Women's Basketball | 2/24/19
Staten Island, NY - The Wagner College women's basketball team embarks on its final homestand of the regular season, beginning on Monday evening as the Seahawks welcome the Bryant University Bulldogs to the Spiro Sports Center.
The Seahawks completed the season sweep of Fairleigh Dickinson, 60-44, on Saturday afternoon. In the process, Wagner clinched its first Northeast Conference (NEC) tournament berth since 2014.
Bryant earned its second straight win, defeating Mount St. Mary's, 77-59, in Smithfield, RI on Saturday. The Bulldogs, who enter play two games behind the Seahawks in the league standings, are currently tied with the Mountaineers for sixth-place at 6-8 entering tonight's game, but earned the season sweep of the Mount, after posting a 73-68 victory over the Mountaineers in Emmitsburg, MD back on January 12.
Inside The Numbers:
- 240 - Saturday's victory over Fairleigh Dickinson was Wagner's 240th Northeast Conference (NEC) win in program history (240-338).
- 74 - Through Feb. 19, Wagner ranks among the top-75 programs (349 ranked) in the entire NCAA in three-point field goal percentage, connecting on a 33.8 percent clip.
- 5 - It has been five years since the women's basketball program has qualified for the Northeast Conference (NEC) tournament.
- 3 - The 60-44 triumph at Fairleigh Dickinson on Saturday gave Wagner its third season sweep of a conference opponent this season (Central Connecticut, LIU Brooklyn, and Fairleigh Dickinson).
Northeast Conference Women's Basketball Standings (As of 2/23/19)
| Team |
NEC Record |
PCT |
Overall |
Streak |
| 1. Robert Morris * |
13-1 |
.929 |
516-9 |
W2 |
| 2. Sacred Heart * |
10-4 |
.714 |
14-11 |
W1 |
| 3. St. Francis Brooklyn * |
9-5 |
.643 |
15-11 |
L1 |
| Saint Francis U * |
9-5 |
.643 |
12-14 |
L2 |
| 5. WAGNER * |
8-6 |
.571 |
10-15 |
W1 |
| 6. Mount St. Mary's |
6-8 |
.429 |
12-13 |
L1 |
| Bryant |
6-8 |
.429 |
8-17 |
W2 |
| 8. Central Connecticut |
3-11 |
.214 |
6-18 |
L5 |
| Fairleigh Dickinson |
3-11 |
.214 |
6-19 |
L6 |
| LIU Brooklyn |
3-11 |
.214 |
4-21 |
W2 |
Last Time Out For Wagner:
- For the first time since 2014, the Wagner College women's basketball team clinched a berth in the Northeast Conference (NEC) Tournament as the Seahawks completed the season sweep of Fairleigh Dickinson, earning a 60-44 road victory at the Rothman Center on Saturday afternoon.
- Wagner improved to 10-15 overall and 8-6 in NEC play, which puts the Seahawks in sole possession of fifth place in the league standings while the Knights, fell to 6-19 overall and 3-11 in conference, putting them in a three-way tie with Central Connecticut (6-18; 3-11) and LIU Brooklyn (4-21; 3-11) for the eighth and final playoff spot
- Sophomore guard Khaleah Edwards and redshirt junior guard Janelle Mullen each netted a game-high of 15 points on a combined 12-of-25 shooting from the floor while the duo also combined to shoot 6-of-16 from three-point range as both made three trifectas in the victory.
- Redshirt sophomore Taylah Simmons was the third Seahawk to finish in double figures, as she netted 11 points in 38 minutes of action.
- Senior guard Nakylia Carter came within two points of her first career double-double, concluding the contest with eight points, a team-best 10 caroms (nine defensive rebounds) while dishing out four assists and recording a career-best five steals, in 36 minutes of play.
Coaches' Corner:
- "I am extremely proud of this team," commented third-year head coach, Heather Jacobs following Saturday's victory. "We know that there is a lot of basketball left to be played this season and work that needs to be done. Moving forward, we will continue to enjoy each moment ,while remaining in the moment and not straying away from ourselves and our vision."
Record Retrospect:
- The Seahawks' eight conference wins are the most program's most since the 2014 season, when the Green and White went 8-10 in league play and 9-21 overall.
- Wagner's ten overall wins this season are the most since the 2010-11 season, when the Green & White went 12-17 overall (5-13 NEC).
