Staten Island, NY  –  Winners of three straight games, the Wagner College women's basketball team closes out its brief two-game homestand on Saturday in a 1:00 p.m. tip at the Spiro Sports Center in search of a regular season sweep of Central Connecticut in a contest that will be carried live on ESPN+.

The Seahawks, who are averaging 75.0 ppg over the last three games, are seeking the program's first four-game win streak since the 2002-03 season, when Wagner rattled off four straight from Feb. 18 (vs. CCSU | 74-60) to March 1 (at St. Francis Brooklyn | 81-61).

Central Connecticut enters Saturday's play looking to get back into the win column, after dropping both of its contests in Western Pennsylvania, most recently, a 60-40 setback at Robert Morris on Monday. Inside The Numbers:

• 575 - Monday's game against St. Francis Brooklyn marked the 575th NEC game that the Seahawks have played. In all, Wagner has secured 238 league wins. 
• 71.1 -  Over the last ten games, in which Wagner has posted a 6-4 record, the Seahawks have averaged 71.1 points per game while shooting 45.2 percent from the field. . 
• 30 - Redshirt sophomore Taylah Simmons, who recorded her third straight double-double against St. Francis Brooklyn, set a career high with 30 points, earning Northeast Conference (NEC) Co-Player of the Week honors in the process. Additionally, she has scored in double figures in 14 of her last 15 games and in every NEC game thus far (20.2 ppg).
• 6 - At 6-5 in the NEC under third-year head coach, Heather Jacobs, the six victories are the most conference wins for the program since the 2009-10 season (6-12 NEC).   

Last Time Out For Wagner:

• Trailing by nine, 72-63, early in the fourth quarter, the Wagner College women's basketball team outscored the St. Francis Brooklyn Terriers, 23-13, over the final nine minutes, highlighted by what turned out to be the game-winning jumper in the paint by redshirt sophomore Taylah Simmons as the Seahawks defeated their Brooklyn counterparts, 87-85, on Monday evening at the Spiro Sports Center.  
• With the victory, Wagner improved to 6-5 in Northeast Conference (NEC) action (8-14 overall) while St. Francis Brooklyn fell to 7-4 in league play and 13-10 overall.
• For the Seahawks, it is their best league mark through 11 NEC games since the 2003-04 season, as that squad finished with an 8-10 league record and an appearance in the NEC Tournament (against No. 3 seed, Monmouth).
• Additionally, Monday's win, which extended Wagner's winning streak to three (first time since 2014-15 | Dec. 21 vs. Stony Brook, Dec. 30 vs. Columbia, January 3 at Saint Francis U) split the season series between the teams (1-1), as Wagner finds itself just one game out of the top four in the playoff picture. 
• Three Seahawks finished the game in double figures, led by Simmons, as the Melbourne, Australia native netted a career-high 30 points on 14-of-27 shooting from the field in 39 minutes of action. In the process, the second-year Seahawk notched her third straight double-double (sixth of the season, eighth of her career), as she grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds. Simmons also recorded a team-high in assists with five, while adding two steals and a block.
• Redshirt junior guard Janelle Mullen produced her first 20-point game as a Seahawk, as she matched her career-best (Dec. 4, 2016 @ Marist while playing at Saint Peter's University) by going 6-of-9 from the floor and 4-of-5 from long range in 32 minutes of play. For Mullen and Simmons, it marks the first time that a pair of Seahawk teammates have gone for at least 20 points in the same game since Corinn Baggs (20 points) and former NEC Rookie of the Year, Kerstie Phills, did so on the road at Saint Francis U (2/13/17).
• Sophomore guard Alayshia Dailey added ten points and four assists in 34 minutes of action. Other notable contributions from Wagner on the evening came from sophomore Khaleah Edwards, who scored nine while senior guard Nakylia Carter netted eight points, grabbed seven rebounds, and dished out five assists while swiping three steals.
• St. Francis Brooklyn had four players in double digits, led by Jade Johnson's 30 points as she scored 21 of her 30 from beyond the arc (7-of-15). Ally Lassen was the Terriers' second-leading scorer, finishing with 18 points, seven rebounds and three blocks. Maria Palarino and Dominique Ward finished with 16 points and 10 points, respectively. Amy O'Neill contributed nine points and a game-high 13 assists to go along with six rebounds and five steals in the setback.

