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Presale Until Game Day:
$12.00 Adults
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At Merkert Gymnasium on game day
$15.00 Adults
$10.00 (students & senior citizens)

12 and under are free

The Game
Stonehill College hosts Wagner College for a Northeast Conference women's basketball matchup on Paula Sullivan Court at Merkert Gymnasium this afternoon for an NEC Speaks Up! Game on the Martin Luther King, Jr., Day holiday at 2 p.m. The Skyhawks are looking to build off Saturday's 60-56 victory over FDU here at Merkert Gym, while the Seahawks return to action after a week off following their 75-66 victory over LIU on Staten Island last Monday.

NEC Speaks Up! on MLK Day Monday
Stonehill and the Northeast Conference will commemorate the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., during a full slate of women's and men's games on Monday. The NEC echoes Dr. King's words, "He who passively accepts evil is as much involved in it as he who helps to perpetrate it." To carry on his legacy, the conference encourages NEC student-athletes, coaches and fans to speak up and share their unique stories of bringing about change through activism and advocacy. For more information, visit the NEC's website at NortheastConference.org/NECSpeaksU. All NEC teams will be wearing special commemorative NEC Speaks Up shooting shirts during the games on Monday.

Media Information
This afternoon's game will be broadcast live via SkyhawksVision on NEC Front Row. Charlie Bergeron (PBP) has the call of the action with Brian Buckley (analyst), with direction from Matt Nelson. The broadcast can be accessed via stonehillskyhawks.com through its NEC Front Row portal (necfrontrow.com/schools/SC) or through Apple TV, Android TV, Amazon Fire TV and Roku via the NEC On the Run App. WSHL 91.3 FM has radio coverage in the Stonehill area with Chris Robbins and Andrew Nilsen on the broadcast.

Last Time Out
Stonehill stormed back from an 11-point deficit with 8:41 to play in the fourth quarter to claim a 60-56 triumph over FDU in a Northeast Conference matchup at Merkert Gymnasium on Saturday. Senior Jada Thornton (Germantown, Md.) scored seven of her nine second half points in the fourth quarter to spark the Stonehill rally and finished with her ninth double-figure scoring game of the season with 15 points on 6-of-15 shooting, six rebounds, two assists, a steal and blocked shot. Junior Sharn Hayward (Penguin, Tasmania) led Stonehill's three double-figure scorers with a game-high 16 points on 6-of-8 shooting, including 4-for-6 from three-point distance, with two assists, while postgrad Lauren Sampson (Waltham, Mass.) contributed 11 points, five boards and two assists in 30-minutes off the bench. Staci Williams led three from FDU in double-digits with 15 points, converting 7-of-9 free-throws, with three rebounds. Bella Toomey added 12 points on 6-of-10 shooting off the bench and three boards, while Abaigeal Babore chipped in ten points, eight rebounds, three assists and three steals. FDU stretched a 6-0 run between the third and fourth quarters to open a game-high 11-point lead (49-38) after a Williams jumper off a turnover 1:19 into the final frame. Stonehill responded with the next seven points, sparked by a Hayward three-pointer, to pull back within four (49-45) two minutes later after consecutive baskets by Thornton. Toomey and Lilly Parke answered with jumpers to reclaim an eight-point lead (53-45) for FDU midway through the quarter. Stonehill followed with the next six points, capped by a three-point play from Thornton, to pull within two (53-51) with 4:41 remaining. After Williams split two free-throws on FDU's next possession, neither team scored for two and a half minutes until Sampson knotted the score (54-54) with a three-pointer with 2:07 to play. After Thornton hauled in a missed three-pointer from the Knights, freshman Brooke Paquette (Hudson, N.H.) pushed the Skyhawks in front with a driving layup with 1:20 to go, and then sealed their first win with two free-throws with 7.2-seconds on the clock.

Against the Seahawks
This afternoon marks the third meeting all-time between these two programs. The two teams split the regular season series between the two during Stonehill's inaugural NCAA Division I and Northeast Conference season in 2022-23, with each winning at home. Wagner notched an 84-63 victory in the first meeting between the two on Staten Island last January, while the Skyhawks earned a 73-66 triumph here at Merkert Gym on February 23 the last time they met. Stonehill head coach Trisha Brown is 1-1 in his career against the Seahawks, while Wagner head coach Terrell Coburn is also 1-1 against the Skyhawks.

