Louie Semona goes up strong for the first two points of the season for Stonehill (PHOTO BY Peyton Stoike)

Six newcomers make their Stonehill debut in the nation's capital as Skyhawks take on GW for first time in program history.

WASHINGTON, D.C. (November 6, 2023) – George Washington University hosted the Stonehill College men's basketball team Monday night at the Charles E. Smith Center as both teams began their 2023-24 season. The Revolutionaries of the Atlantic-10 conference came out on top, 89-44.

LEADERS

• Freshman Louie Semona (Cincinnati, Ohio) was the Skyhawks' leading scorer, tallying nine points on 3-12 shooting.
• Graduate student Max Zegarowski (South Hamilton, Mass.) was the team's leading rebounder, snatching nine boards for Stonehill.
• Sophomore Chas Stinson (Charlotte, N.C) had a team-high three assists as well as a team-best two steals for the Skyhawks in 18 minutes of action.
• Garrett Johnson led all scorers with 21 points on 8-10 shooting for George Washington. He also tied Zegarowski for a game-high nine rebounds.
• Maximus Edwards and Johnson each knocked down five three-pointers for the Revolutionaries, leading all players.
• Babatunde Akingbola orchestrated things for George Washington on the defensive end, tallying a game-high four blocks and three steals.

FIRST HALF

• The Revolutionaries scored the first points of the game with a three-pointer from Maximus Edwards.
• Semona got things going for the Skyhawks as he scored the first points of the 2023-24 season with a driving layup on the break.
• Two layups from Zegarowski and a pair of free throws from Semona knotted the score at 8-8 with 15:12 to go in the first half.
• George Washington rattled off seven straight points capped off by a dunk from Babatunde Akingbola to make the score 15-8.
• After a three from Semona cut the Stonehill deficit to four points, GW went on a 16-3 run on 50% shooting (7-14) as their lead ballooned to 31-14.
• Stinson and graduate student Pano Pavlidis (Queens, N.Y.) each netted shots from long range as cut into the Revolutionaries' lead, trailing 31-20.
• The final two buckets of the half went to George Washington as they knocked down two three-pointers, heading into the break ahead 37-20.

SECOND HALF

Zegarowski controlled a team-high nine rebounds in the season opener (PHOTO BY Peyton Stoike)

• GW carried their momentum into the second half as their hot shooting continued, netting seven of their first 11 shots to jumpstart a 19-2 run as they led 58-22 with 13:50 left to play.
• For the next five minutes, Stonehill held strong, even cutting into the Revs lead \ as freshman Se'yphon Triplett (Springfield, Mass.) gave the Skyhawks a jolt of offense off the bench with four points.
• Another big run from George Washington put them out in front 79-34 with 5:46 remaining in the opener.
• Sophomore Tony Felder (Brockton, Mass.) pulled up from deep and hit nothing but net for his first field goal as a Skyhawk to halt the Revs run.
• Freshman Austin Abrams (Ellicott City, Md.) put his mark on the game during the final minute as he netted a three-pointer after a nice find from junior Neal Marquardt (Rockville Center, N.Y.) found him in rhythm.
• The final buzzer sounded with George Washington on top 89-44 as 12 of their 13 players who saw action got in the scoring column.

NOTEWORTHY

• This was the first meeting between George Washington and Stonehill as the Skyhawks began their second season at the Division I level.
• A season ago, Stonehill matched up with another Atlantic-10 opponent, dropping a game at Fordham, 71-60, as they are now 0-2 against the A10.9
• Six different Skyhawks made their Stonehill debut while everyone who was healthy and active saw action in the opener.
• Dating back to last season's finale against Wagner, the Skyhawks have scored 44 points in back-to-back games.
• Stinson's three assists marks a new career-high for the sophomore.
• Marquardt recorded career-highs of three rebounds and two assists.

UP NEXT 

• Stonehill men's basketball hosts Army West Point on Thursday at 7 p.m. from Merkert Gymnasium in its home opener.

Tickets for the 2023-24 men's and women's basketball season are on sale now and can be purchased at stonehillskyhawks.com/tickets. Season ticket options are available including a men's and women's combination pass, valid for all 27 home games this year. 

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