WILMINGTON, N.C. – UNCW women's basketball returns to Trask Coliseum on Sunday at 1 p.m. to cap off Alumni Weekend with the Senior Day game against Charleston. The game will be streamed on FloCollege. 95.9 The Breeze will be carrying the audio stream. Links can be found at UNCWSports.com/coverage.
The UNCW will honor four graduate students, Isis Fitch, Jania Hall, Evan Miller and Ali Zelaya, on the court in Trask Coliseum before the game against Charleston. The four graduate students have combined to play in 519 career games.
UNCW started slow, and its late comeback attempt came up short against Elon, 70-56, in Coastal Athletic Association action in Trask Coliseum on Friday night. Trailing by 15 to begin the fourth quarter and as many as 20 in the second half, UNCW cut the deficit to 59-51 with five minutes to play but could not get any closer. Taylor Henderson had a team-high 14 points and hauled in seven rebounds. Kate Hollifield added 11, shooting 2-of-4 from beyond the arc. Zelaya filled the stat sheet with 10 points, a team-high nine rebounds, and a game-high five blocks. Elon outscored UNCW 38-26 in points in the paint.
Zelaya prepares to power UNCW into the final stretch of the regular season. The 6'4 forward leads the team with 12 points per game and has dominated at both ends of the court. Zelaya is the CAA leader in blocks (59), blocks per game (2.4), rebounds (228), and defensive rebounds per game (7.4). She has scored at least 10 points per game over her last 10 games. Zelaya averages 15.4 points, 9.5 rebounds, and 2.8 blocks per game during that stretch. Zelaya was one of five players named Ann Meyers Drysdale National Player of the Week on Feb. 4 by the USBWA, following two electrifying double-doubles in wins against Hofstra and Stony Brook.
Zelaya is ninth in the nation in blocks (59), 12th in blocks per game (2.4), 18th in defensive rebounds per game (7.4), and 36th in rebounds (228). UNCW is 22nd in fouls per game (13.7). In 25 career games as a Seahawk, Zelaya is 10th in program history in blocks. She needs 19 more blocks to set the program's single-season record.
Hall needs seven points to reach 1,000 for her career. Hall was the CAA's Sixth Player of the Year at Monmouth last season and moved to the bench 12 games ago for UNCW. Since the switch, Hall has reached double figures six times. Hall averages 9.4 points per game this season.
GAME COVERAGE
• Charleston (16-6, 7-4 CAA) at UNCW (12-13, 6-6 CAA)
• Live Stream: FloCollege
• Live Radio: 95.9 The Breeze
• Live Stats: UNCWSports.com/coverage
SERIES INFO
UNCW leads the all-time series, 20-17. Charleston has won four of the last five meetings. The Cougars cruised to victory in both games last season.
SCOUTING THE COUGARS
Charleston picked up a home victory on Friday night, dominating Northeastern 89-41, their most points against a Division I opponent this season. Five Cougars reached double figures in the contest. Taryn Barbot and Sophia Tougas led the way with 15 points and five rebounds each. Jazmyn Stone scored 13 off the bench, and Lara Rohkohl tallied a double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Charleston leads the nation in turnover margin (10.86). The Cougars are also sixth in turnovers forced per game (24.4), seventh in steals per game (13.0), and eighth in offensive rebounds per game (16.2).
LOOKING AHEAD
UNCW travels to Towson for a 1 p.m. game next Sunday. The Seahawks lead the all-time series, 25-19, but Towson has won nine of the last 10 meetings.