Last Time They Met
Stonehill scored 26 points in the fourth quarter to shoot past Wagner for a 73-66 victory in NEC play at Merkert Gymnasium last February 23 to earn a split of the regular season series between the two. Emily Bramanti scored 17 of her game-high 23 points in the second half to fuel Stonehill to its second-straight win, with six assists, three rebounds and a blocked shot. Maddie Loder was the only other Skyhawk in double-figures with 12 points, including ten in the fourth quarter alone, with five assists and four rebounds. Julia Fabozzi led Wagner with 20 points on 7-of-13 shooting, including 2-for-3 from three, with five rebounds and three assists. Alex Cowan added 16 points on 7-of-16 shooting, with two assists and two steals. Stonehill finished shooting 43.9-percent from the floor, including 48.3% in the second half, shooting 17-of-20 (85%) from the free-throw line. The lead was shared pretty much evenly between the two, with Stonehill holding the lead for 18:24 and Wagner 18:44 in the contest.

Prime Performer
Stonehill postgraduate transfer Lauren Sampson (Waltham, Mass.) was named a Northeast Conference Prime Performer following the opening weekend of the Conference season by the league office on Wednesday. She came off the bench to average 16.5 points, 6.0 rebounds, 2.0 steals, 1.5 assists and a blocked shot over the Skyhawks two games. Sampson scored in double figures in both games, including a career-high 18-points and eight rebounds in Saturday's NEC opener at LIU, before contributing 15 points, four boards, a career-best four steals, two assists and a blocked shot at Central Connecticut State on Monday. It marks the first Prime Performer selection for Sampson over her career, as well as the first for Stonehill this season.

Thornton

Hayward

Milestone Starts
Senior Jada Thornton (Germantown, Md.) and junior Sharn Hayward (Penguin, Tasmania) are both expected to make their 20th career starts for Stonehill this afternoon. Thornton is expected to make her 20th career start in what will be her 69th career game, while Hayward's anticipated 20th career start will occur in her 66th career game. The duo will join junior Maureen Stapleton (Spring Lake Heights, N.J.) in reaching the milestone, as she made her 20th career start at Central Connecticut State last Monday, and her 21 career starts is tops among all current Skyhawks.

Two to Go
Stonehill head coach Trisha Brown will coach her 634th career game today against Wagner. She will match Paula Sullivan (636 career games) for most games coached in the program's history against Merrimack at Merkert Gym next Sunday, then break the program mark four days later against Saint Francis on January 25 in a game that will be broadcast on ESPN+ through the NEC's television broadcast package.

Rare Play Sate
This afternoon marks only the fourth time since 2005 that Stonehill has played a game on January 15. The Skyhawks won each of the three previous games on this date over the last 18 years, including a 64-61 win at New Haven the last time playing on this date in 2022.

Right There
14 of Stonehill's 19 NEC games over its first two years in the Conference have been decided by eight points or less, including five of its six Conference wins, including Saturday's 60-56 victory over FDU, and seven of its last nine games in league play overall, including two of three this season.

Cam on the Glass
Senior Cameron Ward (Bound Brook, N.J.) led Stonehill with a career-high matching nine rebounds in Saturday's win over FDU, marking the first time she has led the Skyhawks this season. Ward has led Stonehill in rebounding four times over her career, with the Skyhawks posting a 3-1 record when doing so.

So Close to the Doubles
Three Stonehill players have come within a point or rebound of notching the Skyhawks first double-double of the season after senior Cameron Ward (Bound Brook, N.J.) finished just a point and rebound shy of her first career double-double in Saturday's win over FDU. Classmate Jada Thornton (Germantown, Md) was just a rebound shy of her first career double-double with her career-bests of 18 points and nine boards at Central Connecticut State last Monday, while junior Maureen Stapleton (Spring Lake Heights, N.J.) finished with a career-high nine points and 11 rebounds at George Washington on December 21.

Feeling Right at Home
Junior guard Sharn Hayward (Penguin, Tasmania) has scored in double figures in two-straight home games after her team-high 16 points in Saturday's win over FDU here at Merkert Gym. She also scored 12 points against Fairfield on December 30, marking the first time scoring in double digits at home over her career.

