Raiders in Action on Sunday Afternoon

The Wright State Raiders men’s and women’s basketball teams will both resume Horizon League action on Sunday, January 12, with the men’s team playing on the road against the Robert Morris Colonials, while the women stay at home to face the Youngstown State Penguins for their T1D Awareness Game. Both games start at 2ET and they can both be seen on ESPN Plus.

Home cooking: Earlier this week, both teams had home games at the Nutter Center and protected home court although the task wasn’t easy. On Wednesday night, the Raider women (3-14, 1-6 Horizon) snapped a 10-game losing streak – which was tied for the fifth-longest in school history – with a 67-64 upset victory over the Detroit Mercy Titans – who came into the game tied for third place in the Horizon League standings. Kari Hoffman’s ladies were up by as many as 12 in the game, but UDM came back and eventually kept knotting it up before Myonna Hooper missed the game-tying triple that would’ve sent it into overtime.

It was also the second time that former Long Island University teammates Claire Henson and Emaia O’Brien squared off against each other, with O’Brien winning the first matchup and Henson winning the Wednesday battle.

Henson led WSU with 15 points and eight rebounds, 11 points and eight rebounds for Amaya Staton, and 15 points off the bench for Rylee Sagester.

The following night, the men’s squad and first-year head coach Clint Sargent (9-8, 3-3 Horizon) were down by 13 in the early going before running up the comeback trail and sliding past the Oakland Golden Grizzlies with a 66-62 winning effort. The Raider men now have an impressive 6-1 record at the Nutter Center.

Keaton Norris, who sat out WSU’s last three games with a thigh bruise, returned to the lineup and put up the best scoring performance of his career with 14 points and shot 4-of-6 from beyond the arc.

The Raider bench scored 27 of the team’s 66 points. Jack Doumbia led the squad scoring 10 of his 16 points in the second half, while Andrea Holden (on-DRAY) recorded his first double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds.

11 points for Alex Huibregtse (HUE-bricks); eight points, four rebounds and three assists for Brandon Noel (noll), and six points for Michael Imariagbe (eh-mar-ee-bay).

About the women’s opponent: Youngstown State (7-9, 2-4 Horizon) was picked to finish 5th in front of Wright State in the Horizon League preseason polls, but their are currently standing 7th. They started the season with four consecutive wins, but they have lost nine of their last 12  games and are currently on a three-game losing streak. Their only two players averaging double-figure scoring are Jewel Watkins (13.3 ppg) and Malia Magestro (10.6 ppg). Other players including Sophia Gregory, Erica King, Abby Liber, and Cleveland State transfer Faith Burch.

Youngstown State head coach profile: Melissa Jacksonis in her first season as the head coach in charge of the Penguins. She spent five seasons as the head coach at MAC school Akron University and was an assistant coach for the school for 10 seasons (2008-18) before being an assistant for fellow Horizon League school Cleveland State last season. Jackson started her coaching career as an assistant for the University of Delaware (2004-08) of the CAA and played her college ball at the University of Richmond (2000-04) of the Atlantic-10.

Notes: Raiders’ Ellie Magestro-Kennedy, a redshirt freshman guard, was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes when she was a freshman at Janesville Craig High School in Stoughton, Wisconsin. It’ll also be the first time ever that she will play against her first cousin, Malia Magestro, from YSU.

Wright State women’s starting lineup
• Amaya Staton, F (6-1, Gr., Merrimack transfer) – 10 ppg, 7.4 rpg, 1.5 bpg (leads Horizon), 79.2% FT
• Claire Henson, G (5-10, Jr.) – 10.3 ppg, 6 rpg, 2.4 apg, 1.3 spg, 32.4% 3-PT
• Makiya Miller, G (5-7, Jr.) – 7.2 ppg, spg
• Macie Taylor, G (5-7, R-Soph.) – 8.3 ppg, 2.1 apg, 1.2 spg, 75.8% FT
• Lauren Scott, G (5-7, Jr.) – 7.5 ppg, 34% 3-PT in 13 games (11 starts)

