Thornton scored a game-high 12 points for the Skyhawks, reaching double-figures for the sixth time in seven games (PHOTO BY Brian Foley)

Pioneers bury 58.1-percent of their shots in the second half, as Pryor leads four in double-figures with game-high 21 points

FAIRFIELD, Conn. (February 29, 2024) – Sacred Heart University shot 58.1-percent in the second half, including 10-for-16 (62.5%) in the third quarter alone to pull away from Stonehill College and collect a 78-49 victory in a Northeast Conference women's basketball matchup inside the William H. Pitt Athletic & Convocation Center tonight.

Sophomore Ny'Ceara Pryor scored 17 of her game-high 21 points in the second half to lead four from Sacred Heart in double-figures. She made 7-of-8 shots from the floor in the second half, including both three-point attempts, to finish shooting 9-for-13 overall, while adding a game-high nine rebounds, four assists and two steals. Classmate Sierra Johnson notched a double-double with 16 points and ten assists, netting a team-high 11 first half points and dishing eight second half assists, with three rebounds, while freshman Nalyce Dudley contributed 12 points, eight boards (five offensive), four assists and three steals.

Senior Jada Thornton paced Stonehill with 12 points on 5-of-10 shooting, three rebounds and a steal. Postgrad Lauren Sampson added nine first half points, two rebounds and two blocked shots, while senior Cameron Ward tallied nine points on 4-of-8 shooting, four boards and three assists. Freshman Chayil Mauristhene chipped in a season-high seven points with two rebounds and two assists for the Skyhawks.

Sacred Heart held a six-point halftime lead behind a 14-2 advantage in second chance points to overcome 56.5-percent shooting (13-for-23) by Stonehill. The Pioneers would finish with a 37-24 rebounding advantage overall and 19-6 advantage in second chance points, pulling down 12 of their 15 offensive rebounds in the first half, a total on the offensive glass that matched the Skyhawks entire rebounding total in the first 20-minutes.

Mauristhene chipped in a season-high seven points for the Skyhawks (PHOTO BY Brian Foley)

Sacred Heart came out firing in the second half, answering an opening basket from Thornton with 11-straight points, the first seven from Pryor who started the run with a three-pointer and scored nine of the 11 points overall, to open a 15-point lead (46-31) that Stonehill would not recover from. The Pioneers extended their lead to 19 (55-36) after a layup from Dudley with 1:19 to play in the third quarter, before carrying a 17-point margin (57-40) into the final frame.

Sacred Heart limited Stonehill, which would shoot just 26.1% (6-23) in the second half, to one fourth quarter field goal to finish off the wire-to-wire win. The Pioneers closed out the win with 4-for-7 shooting from three-point range in the final quarter.

After Sacred Heart scored the first nine points of the game in the opening three and a half minutes, Stonehill bounced back and pulled within a point (11-10) just two minutes later after a 10-2 spurt from four different scorers, but keyed by three-pointers by Sampson and junior Sharn Hayward. The Skyhawks were within two (16-14) after a Ward layup with 1:24 left in the first quarter before the Pioneers scored the last four points of the frame in the closing minute to carry a six-point margin (20-14) into the second.

Sacred Heart pushed that lead to 12 (27-15) after a Johnson triple 3:20 into the second quarter, but Stonehill rallied again. The Skyhawks closed back within four (27-23) just past the midway point of the second after eight-straight points, including four from Sampson. That would be as close as Stonehill would get the rest of the way as the Pioneers carried the six-point lead into halftime.

Noteworthy

• Stonehill (4-10 NEC) still holds its postseason hopes in its own hands, leaving the night tied with Saint Francis (4-10), holding the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Red Flash, for sixth place in the NEC standings with two games to play. The Skyhawks are a game ahead of LIU (4-11) in the loss column and remain a full game ahead of Wagner (3-11), who Stonehill currently owns the tiebreaker against by way of its win over FDU.
• Stonehill, Saint Francis, LIU and Wagner are all fighting for the last three unclaimed spots in the upcoming NEC Tournament after Central Connecticut clinched a spot with its 65-56 win at LIU tonight.
• Stonehill hosts Central Connecticut State (6-8) and LIU to close out the regular season over the next week.
• Thornton scored in double-figures for the second-straight game and sixth time over the last seven games, giving her a team-high 16 double-figure games this season overall (19 career).
• Stonehill matched a season-low with 14 turnovers for the third-straight game after committing 29 in the first regular season meeting with Sacred Heart on February 1.
• Sacred Heart finished with 19 assists and just five turnovers on the night, adding an 18-6 advantage in points off to its second chance numbers.

Up Next
Stonehill (4-23, 4-10 NEC) is right back in action on Saturday, when it hosts Central Connecticut State University for an NEC matchup on Senior Day at Merkert Gymnasium at 2 p.m. Sacred Heart (19-9, 13-1 NEC) takes its ten-game win streak into an NEC showdown at Merrimack College on Saturday at 3 p.m.

Tickets for home Stonehill basketball games can be purchased in advance online at stonehillskyhawks.com/tickets.

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