field and 42.1 percent from beyond-the-arc in ten road contests.
- Freshman forward Emilija Krista Grava, who has recorded ten double-digit scoring games this season in her first season on Grymes Hll, ranks third among all-NEC freshman in scoring (11.1 ppg), second in rebounding (5.8 rpg) and fourth in field goal percentage, shooting the ball at a 44.4 percent clip.
- Wagner is 5-1 this season when leading at the half, outscoring their opponents by nearly 12.0 points per game (76.0 to 64.3) overall entering halftime (38.7 to 26.8). The Seahawks are also outmuscling them by almost 6.0 rebounds a game (39.3 to 33.7). In these contests, Wagner is shooting 47.5 from the field while shooting 37.0 percent from beyond-the-arc.
- Three Seahawks are scoring in double figures in these contests: Simmons (18.7p, 7.3r), Krista Grava (14.6p, 8.2r),and Alayshia Dailey (10.2p, 4.5r, 5.2a).
Scouting The Saint Francis U Red Flash:
- The Red Flash, who are the defending NEC champions, were predicted to finish second in the league, receiving two first-place votes in the league's annual preseason coaches' poll.
- SFU enters play with a 7-12 overall record and are 4-3 in league contests, after snapping a three-game losing streak, handing Sacred Heart its first loss in conference action, winning 85-68 on Saturday afternoon at DeGol Arena.
- Four Red Flash players scored in double figures in Saturday's contest, led by all-time conference leading scorer, Jessica Kovatch, who turned in a 23-point performance. Haley Thomas recorded a double-double, finishing with 19 points and a game-best 11 caroms. Courtney Zezza chipped in 17 points and seven rebounds in 28 minutes of play while Sam Sabino contributed 14 points on 3-of-5 shooting, while converting 6-of-6 from the free-throw line.
- Entering the fourth week of league contest, Kovatch is the leading scorer, pouring in 20.9 ppg, which ranks among the top-15 in the entire country as of 1/25/19.
- Collectively, Saint Francis U is averaging 70.6 ppg while averaging 37.3 rpg and shooting 38.6 percent from the field and 34.6 percent from beyond-the-arc.
Up Next For Wagner:
- Wagner opens the month of February with a home and home series against the LIU Brooklyn Blackbirds, as the Seahawks welcome the Blackbirds to Staten Island on February 2 before making a trip to Brooklyn on February 9.
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