Inside The Wagner | Central Connecticut Series:

• Saturday's contest between the Seahawks and the Blue Devils is the 45th all-time meeting with the Blue Devils holding a 28-16 advantage in the head-to-head series. 
• The Green & White are looking for their first season sweep of the Blue Devils since the 2001-02 season, in which Wagner earned a 63-44 home victory back on January 12, 2002 and wrapped up the season series with a 65-60 road triumph on February 21 in New Britain, CT. 
• Wagner took the first meeting of the season back on January 7 in New Britain, 75-63. In that contest, four Seahawks finished in double-figures, led by Taylah Simmons, who finished with her third double-double of the season with a game-high 19 points and 11 rebounds. Sophomore guard Alayshia Dailey scored a career-high 16 points on 4-of-6 shooting but went 8-of-11 from the free-throw line. Junior forward, Jordan Hobson, and sophomore Khaleah Edwards rounded out the double-digit performances, concluding the contest with 12 and 11 points, respectively. 
• Central Connecticut does hold a 19-10 advantage over the Seahawks since 2002.
• Wagner is also looking for its first win over the Blue Devils at the Spiro Sports Center since February 15, 2006, when the Seahawks claimed a 68-53 victory.  

 

Seahawk Tidbits:

• Redshirt sophomore Taylah Simmons garnered her first career Northeast Conference (NEC) Player of the Week accolade this week, as the Melbourne, Australia native averaged 26.0 ppg and 11.0 rpg in a pair of wins over LIU Brooklyn and St. Francis Brooklyn, respectively. 
• Simmons, who leads all NEC-sophomores in scoring (15.6 ppg) and is tied for third among all-second year conference players in rebounding (6.6 rpg), is pouring in 20.2 ppg in league-only contests (trails SFU's Jessica Kovatch | 25.5 ppg) and pulling down 7.2 rpg in 11 conference tilts (good for ninth). 
• On a national scale, through February 10, Simmons ranks among the top-100 players in the entire NCAA in field-goal percentage, shooting 48.7 percent.
• Senior point guard, Nakylia Carter, ranks among the top-75 in steals per game through February 10, averaging 2.33 spg while ranking among the top-half of all players (150 ranked) in 78th in total steals with 49.
• Collectively, the Green & White rank fourth overall in the league in scoring, pouring in 63.6 ppg while ranking second in league contest, averaging 70.2 ppg.
• Through 11 conference games, Wagner ranks first in FG%, shooting 45.6 percent from the floor (2nd overall at 41.6%). 
• The Seahawks have distributed the ball well this season, averaging 13.9 helpers a contest and close to 16.0 apg in league games. 
• At 6-5 in the league, the Seahawks find themselves one-game out of a top-four spot to host a home quarterfinals contest in the NEC Tournament. 
• This season, Wagner is currently 5-4 on the season at home but four of the five victories have come in conference play. The Seahawks, who are averaging 67.3 points per game in nine games at the Spiro Sports Center, have increased their point production in league home contests, as the squad is outscoring their conference foes by six points a game (78.0-to-72.4). Simmons, who is averaging 17.1 ppg in nine home games, has upped that number to 24.2 ppg and has pulled down 9.2 rpg in five league home games.
• Redshirt junior guard, Janelle Mullen, has poured in 14.0 ppg and 5.0 rpg in her two home NEC games while Carter and sophomore Alayshia Dailey, are both chipping in 10 points and 5.0 assists, respectively. 
• Over the last ten games, in which Wagner is 6-4, the Seahawks are scoring 71.1 ppg and grabbing 35.6 rpg. 

Scouting The Central Connecticut State University Blue Devils: 

• Central Connecticut, who enters play with a 6-15 overall record and a 3-8 league mark, are currently in a tie with Fairleigh Dickinson for the final playoff spot. 
• The Blue Devils are looking to snap a two-game losing skid, after falling out in Western Pennsylvania to defending league champions, Saint Francis U, 83-68, back on February 9 and more recently, dropping a 60-40 decision to Robert Morris in Moon Township, on Monday evening, which clinched a NEC Tournament berth for the Colonials. 
• Ashley Berube was the lone Blue Devil in double-figures against the Colonials, tallying ten points and a game-best, 11 rebounds in 29 minutes of action. 
• In the first meeting against Wagner, Kiana Patterson led the way for the Blue Devils with 17 points on just 4-of-11 shooting from the field but did convert on 7-of-10 from the charity stripe in her 35 minutes of play. Berube added 11 points, five rebounds and five blocks in 26 minutes of action in the January 7 matchup. 
• Entering Saturday's contest, Central Connecticut leads the NEC in three-point field goal percentage defense, holding opponents to just 29.1 percent shooting from the outside. 
• Patterson is the team's leading scorer, averaging 16.4 ppg, good for fifth in the circuit, while Berube is third in blocks at 1.8 a contest. 

 
 
Up Next For Wagner:

• Following Saturday's home contest against the Blue Devils, Wagner hits the road for a pair of road tilts, beginning on Monday, February 18, as the Seahawks tangle with the Mount St. Mary's Mountaineers in Emmitsburg, MD.
• Tipoff from Knott Arena is set for 7:00 p.m.