STONY BROOK, N.Y. – In a gritty game in which neither team led by more than nine, the Stony Brook women's basketball team came out on top, defeating Sacred Heart (54-50) on Sunday afternoon at the Island Federal Arena.
 
The Seawolves (5-1, 0-0 AE) are undefeated at home this season and have won eight in a row inside the Island Federal Arena.

McCOMBS REACTION
"I thought we played a really tough and competitive Sacred Heart team today. Our defense was very solid throughout the game as we struggled to make shots. We stepped up and made plays down the stretch that allowed us to come out on top. I'm proud of our group's resilience."

HIGHLIGHTS

• After heading into halftime with a two-point deficit, the Seawolves outscored the Pioneers by five in the third quarter to head into the fourth stanza with a three-point lead. 
• Sacred Heart kicked-off the fourth with a three to tie the game up at 34 apiece but junior Jonae Cox (Portsmouth, Va.) hit a momentum-changing triple of her own to put the Seawolves up for good. 
• With under eight to play, sophomore Anastasia Warren (Atlanta, Ga.) collected a steal off of a bad pass and converted the fast break layup to give the team it's biggest lead of the day (6).
• With the Pioneers just down by three with 10 seconds to play, graduate student Kaela Hilaire (Queens, N.Y.) sealed the game by grabbing her own rebound from a missed free throw to wind the clock down.
• Hilaire led Stony Brook's scoring charge with 17 points to go along with five assists, four rebounds and two steals.
• Cox had nine points herself as well as a career-high 11 boards.
• Junior India Pagan (New London, Conn.) had nine points herself and five rebounds.
• Graduate student Cheyenne Clark (Deptford, N.J.) was the team's top rebounder with 11 boards, seven of which were offensive.

NOTES

• Stony Brook shot 62.5 percent in its productive third quarter.
• Hilaire has now scored double-figures in five games this season. 
• This is Clark's third game notching 10-plus rebounds. 
• She's averaging 6.5 offensive boards per contest this season.
• Clark entered the day fourth in the nation in that category.
• Stony Brook held Sacred Heart well below its season averages in points (68.5), field goal percentage (.427) and three-point percentage (.337).

UP NEXT
The Seawolves fit in one more game before the Thanksgiving break, traveling to LIU for a 1 p.m. start this Wednesday, Nov. 27.
 
Don't miss your chance to see the Seawolves take on Molloy when they return home to the Island Federal Arena on Tues, Dec. 3. All of the action is set to begin at 6:31 p.m.