Tuesday, February 18, 2025

Elementary school students pack Trask Coliseum for UNC-Wilmington basketball

WILMINGTON— More than 4,000 local elementary school students filled Trask Coliseum on Thursday afternoon as the UNCW women’s basketball team held off a late comeback attempt by Furman to claim a 56-52 non-conference victory over the Paladin.

Redshirt junior forward Jenny DeGraaf and junior guard Madison Raque each tallied 11 points, while junior Rebekah Banks grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds for the Seahawks.

UNCW used an 18-0 run over a seven-minute span to take a commanding 20-6 lead the Seahawks did not relinquish. The Paladins, who trailed by as many as 17 points in the third quarter, trimmed the deficit to 54-52 with 14 seconds remaining in regulation before the Seahawks sealed the victory by making two of four free throws.

DeGraaf came off the bench to convert five of seven shots from the floor for the Seahawks. Raque, the team’s leading scorer, recorded her fifth double-digit scoring effort of the season after posting 11 points. She made 5-of-15 field goal attempts and contributed four rebounds with three assists.

Thursday’s game marked the 12th installment of “Seahawks Tomorrow,” a program where elementary school students attend a game at Trask Coliseum. UNCW is now 8-4 all-time in those games. Senior guard Amber Reeves made the 100th appearance of her college career.

UNCW continues its three-game home stand on Saturday, Dec. 17, by welcoming Wofford to Trask Coliseum for a 4:30 p.m. non-conference game. It will be the second game of a doubleheader as UNCW and Radford square off in men’s basketball at 2 p.m.

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