LOUDONVILLE, NY - Entering Saturday, only 29 players to suit up for Siena Women's Basketball have reached 1,000 career points. That was, until Ahniysha Jackson poured in 21 points to become the 30th member of the exclusive club as the Saints (8-8, 5-2 MAAC) cruised by the Merrimack Warriors (7-9, 304 MAAC), 79-57, from the UHY Center. 
 
Jackson reached the 1,000-point milestone with her 14th of the night in the third quarter, and her 21 came on 8-12 shooting from the field, 3-4 from three, and 2-4 from the free throw line. The graduate student also dished out a career-high seven assists, and added three rebounds and steals to her line.
 
Anajah Brown dominated the paint all afternoon, accounting for 16 points (8-11 FG) while leading the way for 32 Siena points in the paint. She also had a team-high eight rebounds, four of which on the offensive end of the floor. Teresa Seppala netted 14 on 6-13 shooting from the floor and dished out a career-high five assists, while Myriam Traore added nine on 4-6 shooting from the field. 
 
The Saints set single-game season highs shooting 59.3 percent from the field, as well as 53.3 percent from three. Siena also forced 26 turnovers - tied for the second most in a game this season - which led to 36 points. 
 
Efficient shooting served both sides well over the opening portion of the first quarter, with the teams each shooting at least 60 percent from the field through five minutes. The Siena defense limited the Warriors to just eight shots from the field in the opening frame, however, the visitors hit five including one from deep. The Saints took advantage of their 13 opportunities, with Jackson scoring seven (3-5), to lead 17-12 after one. 
 
Merrimack's sharp-shooting carried over into the second quarter, converting on its first three shots to come within three points of the Saints at 21-18. Thanks to Brown controlling the paint throughout the remainder of the half, as well as 16 Siena points off 15 Merrimack turnovers, the team took a 36-28 lead into halftime. 
 
Siena came out of the break red-hot, going on a 10-2 run over the opening 2:50 thanks to eight combined points by Jackson and Brown. Just Over 30 seconds later, Jackson etched her way into the program record book by becoming the 30th player in program history to reach 1,000 career points after drilling a wing three-pointer for the 14th point of the game. 
 
Despite Merrimack inching closer as the third came to a close, the Saints extended their lead to 14 points entering the fourth quarter, 58-44.  However, the Siena defense smothered the Warriors over the final 10 minutes - holding them to their lowest-quarter shooting percentage of the game at 25 percent - while the team had its best shooting quarter of the afternoon at 70 percent. 
 
The Saints gear up to travel to Mount St. Mary's on Thur., Jan. 23. Tip-off from Knott Arena in Emmitsburg, MD is set for 7 p.m.
 
This post-game recap is proudly presented by The Brothers that just do Gutters, a proud partner of Siena Athletics. Trust the team that always comes through—on the court and for your home.