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STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. – The Wagner College women's basketball team will embark on its 2025-26 season at Big Ten member Rutgers on Monday, November 3. Tip-off between the Seahawks and Scarlet Knights is set for 7:00 p.m. at Jersey Mike's Arena in Piscataway, N.J on B1G+.
International Flavor
The 2025-26 Wagner College Seahawks women's basketball team has more athletes born outside the U.S. than any other team in Division I collegiate women's basketball with 13. The FIU Panthers are in second place with 12 student-athletes born outside of the U.S.
These 14 student-athletes come from seven different countries (Canada, Spain, Switzerland, Angola, Egypt, Nigeria, and the US). Five Seahawks hail from Canada, four from Spain, and one each representing Switzerland, Angola, Egypt, Nigeria, and the U.S. Besides the Seahawks, the Dayton Flyers have five players on their roster from Canada. The Seahawks are one of five teams to host four athletes from Canada on their roster, joining FIU, San Francisco, Utah State, and Denver.
New Faces On The Sidelines
Fifth-year Head women's basketball Coach Terrell Coburn announced the addition of Assistant Coach Brandi Segars, Zhaneia 'Z' Thybulle, and Video Coordinator Sabira Ahayeva to the Seahawks' upcoming 2025-26 staff during the offseason months.
Brandi Segars most recently served as the Head Varsity Girls Basketball Coach at Staten Island Academy for the 2024–25 season, guiding the team to an ACIS Conference Championship.
Segars' playing career began at Loyola University Chicago (2015-18), where Segars appeared in 83 games with 24 starts during her three year tenure. Segars averaged 7.7 points and 4.4 rebounds per game as a sophomore, scoring in double figures 10 times and posting a season-high 15 points against Wichita State. During the 2017-18 season, Segars added 3.1 points and 1.5 rebounds per game while making 32 appearances and eight starts
The Queens native spent the 2019-20 campaign with Winston-Salem State University, making 29 appearances and 23 starts. Segars ranked third on the team in scoring (10.3) and averaged 5.8 rebounds per game, earning CIAA All-Tournament honors. Segars' best performance came against West Virginia State, when Segars recorded 26 points and 17 rebounds..
Off the court, Segars earned her MBA from Winston-Salem State in 2022 and holds a bachelor's degree in Communication, Advertising, and Public Relations from Loyola Chicago.
Zhaneia Thybulle most recently spent two seasons as an assistant coach at Adelphi University in Garden City.
During her time as a Panther, Z implemented a new defensive system that elevated the team's scoring defense ranking from eighth to third in the NE-10 and installed a baseline-out-of-bounds package that increased scoring by an average of eight points per game.
No stranger to Grymes Hill, Thybulle played five collegiate seasons between UNC Wilmington and Wagner. Thybulle appeared in 114 career games with 74 starts, finishing her career as a two-time All-Northeast Conference (NEC) Third Team selection (2021-22, 2022-23) and the NEC's assists leader in back-to-back seasons.
While a Seahawk, the Elmont, NY native appeared in 75 games, making 74 starts, logging 2428 minutes averaging 9.2 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 4.7 assists across 33 minutes per game while shooting 38.4% from the floor.
In 2022-23, Thybulle averaged 10.8 points, 4.2 assists, and 4.0 rebounds per game, leading the NEC in assists for the second straight year and ranking 91st nationally. Thybulle recorded the third triple-double in Wagner history and the first in the NEC since 2020-21, finishing with 10 points, 10 rebounds, and 11 assists at LIU on February 11, scored in double-figures 17 times, averaging 11.8 points in conference play, and was named NEC Player of the Week on December 19.
As a senior in 2021-22, Thybulle started 28 of 29 games and averaged 10.1 points, 5.1 assists, and 4.8 rebounds in 34.3 minutes per game. Thybulle ranked first in the NEC in assists, seventh in steals, and finished top-20 in both scoring and rebounding. Thybulle had 16 double-digit scoring games, handed out a season-high 11 assists twice, and recorded her first career double-double with 15 points and 11 assists at Merrimack. Nationally, Thybulle ranked 37th in assists per game and 44th in total assists.
In her first season at Wagner (2020-21), Thybulle started all 18 games and averaged 5.7 points, 4.9 assists, and 3.3 rebounds per game. Thybulle ended second in the NEC in assists and third in assist-to-turnover ratio, while ranking top-50 in the nation in assists per game. Thybulle set a career-high with 12 assists against Mount St. Mary's, the highest single-game total in the NEC that season.
Thybulle graduated from Wagner in 2022 with a B.S. in Business Administration.
Sabira Ahayeva joins Terrell Coburn's staff as the Seahawks' upcoming Video Coordinator.
The Minsk, Belarus native joins the Seahawks by way of the University of New Haven, where Ahayeva spent two seasons as a member of the Chargers. Prior to her stint with New Haven, Ahayeva played for two seasons at Dawson Community College in Glendive, MT.
