Sacred Heart
12-13,10-6MAAC
Saint Peter's
7-18,6-10MAAC
Dudley’s Double Double Dominates in Valentine’s Day Win
2/14/2026 4:25:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Jersey City, N.J. – Junior Nalyce Dudley's first double double of the season came at a perfect time as the Sacred Heart women's basketball team led wire-to-wire for a 63-61 road win over Saint Peter's.
Dudley closed out the game with 17 points and 11 rebounds, connecting on 8-of-16 from the field. Leading all players in the scoring column was senior Amelia Wood who finished the afternoon with 18 points, making 6-of-15 field goal attempts with four of the six coming from outside the three-point arc, pushing her into sixth all-time in career three point field goals made.
Rounding out the leaders for SHU was junior Emma Kirby who finished 7-of-12 under the hoop for 14 points while dishing out four assists which tied senior Faith Pappas for a team-high.
As a team, Sacred Heart closed out the game shooting 38.5 percent from the field, connecting on 20-of-52 field goal attempts. Among the 20 buckets were nine from outside the three-point arc, giving Sacred Heart 19 three's in its last two games. The Pios also dominated in the paint, closing out the game with a 36-20 advantage while winning the battle of the board 38-30, including 20 offensive boards.
RECORDS
Sacred Heart: 12-13, 10-6 MAAC
Saint Peter's: 8-17, 6-10 MAAC
TOP PERFORMERS
Nalyce Dudley: 17 points, 11 rebounds, 8-16 field goals
Amelia Wood: 18 points, 7 rebounds, 4 steals
Emma Kirby:14 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 7-12 field goals
FIRST QUARTER NOTES
· Just like the most recent game, Wood opened up the scoring for the Pioneers with an outside bucket as SHU converted on its first possession after securing the opening tip.
· The Pioneers would maintain that lead and build it into double figures before the midway points of the quarter when Sophie Nascimento and Nalyce Dudley went back-to-back for a 12-point lead, 21-9, forcing the second timeout of the quarter for the Peacocks.
· The double digit lead would stand strong through the remainder of the quarter with Dudley and Kirby each converting second chance opportunities down the stretch as SHU took a 27-16 lead into the first intermission.
· Five different players would account for the 27 first quarter points with Dudley and Wood leading the way with nine and eight points, respectively.
· Sacred Heart also held a 14-4 lead in points in the paint and finished with six second chance points in the opening quarter.
SECOND QUARTER NOTES
· Kirby opened the second quarter the same as she ended the first with a layup to extend the lead to 29-16 in the early going.
· After another Kirby bucket, the Peacocks mustered together three-straight baskets to cut the Pios lead to five, 31-26.
· Sacred Heart answered with their own scoring run, a 6-0 rally that began with a free-throw line jumper from Dudley, pushing her into double figures.
· Wood was the next to secure a double figure afternoon with a pair of free throws before Missy Nuku drove the baseline for a layup to complete the 6-0 run.
· Saint Peter's had its own answer, draining back-to-back three pointers and forcing a SHU timeout.
· Coming out of the timeout, Wood drained a three of her own, while Dudley closed out the half with a layup with 86 seconds remaining that put the halftime margin at seven, 42-35.
· Both Dudley and Wood finished the opening 20 minutes with 13 points apiece, combining to shoot 10-of-20 from the field with a combined four three's among the 10 field goals.
THIRD QUARTER NOTES
· Just like she opened the game, Wood opened up the second half with another elbow three pointer, sparking what turned into an 8-0 run to open up the quarter and force another Saint Peter's timeout.
· The Peacocks responded by scoring nine of the next 11 points with the lone two from Sacred Heart credited to Kirby as she hit double figures for the day.
· Kirby would strike again to break up that run for Saint Peters with another layup with just over three minutes remaining in the period.
· A putback from Dudley and another Kirby layup closed out the Pioneers scoring in the third as SHU took a 58-49 lead into the final frame.
FOURTH QUARTER NOTES
· The Pioneers were only able to manage five points in the fourth quarter, enough to maintain the lead throughout thanks to a three pointer from Nuku and a layup from Wood with 6:24 remaining that proved to be the final points for the Pioneers.
· Saint Peter's defense held the Pios to just 2-of-13 shooting, however Sacred Heart's defense never waivered as the Pios held the Peacocks to just 3-of-10 in the final 10 minutes.
· The Peacocks managed to closed out the game on an 8-0 run and had an opportunity to tie the game on the final possession, however the wild shot sailed over the rim where Wood collected and dribbled out the clock.
UP NEXT
A pair of home games await the Pioneers next week, the final two games scheduled for the Pitt Center in the 2025-26 season. First up will be a visit from Merrimack, a rematch of the first game in the month of February which the Warriors took 69-47. The penultimate home game of the year is scheduled for a 7:00 p.m. start on Thursday, February 19 with all of the action in the MAAC battle available live on ESPN+.
