New Rochelle, N.Y. – It was a two-victory kind of day for senior guard Amelia Wood, the first as she broke the 1,000 point plateau and the second as she led the Sacred Heart women's basketball team with 21 points en route to a 64-58 overtime win over Iona to open up MAAC play.

Wood's milestone basket came with 3:38 remaining in the fourth quarter as she drove into the middle of the paint and elevated for a contested jumper hitting the historic mark on the money to become the 24th player in program history to reach the feat.

Joining Wood in leading the Pioneers was junior Nalyce Dudley who also hit the 20 point mark on the night as she finished 7-of-8 from the field, with a three pointer, and 5-of-6 at the free throw line. Wood's 21 points came as she finished 5-of-12 from the field and was 11-of-13 at the free throw line.

Wood combined her 21 points with 11 rebounds for a double double while adding a team-high four steals. On the boards, sophomore Sophie Nascimento led SHU with a career-high, and season-high for all players, with 14 rebounds, adding those to six points and a team-high four assists.

As a team, the Pioneers finished the game shooting 41.3 percent from the field, connecting on 19-of-46 field goals. Just one of the 19 baskets came from outside the three point arc which came as the Pioneers opening basket of the night off the fingertips of Dudley. SHU also combined for 25-of-37 at the free throw line, while Nascimento's 14 rebounds were part of 46 total, compared to Iona's 37.

RECORDS
Sacred Heart: 3-7, 1-0 MAAC
Iona: 7-4, 0-1 MAAC

TOP PERFORMERS
Amelia Wood: 21 points, 11 rebounds, 5-12 FG 11-13 FT, 2 assists, 4 steals
Nalyce Dudley: 20 points, 7-8 FG, 4-4 FT, 4 rebounds, 2 steals
Sophie Nascimento: 6 points, 14 rebounds, 4 assists

FIRST QUARTER NOTES

·       Iona came out of the gates to score the first four points before Sacred Heart broke into the scoring column with a three pointer from Dudley just over three minutes in.

·       That Dudley bucket sparked a Pioneers rally as they went on to score nine straight with two more from Dudley and two each from Emma Kirby and Wood.

·       That rally came in part due to the defense holding Iona scoreless for a six minute stretch and to just five points over the final 8:30 of the quarter.

·       Following the Gaels final basket of the frame with two minutes remaining, the Pioneers rallied again, scoring the final six points to take a 17-9 lead into the first intermission.

·       The first four points of the six came from Dudley, giving her nine total in the quarter.

SECOND QUARTER NOTES

·       SHU kept that late first quarter momentum, scoring the first points of the second quarter, over three minutes into the action, with Missy Nuku getting on the board with a layup.

·       That would be the only basket for the Pioneers in the first five minutes as the Gaels pressure mounted and forced a pair of quick turnovers for a stretch of seven points in 16 seconds that all led to a one-point game 19-18.

·       After calling a timeout, Sacred Heart regrouped and would score back-to-back buckets to extend the lead to five, 23-18 with three minutes to play before the break.

·       Dudley would get the first two of that stretch, pushing her into double figures, as that bucket came on a fast break opportunity thanks to a half-court pass from Sophie Nascimento.

·       Iona would get the final word in the period with a layup with just 18 seconds to play, putting the halftime margin at 23-20.

THIRD QUARTER NOTES

·       Coming out of the locker room Jordanna Schrecker would get the party started as she came off the bench to sink a pair of free throws and followed that up with a layup 33 seconds later to extend the Pioneers lead to 27-20.

·       Isabellah Middleton would answer with three-straight baskets to cut her team's deficit to one. Those six points were part of 15 total for Middletown as she scored all but one of the Gaels 16 points in the quarter.

·       Kirby would break up that six-point Iona rally with a layup thanks to a nearly full court pass from Nuku to break the press.  

·       After knotting the game at 32, the Gaels would manage to take their first lead of the half on a three pointer with 2:20 remaining.

·       SHU closed out its third quarter scoring at the line with one from Sierra Johnson and two from Nascimento to take the lead back and a one-point edge into the final intermission.

FOURTH QUARTER NOTES

·       A back-and-forth fourth quarter included seven lead changes before the final buzzer saw the score knotted at 52.

·       Iona opened up the fourth quarter scoring a minute into the action before Dudley put up four-straight of her own to flip the score for the second time in the period.

·       The Gaels responded with five unanswered for another lead change with all five coming from three different players.

·       Following another two lead changes, Wood would connect on her milestone bucket that tied the score at 47.

·       Iona converted form outside the arc with 1:41 remaining on the clock to take a 52-50 lead before Nascimento and Wood each converted a free throw to knot the score at 52. The free throw from Wood came on an intentional foul as she was unable to convert under increased defense on the final possession, pushing the game into OT.

OVERTIME NOTES

·       With Kirby winning the opening tip, the Pioneers went right to work with Dudley converting the opening possession for two.

·       After a defensive stop, Wood would go to work on the opposite end with a floater in the paint to take an early 56-52 lead.

·       It took nearly half the overtime period before the Gaels would get on the board only to have Wood answer right back on the opposite end with a fadeaway jumper.

·       Iona would respond with a three pointer to cut the Pioneers lead to one before Wood converted a pair at the line.

·       From that point, the Gaels would get just one more point o the night as Dudley put the Pioneers up four with a layup made possible as the Pioneers challenged an out of bounds call to maintain possession.

UP NEXT
One more game is all that stands between the Pioneers and the holiday break as Sacred Heart will close out the 2025 portion of its home schedule on Sunday, December 21 with a visit from the Rider Broncs. Tip-off in the MAAC battle is set for 2:00 p.m. with all of the action available live on ESPN+.