#5 Le Moyne (11-20, 9-9 NEC) at #4 Wagner (13-16, 9-9 NEC)
Info: Monday, Mar. 9 | 7:00 P.M. | Staten Island, N.Y. | Spiro Sports Center
Watch: NEC Front Row
Listen: FOX Sports 92.5 FM/1490 AM
Live Stats: https://wagnerathletics.com/sidearmstats/wbball/summary
Wagner's Links: Schedule | Roster | News

Staten Island, N.Y. – The Le Moyne College women's basketball team will open up the 2026 NEC Tournament in the quarterfinal round at Wagner with tip set for 7:00 p.m. on Monday night. The game will be broadcast on NEC Front Row and FOX Sports 92.5 FM/1490 AM from the Spiro Sports Center.

Season Summary:
The Dolphins finished the 2025-26 regular season with an 11-20 record overall and a 9-9 mark in conference action, placing them fifth in the NEC standings due to a tiebreaker with Wagner.

They opened the season against St. John's on Nov. 3 and dropped the matchup, 68-53, before downing Lafayette, 82-79, in overtime in their lone win of the season thus far on Nov. 9. Le Moyne then fell to seventh-ranked Baylor, 99-43, in Waco, T.X. on Nov. 16 before traveling to Pitt and coming away with a 87-65 defeat on Nov. 18. 

To finish out November, the Dolphins dropped their home-opener to Cornell, 52-51, in overtime at Ted Grant Court on Nov. 22 and a road matchup at Bucknell, 65-41, on Nov. 25 before dropping another road meeting against Illinois, 100-28, on Nov. 30.

Through December, Le Moyne dropped a home set against St. Bonaventure on Dec. 6 with the Bonnies coming out on top, 66-57, before hitting the road for two games at Marquette (89-42) and Bowling Green (74-46) on Dec. 14 and 16. 

The squad then dropped a pair of games in the Hawk Classic from Dec. 21-21 against host St. Joe's, 100-40, and Akron, 94-68 before closing out their non-conference schedule with a home win over SUNY Geneseo, 67-55, on Tuesday, Dec. 30.

Since NEC play began in early January, the Dolphins have gone .500 in 18 games with wins coming at home against Saint Francis (73-69), Wagner (62-49), CCSU (65-46), Stonehill (53-49), and New Haven (53-48) and also on the road against New Haven (48-40), CCSU (65-61), Saint Francis (62-50), and Chicago State (80-76).

Stat Leaders:
Junior forward Ashley Buragas leads the team as their sole double-digit scorer with 12.9 points per game while starting in all 31 team contests. That mark ranks her ahead of senior guard Sierra Linnin and sophomore guard Eli Clark who are averaging 9.6 and 7.7 points per game, respectively.

Buragas is shooting a team-high 160-310 (.516) from the field and also leads the 'Phins with 7.1 rebounds per game and total blocks with 11. She is tied for second in assists with 65 (junior guard Jessica Wangolo), third in minutes played per game with 26.8, and tied for third in steals with 23 (Linnin) this season.

Linnin leads the Dolphins with 67 made three-pointers while being the only other Dolphin to get the starting nod in all 31 games along with Buragas during the regular season. She is shooting 46-52 (.885) from the line and is second on the team with 28.4 minutes on the hardwood per game.

E. Clark leads the squad in minutes played per game (29.7) and total assists (72) while sitting tied with freshman guard Kayden Clark for third in field goals made with 66 through 27 games played this season. 

NEC Stat Rankings:
Through the conclusion of the regular season conference slate, Buragas sits fourth in the NEC in scoring with 15.9 points per game while Linnin ranks 18th with 10.7 in the same category.

Buragas sits second in the league in field-goal percentage (.521), third in rebounds per game (8.1), fifth in free-throw rate on 80 attempts (.800), and tied for 16th in assists (2.2).

Buragas is also tied with junior forward Sydney Postell and freshman forward Praise Matthews for 18th in blocks per conference game with 0.4.

Linnin sits tied for fifth in threes made per game with 2.2.

Junior guard Jessica Wangolo ranks tied for 13th in assists (2.5), tied for 22nd in steals (1.1), and 23rd in rebounds per game (4.5).