Great to Have You Here
Stonehill postgrad Lauren Sampson (Waltham, Mass.), a transfer from Providence College, has made an immediate impact in her first four games in the purple and white since returning from an injury. She has scored in double-figures in three-straight games and is averaging 13.0 points, 4.8 rebounds, 1.3 assists and a steal in 25.3 minutes per game off the bench for the Skyhawks. The NEC Prime Performer posted career-highs of 18 points and eight rebounds at LIU in Stonehill's NEC opener and is ranked seventh among Conference scoring leaders in NEC play at 14.7 points per game.

The Sampson Effect
Stonehill is scoring 55.0 points per game in the four games since postgrad Lauren Sampson (Waltham, Mass.) joined the rotation. The Skyhawks were scoring 46.7 points per game in the 12 games prior to her debut to rank last in the NEC, now averaging 48.8 points, including 57.0 points per game in Conference play to rank seventh in the NEC. Stonehill is shooting 31.3-percent from three-point distance over the last four games, compared to 22.8% over its first 12 games.

Lights, Camera, Action!
Both Stonehill women's basketball matchups with Saint Francis have been selected by the Northeast Conference to appear in the Conference's 2023-24 basketball broadcast schedule the league announced earlier this month. Stonehill will host Saint Francis at Merkert Gym for an NEC matchup on Thursday, January 25, at 6 p.m., in a game that will now be broadcast live on ESPN+, as well as the Skyhawks return NEC matchup with the Red Flash in Loretto, Pennsylvania, on Saturday, February 24, at 4 p.m. It marks the first time in the Skyhawks two-year history with the NEC that it will have two games included in the Conference's ESPN+ package and the second-straight year it will host a game in the broadcast package after hosting Merrimack College in an ESPN+ clash at Merkert Gymnasium last February. The two Stonehill/Saint Francis matchups are among 12 women's games included in the NEC 25-game basketball broadcasting package for the 2023-24 season – 23 of which will be broadcast on ESPN platforms. The two games add to five Stonehill women's games scheduled for ESPN digital platforms this season, including today's game at George Washington on ESPN+.

Preseason Prognostications
Stonehill has been picked to finish fifth in its second trip around the Northeast Conference by the league's head coaches in its preseason poll announced at the Conference's Social Media Day at the Prudential Center in Newark in October. Defending NEC Tournament Champions Sacred Heart University is the unanimous choice to capture the regular season title with all nine first place votes, followed by No. 2 Merrimack, No. 3 Wagner, defending regular season champions FDU at No. 4 and Stonehill. LIU follows the Skyhawks at No. 6, with Saint Francis No. 7, NEC newcomer Le Moyne No. 8 and No. 9 Central Connecticut State.

Tourney Time
Stonehill, winners of six Northeast-10 Conference Championship prior to elevating its program to NCAA Division I status in 2022, will have the opportunity to compete for a Northeast Conference title for the first time this season after the NEC presidents voted to waive the two-year waiting period in automatic qualifier sports at their June meetings. The Skyhawks remain NCAA Tournament ineligible until the 2026-27 season.

Celebrating 75 Years
Stonehill College, founded in 1948 is celebrating its 75th Anniversary during the 2023-24 academic year. In September 1948, some 134 students — many of whom were veterans from World War II — gathered with the eight teachers who would serve as their faculty to celebrate Mass at the Chapel in Donahue Hall. That small gathering of students and teachers marked the beginning of Stonehill College. The College kicked off its 75th Anniversary Celebration with a Jubilee Mass during Family Weekend in September, followed by music, games, food trucks and beer garden.

Getting Social
Fans and media members of Stonehill athletics have multiple social media outlets to get updates on all 21 varsity programs. The department's Facebook page is www.facebook.com/stonehillskyhawks, and you can also follow @GoStonehill on Twitter and @stonehillskyhawks via Instagram!  Stonehill women's basketball is also on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/StonehillCollegeWomensBasketball, Twitter and Instagram by following @stonehillwbb. You can even follow head coach Trisha Brown on Twitter via @CoachTB_SC.

Up Next
Stonehill hits the road later this week for a return trip to FDU in New Jersey on Friday at 7 p.m., before returning to Merkert Gym two days later to host Merrimack College on Sunday, January 21, to open a three-game NEC homestand at 2 p.m.