The Seton Hall Pirates Women’s Basketball Team (1-0) opened the 2026-27 regular season and home schedule with a 63-37 win over the Mercyhurst Lakers (0-1) at Walsh Gymnasium on the Seton Hall University campus in South Orange, New Jersey.

Seton Hall sophomore Ari Woodard led all scorers, tallying a career-high 22 points on 8-for-11 shooting, plus three trifectas and steals.

Ari Woodard said after the victory, “We’re a very fast-paced team and like to run in transition, and that was really working for us today. Our defense got a lot of stops.” 

Mercyhurst scored first, but the Pirates erupted for a 13-0 run that lasted over five minutes. Seton Hall got out on the fast break and controlled the paint. Defensively, they forced three shot clock violations. 

Seton Hall kept pushing the pace and driving into the paint for layups. Forward Ksenija Scepanovic dazzled in her Pirates regular-season debut, scoring five points and adding three assists. By the end of the period, Seton Hall led 18-7.

In the second quarter, Mercyhurst found its offensive rhythm and went on an 8-0 spurt, trimming the deficit to 22-16 with less than five minutes remaining.

The Pirates answered with a 7-0 run that pushed the advantage back to double digits at 29-18 with 2:30 left. At halftime, Seton Hall held a 33-23 lead.

When the third quarter began, the Pirates widened the margin to 41-23, but the Lakers responded with an 8-0 run to cut the gap to single digits with less than three minutes left. Lauren Filien hit consecutive treys to spark Mercyhurst.

Seton Hall answered quickly, with Ari Woodard hitting back-to-back triples to push the lead to 47-33 with 1:30 left.

Woodard said, “I work very hard and feel confident taking those shots, and Shuckley (Shakena Richardson) and I are in the gym working on those shots outside of practice, and it paid off.”

The fourth quarter turned into a low-scoring affair as both teams combined for 18 points, but the Pirates ultimately triumphed. Seton Hall dominated points from turnovers, 31-8; points in the paint, 40-12; and fast-break points, 14-5. 

Pirates Head Coach Tony Bozzella expressed his disappointment in the outcome. “I thought that was the most depressing offensive output I had in my 14 years here, and I couldn’t tell what we were running or doing, and shots we didn’t take and got blocked by players six inches to a foot smaller than us,” he said. “We’re not going to win many games playing offense like that, and I’m very discouraged because we spent a lot of time going over the plays.”

Bozzella said, “We’re mentally weak and not tough and passive, and we worked on the press breaker all week. Mercyhurst was well-coached and disciplined, but it’s embarrassing if you’re going to play like that.”

Bozzella said, “I applaud the effort of Catalon (Savannah), Woodard and King (Saniyah) specifically, and stop at that point. I’m thankful we got two point guards in Saniyah and Woodard (Ari), and they practice and play every day, participate, believe in us, are respectful, don’t miss practice, and will only get better. I wouldn’t trade them for anyone in the country, and I mean that. They are wonderful people to coach; I love them, and they listen, compete, and are all about winning.”

Bozzella said, “Saniyah’s line wasn’t great, but she played like a warrior out there. It wasn’t about her shooting; it was about how she plays defense. Getting Catalon (Savannah) back after six weeks with an injury really helps us, and Woodard bailed us out by making a lot of tough shots.” 

Seton Hall returns to the hardwood early Friday morning, hosting Indiana State (0-1) with tip-off set for 11:30 a.m. at Walsh Gymnasium.

Bozzella explained, “We’re going to have a big problem on Friday because Indiana State is athletic, quick, aggressive, and confident. We have to play better. We watch film, and our staff sacrifices hours and hours, and this is big-time basketball.”

Bozzella said, “Teams in our league can score points and don’t give up a lot, and today we could have lost by 50. That’s not UConn, and it’s everybody else. This is not acceptable to play this way, and yet the effort was good, but it’s the standard at Seton Hall. If you’re a veteran player, you need to know the plays and what they’re doing, and that’s a big problem and not an option.”