E. Clark sits tied for ninth in assists with 2.8 per game and 24th in minutes with 29.5 played per contest.

Freshman guard Peyton Dincher ranks tied for 16th in three-pointers made with 1.2 per game this season.

Last Time Out:
Le Moyne traveled to Mercyhurst and rounded out the 2025-26 regular season against the Lakers on Thursday night, falling, 72-66.

Dincher led the Dolphins in scoring with 14 points on 5-8 shooting overall and a team-best four three-pointers. Buragas followed with 13 points on 5-12 shooting from the field and a 3-4 mark from the line while bringing in a team-high 12 rebounds to register her second consecutive double-double.

Linnin also finished with double-digit points, tallying 12 on 4-8 shooting including three buckets from deep.

Wangolo dished out a team-best four assists while Buragas registered three steals for Le Moyne.

Le Moyne shot 24-51 (47.1%) from the field, 7-17 (41.2%) from three-point range, and 11-14 (78.6%) from the line against the Lakers. The Dolphins recorded 30 points in the paint and 34 points off the bench in the loss.

Series History:
Le Moyne holds a 4-2 record over Wagner since the Dolphins began their transition to NCAA Division I and joined the NEC prior to the 2023-24 season. 

The programs split their regular season series this season as the Seahawks came out on top at home, 59-45, on Jan. 22 before the Dolphins earned a 62-49 home victory on Feb. 5. 

In the most recent meeting, Linnin collected her 1,000th career point scored and became the 18th player in program history to reach that mark en route to leading the team with 15 points against Wagner. She shot 37.5% from the field with a trio of three-pointers and a perfect 6-6 mark from the free-throw line. She added six rebounds and one assist in 32 minutes on the hardwood.

Buragas also finished in the double-digits in points, tallying 13 on 4-10 shooting overall and adding five free throws. She led the team by dishing out three assists and tied Postell with a team-high eight rebounds.

Wangolo set a new career-high and tied K. Clark with nine points in the win. Dincher added another eight points on a pair of threes and two shots from the charity stripe, as well. 

Le Moyne shot 16-42 (38.1%) from the field and 6-15 (40.0%) from deep with an .889 rate from the line. The Dolphins recorded 20 points in the paint, 16 points off turnovers, and 16 points off fastbreaks in the win.

Common Opponents:
Aside from their NEC rivals, the Dolphins and Seahawks both met Lafayette and Cornell during their non-conference schedules.

The Dolphins earned their first win of the season, 82-79, in overtime at Lafayette on Nov. 9, 11 days before Wagner hosted the Leopards and fell, 56-53.

Le Moyne then hosted Cornell at Ted Grant Court on Nov. 22 and dropped the matchup, 52-51, in overtime while Wagner came away with a 67-54 win over the Big Red at home on Nov. 30.

Year #3:
Le Moyne is in its third year transitioning to the Division I level and is the only institution in the nation in its transition "class." The Dolphins went 18-15 in their first season at the Division I level in 2023-24, including 14-2 in NEC action to earn the second seed in the postseason tournament before advancing to the conference title game. The team then posted a 7-24 overall record last season, including going 6-10 in conference play, en route to their second straight NEC tournament, this time as the fifth seed. 

Returners:
The 2025-26 Dolphins will feature six returners; senior guards Sierra Linnin (Valley Cottage, N.Y. / Albertus Magnus) and Michelina Lombardi (Wynantskill, N.Y. / Averill Park), juniors guard Jessica Wangolo (Ottawa, O.N. / Capital Courts Academy / Buffalo) and forward Sydney Postell (Churchville, N.Y. / Churchville-Chili), sophomore guard Eli Clark (Oakhurst, N.J. / Ocean Township), and redshirt sophomore guard Amya McLeod (Rome, N.Y. / Rome Free Academy / Youngstown State).