STARTING LINEUP: WAGNER SEAHAWKS
NEC Correspondent, Craig D'Amico, recently featured the Wagner Women's Basketball program for the NEC Overtime Blog... Below is an excerpt of Mr. D'Amico's article. To read the full article, CLICK HERE
"We talk about progress. A lot of progress, a lot of process, getting better in the moment, winning every day, getting one percent better…all of that. In turn, the returners, they know and they remember. We were in a lot of close games (last year) and those moments have not been forgotten...."
....Now in her third season on Grymes Hill, Coach Jacobs' building process is starting to show major results once again. "It's a process that I think is behind the scenes and in the locker room. We knew we were making progress even though last year we didn't really win as many games as we wanted or hoped," said Jacobs. "We knew that there was progress there and whether or not it was player development, in the locker room, the culture, standards, expectation…it was happening and people couldn't see that necessarily."
Inside The Wagner | Bryant Series:
- This evening's contest between the Seahawks and the Bulldogs is just the 18th all-time meeting with Bryant leading the head-to-head series, 15-2.
- Last season, these two teams split the regular season meeting, with each winning on its opponent's home floor.
- Wagner earned a gritty, 75-66 road victory back on December 29, which opened up league play.
- Bryant picked up a 70-60 victory on February 19 at the Spiro Sports Center.
Seahawk Tidbits:
- If Wagner picks up one more win over the final four NEC games, the program will ensure themselves of their first. 500 season in conference play since 2003, when the Seahawks finished 15-13 overall and 10-8 in conference play.
- The Seahawks are 4-1 over its last five games, averaging 69.8 points per game while shooting 41.5 percent from the field and 40.0 percent from the outside. Three players are currently averaging double figures over this stretch, led by redshirt sophomore, Taylah Simmons, who is pouring in close to a double-double, netting a team-best 17.6 ppg and 9.8 rpg in 38.0 mpg. Redshirt junior guard, Janelle Mullen, who has come off-the-bench over the last five contests, is pouring 13.6 ppg while shooting 54.8 percent from the field and 48.0 percent from three-point range. Lastly, junior forward, Jordan Hobson, who has started the last five games, is netting 10.2 ppg while pulling down 4.4 rebounds a game, has made 11 three-pointers during this span (35.5 percent shooting).
- In league-only contests, Wagner ranks is the third-highest scoring team, averaging 69.1 ppg while ranking second in field goal percentage, shooting 44.4 percent from the field.
- Simmons ranks fourth among all-NEC players in scoring, averaging 18.4 in conference tilts while senior teammate, Nakylia Carter ranks second in steals.
Scouting The Bryant University Bulldogs:
- Bryant picked up its second straight win after defeating Mount St. Mary's, 77-59, on Saturday afternoon from the Chace Athletic Center.
- Four Bulldogs scored in double figures, led by Sydney Holloway's 26 point, 11 rebound effort. Masey Zegarowski chipped in 13 points off-the-bench while Julia Kelner and Hannah Scanlan finished with 11 and 10 points, respectively.
- Holloway is the team's leading scorer and leading rebounding, as she is averaging 16.9 ppg (third overall in the NEC) and is the conference's leading rebounder at 11.5 caroms per contest. She also leads all-NEC players in conference tilts in rebounding at 10.9 rpg per game.
- Kierra Palmer ranks second in the league in assists, dishing out 3.9 apg, slightly ahead of the Wagner duo of sophomore guard Alayshia Dailey (3.4 apg) and senior guard Nakylia Carter (3.3).
- Bryant defends the three-point line well, holding opponents to just 30.0percent shooting from the outside, which ranks first in the circuit. The Bulldogs are +3.6 on the glass, outrebounding their opponents, 41.2 to 37.6.
- In conference-only contests, Bryant ranks second in field goal percentage defense, allowing league opponents to convert on 38.3 percent of its shot attempts while leading the league in three-point field percentage defense, limiting NEC foes to just 28.4 percent shooting from three-point range.
Up Next For Wagner:
- The Seahawks will gear up to host their final home regular season contests, as they first welcome Robert Morris to the Spiro Sports Center on Saturday, March 2 before closing out its regular season homestand on Monday, March 4 against defending league champions, Saint Francis U.
- Monday will be Senior Night, as the Seahawks will recognize its lone senior, Nakylia Carter, in a pre-game ceremony. Tip-off on Monday is set for 7:00 p.m.
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