During her first year as a Charger, Ahayeva earned three starts during her first season, and had a breakout performance against Bentley scoring 11 points on 4-of-7 shooting—including 2-of-4 from three-point range—in just 15 minutes off the bench.
During her second season at New Haven, Ahayeva appeared in 28 games, making 25 starts while averaging 5.7 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 3.2 assists per game across 30.2 minutes of game time. Ahayeva shot 82.2% from the free throw line during the course of the year.
While at Dawson Community College, Ahayeva played two seasons for the Buccaneers. During her second year in Glendive, Ahayeva posted 10.6 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 2.8 assists per game in 31 appearances. Ahayeva ranked third on the team in scoring, second in rebounding, and led the team in free throw percentage (83.3%).
Ahayeva finished with career highs of 26 points and 12 rebounds in a performance against Miles Community College in the regular season finale. Throughout the year, Ahayeva scored in double-figures in 21 games during the season.
Ahayeva participated on Belarus' Women's Basketball National Team in 2017 and graduated from UNH with a degree in Business Management.
Currently, Ahayeva is enrolled in the Wagner College Nicolais School of Business to obtain her MBA aside from her duties with the women's basketball program.
Your Seahawks
The Seahawks return 10 athletes from the 2023-24 season - Klea Kaci, Maria Doreste, Shamique Cummings, Malia Mpondo, Irene Fernandez de Caleya, Keana Foz, Angélie Ricard, Hawa Balde-Camara, Raneem ElBarky, Lijifin Doyinsola Modesayor - that includes five seniors and one graduate student. Wagner also welcomes four newcomers - Priscila Varela, Jada Johnson, Saioa San Francisco, and Alivia Landy - to the roster.
Fast Break Points
Hawa-Balde Camara finished last season averaging the second most blocks per game with 1.2, swatting 34 shots during her 29 games. The Seahawks were picked seventh in the NEC's preseason poll. Keana Foz returns for her sophomore year after making the NEC's All-Defensive Team in the list's first year as a major conference award. Foz earned an NEC-best 2.2 steals per game with 60 steals across 27 games.
The Road Ahead
After their matchup with the Scarlet Knights, the Seahawks will welcome State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) member New Paltz Hawks to the Spiro Sports Center on Wednesday, November 5 for a 7:00 p.m. tip-off.
The Green & White travel to NJIT on November 9 before taking on Syracuse on November 16. Wagner completes a three-game home stand to round out the month against Lafayette on November 20, Iona on November 24, and Cornell on November 30.
The Seahawks head back onto the road for a three-game road trip at Columbia on December 6 before heading to Rider on December 13 and University of Rhode Island on December 19. The Green & White wrap up the 2025 year with a matchup against NJCU on December 30 at Spiro.
The Seahawks compete in 18 conference games, starting on Friday, January 2 as Wagner will host Chicago State at 7:00 pm at the Spiro Sports Center.
Wagner will then compete in three straight away games - at Stonehill on Sunday, January 4, at Saint Francis U on Thursday, January 8, and at Mercyhurst on Saturday, January 10. The Green & White then return the favor by hosting three straight home events atop of Grymes Hill. Wagner welcomes the current conference champions FDU on Thursday, January 15 for a 7:00 pm tip.
Wagner hosts conference newcomer New Haven on Saturday, January 17 and Le Moyne on Thursday, January 22 before hitting the road again at LIU on Saturday, January 24. Tip-off against New Haven is scheduled for 2:00 pm while tip-off against Le Moyne is set for 7:00 pm.
Wagner heads back home for a 5:00 pm tip against CCSU on Thursday, January 29 before wrapping up the month at FDU on Saturday, January 31 The Seahawks stay off the island for the next weekend as Wagner heads upstate to Le Moyne for a matchup on Thursday, February 5 before crossing state-lines into Connecticut for a Saturday, February 7 meeting with CCSU.
The Green & White will host Stonehill on Saturday, February 14 for a rematch of the 2024 NEC Quarterfinal round at 2:00 pm. Wagner will host Mercyhurst and Saint Francis U on Thursday, February 19 and Saturday, February 21, respectively. Tip-off against the Lakers is scheduled for 7:00 pm while tip-off against the Red Flash is set for 2:00 pm.
The Seahawks will head to New Haven for the first Division I matchup between one another on Thursday, February 26. Two days later, Wagner as the Seahawks will travel to Chicago State for their final road game of the season on Saturday, February 28. The Green & White will wrap up their 2025-26 campaign against conference rival LIU on Thursday, March 5 in the Spiro Sports Center.
This year's NEC Tournament is scheduled between Monday, March 9 to Monday, March 15, with the quarterfinal round set for March 9, the seminal round set for Thursday, March 12, and the NEC's championship title game set for March 15.
The Series
Rutgers holds a 6-0 all-time lead over Wagner. The Scarlet Knights have won five games in Piscataway while earning one win at Wagner on November 25, 2014. Last year, Rutgers defeated Wagner by a score of 86-48 on December 15, 2024.
