FAIRFIELD, Conn. – The Sacred Heart University women's basketball team ended the 2024 portion of its schedule with a 78-63 home loss to Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) leading Quinnipiac on Saturday afternoon at the William H. Pitt Center. 

Amelia Wood poured in a season-high 20 points for the Pioneers this afternoon, adding five rebounds, two assists and two steals in a stellar performance. Ny'Ceara Pryor finished next for SHU, tallying 19 points, seven rebounds, three assists and two steals. 

Records: 
Sacred Heart: 4-7, 0-2 MAAC
Quinnipiac: 10-1, 2-0 MAAC
 
Leaders: 
Amelia Wood: 20 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals
Ny'Ceara Pryor: 19 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals
Esther Kursite: 5 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists

Of Note: 
The Bobcats controlled the action at the start of today's game, building a 10-point lead, 15-5, 5:15 into the opening quarter. SHU settled in from there, especially in the final 1:10. Trailing by eight, 17-9, with 70 seconds left, the Pioneers started a 6-0 surge with a layup from Nalyce Dudley. Pryor then sank a pair of tough buckets over the following 54 seconds to send SHU into the next period down 17-15. 

Unfortunately for the Pios, Quinnipiac opened the second on a 10-1 run to build the margin back to 11, 27-16, by the 7:17 mark. SHU scored the next three points to get within eight, but the Bobcats kept them at bay to take a 42-27 lead into halftime. Esther Kursite tallied the Pios' final two points of the half, as she finished with season highs of five points and five rebounds. 

The second half was much closer as both teams won one of the quarters 20-16. The Pioneers got as close as 13 in the half, ultimately suffering a 78-63 loss to QU. 

Up Next: 
Sacred Heart will have off until Saturday, Jan. 4, when it will play Canisius at 1 p.m. in Buffalo, N.Y.