After a 55-54 win against sixth-seeded NJCU, the Pioneers, who were seeded third, have moved on to the quarterfinals of the NJAC Tournament to face second-seeded Montclair away after falling short of the tournament last season.

Ending the previous season 9-9, just short of the NJAC tournament, the team needed to make adjustments and fight for their spot in the tournament, and this season they did just that. With all five starters returning, including the NJAC’s leading returning scorer in two-time All-Conference pick, Brianna Smith, and All-Conference honoree Renee Wells, the Pioneers were expected to make a tournament run this year.

Coming into this game, the Pioneers were laser-focused, with team lifts at six in the morning, very long practices, and longer days. They knew the importance of this game but also knew with the home-court advantage, they would have their school supporting them.

The Pioneers started the first quarter off strong with a 7-2 lead with six minutes on the clock, with five of those points belonging to Smith. NJCU fought back to tie the game 7-7 at five minutes, then both teams traded points until the score was 15-15 for the first quarter.

With NJCU finding a spark of a fight, they led the Pioneers 34-23 by the end of the second quarter, only allowing eight points against them and marking a 50% free-throw average over a 20% average for the Pioneers.

With halftime to cool down, the pioneers knew they needed to make a change in the next half of the game if they wanted to stay in it. Coach Erin Monahan understood the importance of shifting the energy and that the Pioneers needed to make that shift happen fast.

“Obviously, going into halftime down, they were bickering a bit,” Monahan said, “we just had to cool off and come back in the second half, and I’m really proud of them.”

NJCU lengthened their lead at the beginning of the third quarter to 38 points, but a shift in momentum from Brianna Smith and Patty Walsh turned the game around for the Pioneers by getting them their first lead since the third quarter at 42-40.

“Drop your ego, drop your attitude, and now it’s about us,” said Patty Walsh, “‘We over me’ is the saying we have in our locker room.”

The fight continued well into the fourth quarter, with NJCU fighting hard, even beating the pioneers in points scored in the quarter alone at 14-13, and tying the game once more with one minute left at 52-52. Brianna Smith, once more proving her value as a player, scored three points to allow a lead for the Pioneers that was too big for NJCU to recover from.

Smith knew with the advantage of the home court, the Pioneers could use their fans and their bench to help motivate them to keep fighting.

“This means a lot to us, having a crowd and the home court for the first round of playoffs was huge…the fans were great, the bench was great, and that helped us win the game.”

Junior Forward Patty Walsh and Graduate Student Guard Brianna Smith were key players in the Pioneers’ win, scoring 35 points between them. Sophomore Guard Jada Jacobs

led the team with an impacting 11 rebounds, contributing to the team’s 42 total. 

This hard-fought win marks William Paterson’s third consecutive win against the Gothic Knights. Next week, they face the Montclair RedHawks, who sit second in the conference. The team motto, “We Over Me,” will be crucial in their fight for the NJAC title.

The Pioneers will continue to train and prepare for the next round of playoffs with dedication and fight, as they have for all of their other games.

On Wednesday, the Pioneers will play in the NJAC semi-finals against the Montclair State Red Hawks at the Panzer Athletic Center in Montclair, NJ