Sacred Heart
11-11,9-4MAAC
Fairfield
18-4,12-1MAAC
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fairfield | 13 | 16 | 15 | 16 | 60 |
| Sacred Heart | 12 | 14 | 14 | 3 | 43 |
Dudley’s Baker's Dozen Leads the Way as Stags Pull Ahead Late
1/31/2026 4:46:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Fairfield, Conn. – Junior Nalyce Dudley extended her streak of double figures games to five-straight games as she led the Pioneers with 13 points as the Sacred Heart women's basketball team saw its four-game win streak come to a close with a 60-43 decision to the visiting Fairfield Stags.
Dudley was the lone Pioneer to reach double figures, with her 13 points coming on a 4-of-10 performance from the field, including a pair of three pointers, and a 3-of-4 effort at the free throw line. Following her in the scoring column was senior Amelia Wood who finished with eight points, snapping a 16-game streak of double figure games. In addition to her eight points, she was also tied for the team lead with nine rebounds, part of 36 total as the two teams finished in a 36-36 deadlock in the battle of the boards.
Junior Emma Kirby and first-year Sophie Nascimento followed with seven points apiece, while Kirby matched Wood's nine rebounds and Nascimento added three steals to her seven-point effort.
As a team, the Pioneers finished the game shooting 31.1 percent from the field, connecting on 14-of-45 field goal attempts with a pair of three pointers, both of which came in the opening half. SHU was also 13-of-17 at the free throw line.
RECORDS
Sacred Heart: 11-11, 9-4 MAAC
Fairfield: 18-4, 12-1 MAAC
TOP PERFORMERS
Nalyce Dudley: 13 points, 4 rebounds
Amelia Wood: 8 points, 9 rebounds
Emma Kirby: 7 points, 9 rebounds
Sophie Nascimento: 7 points, 3 steals
FIRST QUARTER NOTES
· Sacred Heart came out of the gates with an intensity that led to an early 5-0 lead with Nascimento opening up the scoring for both teams with a jumper before dishing to Dudle who hit from outside the arc for the early 5-0 lead.
· After giving up the first points to the Stags, Dudley started another back-to-back series with a layup followed by Wood which extended the Pioneers lead to 9-3 with four minutes remaining in the opening quarter.
· Fairfield proved they wouldn't fold under pressure, going on to finish the first quarter on a 10-3 run to take a 13-12 lead into the first break.
SECOND QUARTER NOTES
· Dudley struck again with her second three pointer, in as many attempts, to open up the fourth quarter and flip the lead back in favor of the home team.
· Despite not scoring on its first two possessions, the Stags rebounded to score back-to-back baskets, which eventually led to a 12-2 rally and a 25-17 lead with under four minutes to play before halftime.
· Following the media timeout and trailing by eight, Sacred Heart battled for the next four points, all from Wood, to pull within four.
· Defensively, the Pioneers held Fairfield with just one field goal over the final four minutes of the half, that coming on a layup with three seconds remaining.
· Prior to that, SHU managed to drop the deficit down to a single point with a hoop-and-harm in favor of Missy Nuku and a jumper from Nascimento with 33 seconds before the half.
THIRD QUARTER NOTES
· Coming out of the halftime break, the Stags were the first to score with Kirby matching their opening layup with one of her own to keep the deficit at three.
· After a Stags free throw, it was to the line for the Pioneers for three-straight trips, finishing that stretch 5-of-6 which led to a 33-32 Sacred Heart lead with 4:02 remaining in the period.
· The remainder of the half would come down to matching points with a pair of free throws providing a 35-34 SHU lead and a layup from Jordanna Schrecker knotting the game at 37.
· Fairfield would again benefit from a last second shot, this time around a three pointer that provided a 44-40 edge at the final intermission.
FOURTH QUARTER NOTES
· Coming out of that last quarter break, the Stags defense tightened up and held Sacred Heart without a basket for the first seven minutes with Kirby breaking that drought on a putback layup.
· Prior to Kirby's basket, the Stags were able to open up a 55-40 lead on an 11-0 rally.
· Nascimento would close out the Pioneers scoring with 1-of-2 at the line before Fairfield added a final bucket from outside the arc for the 60-43 final margin.
NEXT
After back-to-back home games, the Pioneers hit the road for a single mid-week match-up against the Merrimack Warriors, a team that SHU currently own a half-game lead over in the conference standings. The crucial conference battle will be the first of two against the league foes with Merrimack making the trip to The Pitt in mid-February. Tip-off in Thursday's MAAC battle is set for 7:00 p.m. with all of the action available live on ESPN+.