Wright State women’s rotation players
• Rylee Sagester, G (5-7, R-Fr.) – 6.6 ppg, 39.2% 3-PT, 93.8% FT (15-of-16), 17.3 mpg
• Olivia Brown, G (5-7, R-Soph. Akron transfer) – 2.8 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 2.7 apg, 1.2 spg, has started six games
• Chloe Chard Peloquin, C (6-3, Jr., Canisius transfer) – 5.5 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 0.7 bpg in 14 games
• Ellie Magestro-Kennedy, G (5-7, R-Fr.) – 5.4 ppg, 2.3 rpg in 16 games
• Florrie Cotterill, F (6-2, Fr.) – 1.5 ppg, 0.8 rpg in 12 games
• Abbie Riddle, G (5-10, R-Fr., Bowling Green transfer) – 2.7 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 16.2 mpg in 10 games

Rest of the Wright State women’s roster: https://wsuraiders.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster

Youngstown State starting lineup
• Sophia Gregory, F (6-2, Fr.) – 8.3 ppg, 6.9 rpg in 13 games, started the last six contests
• Jewel Watkins, G/F (5-11, Sr., Charlotte transfer) – 13.3 ppg; played her first two NCAA seasons at Coppin State
• Malia Magestro, G (5-9, Gr.) – 10.6 ppg in 12 games (11 starts), missed four games due to an injury
• Erica King, G (5-7, Fr.) – 7.3 ppg; started seven games, including the last two
• Xoe Rosalez, G (5-6, Jr.) – 2.6 ppg, 2.4 rpg, started 14 of 16 games

Youngstown State rotation players
• Faith Burch, F (6-1, R-Jr., Cleveland State transfer) – 6.8 ppg, 5.5 rpg, started the first 13 games
• Haley Thierry, G (5-8, Sr.) – 2.6 ppg, 3.4 rpg in 14 games (one start)
• Abby Liber, G/F (6-0, Jr.) – 3.1 ppg, 4.9 rpg, spg in 14 games (started nine of the team’s first 10 games) played her freshman season at Saint Louis where they made the 2022-23 NCAA Tournament
• Bella Samz, G (5-8, Soph.) – 2.1 ppg, 1.5 rpg in 14 games (two starts)
• Dacia Lewandowski, G (5-11, R-Fr., Akron transfer) – ppg, 0.5 stl, 10.5 mpg in 12 games

Youngstown State injuries (all freshmen who suffered lower body injuries)
• Ashlynn Van Tassell, 6-3 F: injured in September
• Danielle Cameron, 5-9 G: 5 ppg in two games off the bench; scored 10 points in her debut in their 95-39 season-opening win over Lake Erie on November 8, but suffered a season-ending injury to the lower body on November 12 in their 60-52 win over St. Bonaventure
• Sarah Baker, 6-2 F: 7.3 ppg, 5.6 rpg in nine games (one start); one-time Horizon League Freshman of the Week who got injured on December 4 in their 66-50 win at home over Wisconsin-Milwaukee

Rest of Youngstown State’s roster: https://ysusports.com/sports/womens-basketball/roster

About the men’s opponent: Robert Morris (10-7, 2-4 Horizon) was picked to finish 11th and last place in the Horizon League preseason polls, but their season has been better than expected and they are currently tied for 8th in the standings with Oakland. Kam Woods is their top scorer (14.9 ppg) while Alvaro Folgueiras is their top rebounder (12.6 ppg, 10.7 rpg). Other players include Amarion Dickerson (12 ppg), Josh Omojafo (11.6 ppg), Ryan Prather Jr. (8.8 ppg), and D.J. Smith (7.8 ppg).

