BROOKLYN, N.Y. -  The LIU Brooklyn women's basketball team snapped a six-game losing skid Monday evening in the Steinberg Wellness Center, beating Wagner, 69-64, behind the powerful play of freshman forward Aja Boyd. Boyd had 18 points and eight rebounds for the Blackbirds, leading a trio of Blackbirds that scoring in double figures. Graduate student Dionne Coe had a season-high 19 points along with four assists, and senior Shanovia Dove chipped in 17 points for LIU.  

Both teams needed a Northeast Conference win Monday night, and it looked like Wagner wanted it more as the game got started; the Seahawks opened the game on an 8-2 run, going 2-for-2 from long distance. But senior Shanovia Dove would score seven straight points for the Blackbirds to cut the lead to just one point with 37 seconds left in the first period.

Strong defense in the second period helped LIU battle back from the early deficit. Freshman Aja Boyd had a jumper at 7:34 that would be the start of a 14-4 run by the Blackbirds. LIU would force five Wagner turnovers over the next five minutes, including two steals by graduate student Dionne Coe, and the Blackbirds would shoot 6-fot-7 from the field. LIU would tie the game up, and eventually widen the lead to five points on a jumper from sophomore Drew Winter with 2:49 to play. Coe and Boyd would combine to go on an 8-0 run in the final minute of action in the first half, helping the Blackbirds take a 37-26 lead into the break.

A rejuvenated Seahawk squad came out of halftime, and in the first three minutes of action scored eight straight points including off of two LIU turnovers, and closed the gap to just three points, 37-34. Kandance Satterwhite and Boyd would hit baskets that helped keep LIU on top, but the Blackbirds couldn't stop another Seahawk spree. Wagner would close the quarter on a 7-0 run that helped them retake the lead, 43-41 heading into the fourth and final period.

The final stanza was a back-and-forth affair right up until the end of the game. Wagner led until Winter hit a three pointer that put the Blackbirds back on top, 48-45 at 6:49. A minute later, Coe hit a three that would give LIU the lead once more, 51-50. But it wasn't until freshman Aja Boyd went to work that the Blackbirds were able to hold on to the lead for good. In the final four minutes of the game, Boyd set the tone, scoring eight unanswered points to power past the Seahawks. She converted the layup and one with 1:39 to play, and then did the same thing 30 seconds later to widen LIU's lead to 59-52 with 1:08 to play.

The cushion that Boyd established had some help from her teammates in the final 49 seconds, as Coe, Winter and Dove went a combined 10-for-12 from the free throw line ice the win for LIU, despite a late scoring surge from the Seahawks.

With the win, LIU moves to 3-16 overall this season, 2-6 in the NEC, while Wagner is now 1-18 overall, and 0-8 in NEC play.

NOTES FROM THE NEST

• Dionne Coe had a season-high 19 points, on 5-of-8 shooting from the field, including going 7-for-10 from the free throw line. She also had four rebounds, four assists and two steals in the win.
• Senior Shanovia Dove had 17 points, four rebounds and three assists for LIU.
• Aja Boyd finished the day shooting 53.3 percent from the field en route to an 18-point, eight rebound performance.
• Sophomore Drew Winter had seven points and three assists for LIU.
• The Blackbirds went 16-for-20 from the free throw line, hitting 80 percent of their shots.
• Wagner was led by freshman guard Kerstie Phills, who out-paced all players with 24 points on 11-of-16 shooting, and a team-high five rebounds.
• Up next, the Blackbirds head north to take on the Connecticut contingent of the NEC, traveling first to take on Sacred Heart, Saturday, January 28 at 1 p.m.