Staten Island, NY – For the first time since the 1999-00 season, the Wagner women's basketball team will play in the Northeast Conference (NEC) Championship game, after the No. 2 seeded Seahawks defeated the No. 3 seed, Saint Francis U Red Flash, 70-57, at the Spiro Sports Center on Wednesday evening.
The Seahawks move to 13-5 on the year while the Red Flash finish the 2020-21 campaign at 14-9.
Wagner had four players score in double-figures on the evening, led by senior wing
Khaleah Edwards' team-high 16 points on 5 of 8 shooting from the field. Freshman guard
Marisa Sanchez-Henry posted a career-high 13 points, hitting on 5 of 6 from the floor in 15 minutes of action.
Junior guard ZhaneiaThybulle, who was held scoreless over the first three quarters, was a deciding factor in the victory, netting 12 points in the final quarter. She converted on 6 of 7 shot attempts in the frame.
Graduate guard
Kate Tokuhara finished with 12 points on a 5 of 8 shooting night off-the-bench.
All-NEC First Team selection Karson Swogger poured in a game-high 19 points on 6 of 15 shooting to lead the Red Flash. Her night included going 5 of 7 from the free-throw line in 39 minutes of action.
TOURNAMENT NOTES…
- Wagner will appear in its fourth NEC Championship game in program history.
- The lone NEC title belongs to the 1988-89 team, that defeated the No. 2 seed, Robert Morris, 66-60.
- The Seahawks tied the program-record for made field goals, hitting 28 of 51 tonight. The last time they hit 28 field goals came against Fairleigh Dickinson back on March 5, 1994.
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE…
- Wagner caused 21 Red Flash turnovers and turned those into 27 points.
- Saint Francis U heled a 32-23 edge on the boards, highlighted by a 14-6 advantage on the offensive glass.
- The Seahawks' reserves scored 30 of Wagner's 70 points this evening. Tokuhara and Sanchez-Henry netted a combined 25 on 10 of 14 shooting from the field and 5 of 7 from three-point range.
- Wagner finished the game shooting a season-best 54.9 percent from the floor, surpassing the previous high of 52.5 against Mount St. Mary's (March 4, 2021).
- Tonight's game featured eight ties and six lead changes.
How It Happened...
First Quarter
- Wagner jumped out to a 6-2 advantage early on before the Red Flash got two straight baskets from Katie Dettwiller and Haley Thomas.
- The Seahawks built a 14-9 lead on the heels of an 8-3 run over a three-minute span, as Sanchez-Henry led the charge with six points.
- Wagner's defense limited SFU to just one made field goal during the run.
- Following a Swogger jumper, Emilija Krista Grava netted her only points of the contest to give Wagner a 16-11 lead at the end of the first.
Second Quarter
- SFU's Lili Benzel opened the second with a three-pointer that made it a two-point contest.
- After a pair of made baskets by Wagner, the Red Flash ignited an 11-2 run over the next 3:43 to take a 25-22 lead, as Swogger was the catalyst with seven points.
- Jada Dapaa was able to hit on a jumper with 2:13 remaining that pushed the visitors' lead to three, 27-24, but Edwards, was able to drain a trifecta that sent both teams into the locker room, tied at 27-27.
Third Quarter
- Saint Francis U took control early on in the frame, outscoring Wagner, 10-2, over the first three minutes. The Red Flash built an eight-point lead, 37-29, with Jenn Mastellone capping the run by hitting two from the line.
- The Seahawks responded back with an 8-0 run that tied the game at 37-37 after LaNiya Miller was able to hit on a side-step three-pointer at the 5:16 mark.
- From that point, the Green & White scored 11 of the quarter's final 20 points, as the Seahawks held a 48-46 lead heading to the fourth.
Fourth Quarter
- Thybulle was able to steal the ball away from Swogger and lay one off the window that pushed Wagner's lead to 50-46 before Swogger, on-the-other-end, hit a three-pointer as SFU trailed by one, 50-49.
- Kem Nwabudu hit a one-hand floater in-the-paint, which kickstarted a 16-1 burst from Wagner. The home team took a 66-51 lead as Thybulle put home a second-chance layup with 5:10 left to play.
- The Seahawks never relinquish the double-digit lead as Thybulle scored the final bucket with 14 seconds left.
- With 11 ticks remaining, Thybulle inbounded the ball to Edwards, who ran out the clock, and the Seahawk bench burst with excitement as the Green & White had advanced to the championship game.
The Seahawks will travel to Emmitsburg, Maryland to face Mount St. Mary's in the Northeast Conference Championship on Sunday, March 14th at 2:00 p.m. The game will be featured live across both ESPNU and ESPN3.
