Seahawks lead wire-to-wire for NEWMAC win

NEW LONDON, Conn. (Saturday, January 13, 2024) -- The Salve Regina University men's basketball team scored the first 12 points of its NEWMAC contest with the United States Coast Guard Academy and held on for an 85-73 victory against the Bears at Roland Gymnasium in New London, Connecticut.

Five Seahawks scored in double figures led by junior captain Declan Walmsley (Franklin, Mass.) with 19 points on 7-of-12 from the floor including three 3-pointers. He had a double-double with a dozen rebounds.

INSIDE THE MATCHUP
Final: Salve Regina 85, Coast Guard 73
Records: Salve Regina (9-6, 3-3 NEWMAC), Coast Guard (10-5, 3-3 NEWMAC)
All-Time Series: Salve Regina owns a 12-16 mark in the all-time series. Both schools were charter members of the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) in 1984-85. First 16 meetings took place between 1982 and 1991 (Coast Guard won 11 of first 16 matchups). Newporters were CCC champions in 1988-89. Series resumed in 2011 and Salve Regina has gone 7-5 in the last 12 meetings. Seahawks won the last meeting, 73-70, on the Rodgers Recreation Center floor on Tuesday, November 16, 2021. In that game, Mikey Spencer became the 40th player in school history to reach the 1,000-point milestone, and his game-high 23 points helped the Seahawks defeat the visiting Bears.

SUMMARY:

• 1H - Jojo Powers had the game's first bucket on a layup and added a pair of free throws after Declan Walmsley scored eight points (a two and two threes) on his first three attempts. Powers had four defensive rebounds as Salve Regina built a 12-0 lead in the first five minutes. Will Parisi came off the bench to score all of his points (10) in the first half. Walmsley, Powers, and Miles Fiore finished the frame with eight points apiece. The Seahawks doubled up the Bears in the paint, 16 to 8. Mitch Shettles (11) and Declan Rooney (10) combined for 21 first-half points, while the Bears' bench provided 15 points among four reserves. | Seahawks 45, Bears 41
• 2H - Declan Rooney and Elijah Parent both had 3-pointers at 18:14 and 14:44, respectively, that pulled the Bears within three points each time. But the Bears never got closer. Brady Spencer's free throws at 9:40 pushed the Seahawks up to an eight-point lead, 72-64. Free throws from Declan Walmsley, Jojo Powers, and Clay Brochu in the final minute accounted for the double-digit margin. | Seahawks 45, Bears 41 

NOTEWORTHY:

• Declan Walmsley led the Seahawks with 19 points on 7-of-12 from the floor including three 3-pointers. He had a double-double with a dozen rebounds.
• Will Parisi came off the bench to score all of his points (10) in the first half.
• Five different Seahawks had a 3-pointer -- Miles Fiore (2), Clay Brochu (3), Declan Walmsley (3), Will Parisi (2), and Brady Spencer (1).
• Clay Brochu finished with 17 points and was perfect from the free throw line (4-for-4; all in the final minute).
• Miles Fiore totaled 15 points while grabbing six boards.
• Jojo Powers collected nine rebounds and contributed 11 points; he also dished six assists.
• Seahawks won the battle of the boards, 45 rebounds to 30.
• Salve Regina made 7-of-10 (70 percent) 3-pointers in the first half.

QUOTE FROM COACH FOSTER:

"Our guys did a solid job of sticking to the game plan today and gave 40 minutes of effort. Coast Guard is a very physical and aggressive team, they are well-coached and compete every possession which presented a tremendous challenge today. If we can continue to stay disciplined at both ends, protect the paint, team rebound and share the ball the way we did today we can build on the effort and keep improving as a group." -- Salve Regina University head coach Sean Foster '97 who notched his 250th career win

"Our guys did a solid job of sticking to the game plan and gave 40 minutes of effort. Coast Guard is a physical team, well-coached, and compete every possession which presented a tremendous challenge." -- @SalveBasketball head coach Sean Foster who notched his 250th career win pic.twitter.com/CxCpNSGz4J

— Salve Regina Sports (@SalveAthletics) January 14, 2024

ON THE HORIZON:
The Seahawks host Babson College on Tuesday, January 17, 2024, at 7 p.m.