STONY BROOK, N.Y. – After battling on the road for the previous five games, the Stony Brook women's basketball team returned to The Island tonight, December 7, to battle against Columbia University. However, the squad's valiant effort was not able to overcome its hot-shooting opponent that shot 33-of-68 (48.5%) from the field, as the Lions took home the 84-68 victory.
The Seawolves offense was paced by senior guard
Gigi Gonzalez and sophomore forward
Sherese Pittman. Gonzalez tallied a career-high 28 points on 11-of-19 shooting from the field, as well as notching three assists and capturing two steals. The Miramar, Florida native was a perfect 3-of-3 from the line and went 3-of-4 from deep at The Island.
Stony Brook jumped out early in the first quarter when graduate forward
Nairimar Vargas-Reyes converted a layup in the paint to get the Seawolves on the board first in the beginning 16 seconds of the contest. Stony Brook was able to hold a 6-2 lead in the first; however, after a made layup from senior guard Jaida Patrick, Columbia grabbed a hold of the lead, 13-12, and controlled it for the duration of the contest. The Seawolves trailed by as many as 12 in the first quarter, but a layup by Gonzalez cut the deficit to just four with 47 seconds left to play in the quarter.
The second quarter was similar for Stony Brook, as Gonzalez and junior guard
Kelis Corley got two quick buckets to cut the Columbia lead to three points with 8:56 remaining. The squad kept battling and cut the deficit to just eight points heading into half after Pittman and Gonzalez combined for 25 of the team's 41 first-half points. However, it was not enough to hold off the Lions as they would go on a 10-0 run to take a 13 point lead against the Seawolves in the third quarter.
Stony Brook shot a blazing 14-of-29 (48.3%) from the field and 3-of-7 (42.9%) from deep to keep themselves in fighting distance after the first 20 minutes of play.
However, the Lions of Columbia University would take the second half by storm after collecting 26 points in the paint and shooting 15-of-31 (48.4%) from the field, while only allowing Stony Brook to shoot 9-of-25 (36.0%) to, ultimately, take the 84-68 victory.
STATS AND NOTES
- Gonzalez scored a career-high 28 points, shooting 11-of-19 (57.8%) from the field and 3-of-4 (75.0%) from beyond the arc. The Floridian knocked off her previous career high of 24 points against Iona on Nov. 14, 2022. She also collected three rebounds, three assists and two steals.
- Pittman notched her sixth double-digit scoring outing of the season after dropping 16 points, 10 in the first half, and also grabbed five rebounds. It was the second-most points the James Madison transfer has dropped after scoring 26 against High Point on Nov. 26, 2022.
- Graduate guard Anastasia Warren was celebrated before the game after reaching the 1,000 point milestone when she tallied 28 points against Iona earlier in the season. Tonight, she dropped eight points and grabbed three rebounds.
- Vargas-Reyes scored six points tonight and tied a team high with five rebounds.
- Corley led the team and played a career-high 34 minutes off the bench. The Maryland native scored four points and pulled down three rebounds.
- Junior forward Nyajuok Toang also recorded a career high in minutes, playing 12 minutes off the bench for the squad.
- The Seawolves were one shy of their season high in three pointers made (8) and shot their best percentage of the season behind the arc going 7-of-16 (43.8%).
- Stony Brook shot 23-of-54 (42.6%) overall from the field, which was the second highest of the season for the squad (34-of-74 for 45.9% vs. High Point on Nov. 23).
- The team from Long Island also knocked down 15-of-17 (88.2%) from the stripe, which is a new season high for the Seawolves.
QUOTES FROM THE SEAWOLVES
NEXT UP:
Stony Brook returns to action this weekend when it takes on St. Francis Brooklyn at Island Federal Arena on Saturday, December 10. Tip-off is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. It will mark the 12
th time in history that these two programs have met, with the Seawolves leading the series 9-4. It will be the first meeting since November 28, 2021, when the squad defeated the Terriers, 71-64 at The Island. Tickets are on sale now and the game can be watched on FloHoops!
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