The Stony Brook women’s basketball team began 2025 with a dominant start to conference play.
On the road, the Seawolves (6-6, 1-0 CAA) earned their third consecutive victory when they took on the Northeastern Huskies (1-9, 0-1 CAA) in Boston, Mass. on Friday afternoon. Following a back-and-forth first half in both sides’ Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) debuts, Stony Brook snatched a 72-51 victory led by a career afternoon from guard Janay Brantley.
The Seawolves came out the gate hot on Friday. All of their starters scored a basket within the game’s opening seven minutes, culminating in a 16-9 early lead with 3:17 left in the first frame.
However, Northeastern closed the gap from there, as it attacked the paint and punished Stony Brook with its three-point shooting. Northeastern guard Abby Jegede played a key role in stretching the floor, shooting a blistering 4-for-5 from deep in the first half.
The Huskies went out in front early into the second quarter after guard Yirsy Quéliz knocked down a pull-up, midrange jumpshot to put her team up 21-10. From there, the teams traded blows briefly before falling into a cold spell for the remainder of the second period. Nonetheless, the Seawolves finished the first half on the front foot, with a pair of free throws from guard Breauna Ware and a long-range three from Brantley putting them up 34-28 at the halftime break.
Stony Brook turned it up a gear in the second half, commencing with five unanswered points courtesy of, once again, the tandem of Ware and Brantley. Halfway through the third frame, free throws from forward Lauren Filien, a mid-range jumper from Ware and a three from guard Zaida Gonzalez stretched the Seawolves’ advantage to 13 points.
Northeastern did not go away quietly, cutting its deficit to eight points in the fourth quarter after Quéliz and Jegede drilled back-to-back threes. However, Brantley took over from there by dominating the paint with two right-handed layups and converting three free throws. Stony Brook’s 9-2 run to put the contest to bed featured seven points from Brantley.
On the defensive side of the ball, the Seawolves kept the Huskies off the board for nearly the affair’s final five minutes en route to the program’s first conference win under head coach Joy McCorvey.
McCorvey did not speak to the media after the game.
Efficient shooting from the field and the charity stripe showed in Stony Brook’s .460/.278/.750 shooting line. Conversely, Northeastern’s cold spells were evident in its .357/391/.400 triple slash.
Brantley led the Seawolves in scoring with a career-high 25 points on 9-of-17 shooting from the field and 4-for-11 from deep. Ware was the team’s second-leading scorer with 19 points on 8-of-12 shooting.
Jegede led the Huskies with 25 points while shooting 9-for-22 from the field and 6-for-8 from beyond the arch.
The Seawolves will remain on the road next, as they take on the Monmouth Hawks in New Jersey on Saturday. Following a 75-65 defeat to Hofstra, the Hawks are 5-7 overall and 0-1 in CAA play thus far this season. Opening tip-off is scheduled for 2 p.m.