Newcomers:
The Dolphins welcomed eight new players to the program this year, including six freshman, one sophomore, and one junior. Guards Peyton Dincher (Jersey Shore, Pa. / Jersey Shore), Ava Lucarotti (Erie, Pa. / Cathedral Prep), and Kayden Clark (Oakhurst, N.J. / Manasquan) join forwards Ava Johnson (Richmond, Va. / The Steward School), Rachel Lynch (Cork, Ireland / Putnam Science Academy (Conn.)), and Praise Matthews (Red Lion, Pa. / Dallastown) as 'Phins freshmen this season. Junior forward Ashley Buragas (Hopewell Junction, N.Y. / John Jay / Mineral Area College) joins Le Moyne's program after a two-year stint at NJCAA Mineral Area College in Park Hills, M.O. while sophomore guard Sophia Bonnell (Horseheads, N.Y. / Horseheads / SUNY New Paltz) played one season in NCAA Division-III for the New Paltz Hawks.

NEC Outlook:
Le Moyne's squad was selected to finish fourth in the regular season standings in the NEC preseason coaches' poll, just behind unanimous favorite FDU, Stonehill, and Chicago State. CCSU, Mercyhurst, Wagner, LIU, New Haven, and Saint Francis rounded out the poll behind the Dolphins. 

Eli Clark was named to the preseason All-NEC team, as well, after recording averages of 8.2 points (third on the team), 3.3 rebounds (fifth on the team) and a team-best 2.9 assists over a team-high 31.5 minutes per game as a starter in 27 of 30 games played. During NEC action, she increased her averages to 8.5 points and 3.5 assists to go with 3.1 rebounds as a starter in 12 of 15 games.

2025-26 NEC Weekly Award Winners & Prime Performers:
Dolphins players have earned two NEC Weekly Awards and 14 NEC Prime Performer honors so far this season.

Rookies of the Week:
Kayden Clark (Nov. 10)
Peyton Dincher (Jan. 20)

Prime Performers:
Ashley Buragas (Nov. 10, Dec. 31, Jan. 6, Jan. 19, Jan. 26, Feb. 9, Feb. 16, Feb. 23, Mar. 6)
Sierra Linnin (Jan. 6, Feb. 2, Feb. 16)
Kayden Clark (Nov. 10)
Eli Clark (Nov. 24)

Coach DiPillo:
Nick DiPillo was named the seventh head coach in Le Moyne women's basketball program history on May 23, 2024 after stints as an assistant coach at Bowling Green State University, University of Pittsburgh, Seton Hall University and with the New York Liberty, in addition to a successful head coaching stint at the University of Scranton. 

The Dolphins earned the fifth seed in the 2024-25 NEC tournament in coach Dipillo's first season, eventually taking down #4 Saint Francis, 62-51, in the opening round before falling to #2 Stonehill, 60-41, in the semifinals. 

Scouting the Seahawks:
Wagner closed out the regular season with a 13-16 record overall and a 9-9 mark in NEC action this season to finish fourth in the conference standings. The 2025-26 season marks head coach Terrell Coburn's fifth at the helm of the women's basketball program.

The Seahawks earned their nine conference wins over Chicago State (62-51), Stonehill (62-59), New Haven (50-45 & 64-62), Le Moyne (59-45), LIU (59-54), CCSU (63-44 & 50-41), and Saint Francis (58-51).

In their most recent outing, a 79-71 regular season finale loss at home against LIU on Thursday, junior center Lijirin Doyinsola Modesayor led the team with 15 points on 5-11 shooting, finishing just ahead of senior guard Irene Fernandez de Caleya (14) and graduate forward Raneem Elbarky (10) in scoring.

Doyinsola Modesayor registered a double-double in the loss, adding a team-high 10 rebounds as well. Redshirt junior guard Klea Kaci dished out a team-best five assists against the Sharks.

Through 29 team games, Doyinsola Modesayor leads Wagner with 11.1 points per game while Fernandez de Caleya and sophomore guard Keana Foz sit closely behind with 9.8 and 9.5, respectively.

Doyinsola Modesayor also leads the team with 7.3 rebounds per game as Foz sits atop the team rankings with 64 total assists on the season.

Wagner returns 10 players from their 2024-25 team that went 8-21 overall and fell in the quarterfinal round of the NEC Tournament against #2 Stonehill. They are joined by three transfers and one freshman newcomer, Alivia Landy, this season.

The Seahawks were voted to finish seventh in the NEC's Preseason Coaches Poll after going 5-11 in conference play a season ago.