Robert Morris men’s head coach profile: Andrew Toole is currently in his 18th season overall with Robert Morris and his 15th season serving as their head men’s basketball coach. He was their top assistant coach three years under Mike Rice Jr., whom Toole succeeded after the latter left to take over at Rutgers. In already 15 seasons as the man in charge of RMU, Toole has 236 wins, which makes him the winningest coach in school history (236). He was also named the 2013-14 Northeast Conference Coach of the Year and led the program to the 2015 NCAA Tournament. Before his success at Robert Morris, Toole started his coaching career at Lafayette University of the Patriot League where he spent the 2006-07 season as an assistant under head coach Fran O’Hanlon. Earlier this week, Toole was featured in the fourth column of the HoriZone PC series.

Wright State men’s starting lineup
• Brandon Noel, F (6-8/240, 5th-year R-Jr.) – 18.6 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 1.2 spg, 1.1 bpg
• Michael Imariagbe (eh-mar-ee-bay), F (6-7/220, Sr., Houston Christian transfer) – 5.2 ppg, 3.8 rpg; started 10 games
• Alex Huibregtse, G (6-3/205, R-Sr.) – 14.2 ppg, 3.2 apg, 39.3% 3-PT FG
• Logan Woods (6-5/185, R-Soph.) – 7.9 ppg, 46.3% 3-PT FG
• Keaton Norris, G (6-0/175, R-Jr.) – 6.1 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 4.6 apg, 1.5 spg, played and started in 14 games

Wright State men’s rotation players
• Jack Doumbia, F (6-6/195, R-Sr., Norfolk State transfer) – 12.4 ppg, 5.8 rpg, 1.3 spg, bpg; started eight games
• Solomon Callaghan, G (6-2/195, R-Fr.) – 5.4 ppg, 35.8% 3-PT in 16 games (one start)
• Andrew Welage, G (6-6/205, Gr.) – 2.5 ppg, 11.8 mpg
• Drey Carter, F (6-8/210, R-Soph.) – 3.1 ppg, 1.3 rpg, 10.6 mpg in 16 games (one start)
• Andrea Holden, W (6-6/215, Fr.) – 11 ppg, 9 rpg, 1.5 spg, bpg in two games

Rest of the Wright State men’s roster: https://wsuraiders.com/sports/mens-basketball/roster

Robert Morris starting lineup
• Alvaro Folgueiras, F (6-9/215, Jr.) – 12.6 ppg, 10.7 rpg, 1.1 bpg, 1.3 spg, 81.3% FT
• Amarion Dickerson, G/F (6-7/185, Jr.) – 12 ppg, 7 rpg, 2.8 bpg; started 14 games
• Ryan Prather Jr., G/F (6-5/205, R-Soph., Akron transfer) – 8.8 ppg, 34.7% 3-PT; started 10 games
• Josh Omojafo, G (6-5/200, Jr.) – 11.6 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 83.9% FT
• Kam Woods, G (6-2/185, R-Sr., North Carolina State transfer) – 14.9 ppg, 4.2 apg, 1.9 spg in 12 games (10 starts); fourth school in five seasons, previously played at Troy University and North Carolina A&T

Robert Morris rotation players
• D.J. Smith, G (6-0/160, R-Jr., Bowling Green transfer) – 7.8 ppg, 2.6 apg, started 14 games; started his NCAA career at Arkansas-Little Rock
• Ismael Plet, F (6-8/230, Gr., Arkansas-Pine Bluff transfer) – 5.1 ppg, 3.1 rpg, started three games; started his NCAA career at Oral Roberts
• Antallah Sandlin-El, F (6-8/205, R-Fr.) – 5.8 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 11.7 mpg in six games
• Dilen Miller, G (6-4/185, Fr.) – 2.8 ppg, 1.2 rpg, 0.9 spg
• Chris Ford, F (6-5, 200, Sr.) – 0.8 ppg, 1.8 rpg, 9 mpg in 12 games; played his freshman year at Davidson where they made the 2021-22 NCAA Tournament

Rest of Robert Morris’ roster: https://rmucolonials.com/sports/mens-basketball/roster