Hall receives All-American honors from NJCAA, becomes ninth in program history
*** PHOTO COURTESY OF GEOFF SCHNEIDER (GMSPHOTOWNY) ***
After a stellar freshman campaign, Azriel Hall is receiving national recognition. The freshman guard was named an NJCAA Division II third-team All-American on April 9, and the ninth selection in SUNY Niagara women’s basketball history, which began in the 1977-78 season.
A Lockport resident, Hall started all 25 contests for SUNY Niagara and helped the program advance to its eighth consecutive Region III Div. II championship game as part of a 15-10 campaign. Hall scored a team-high 19.7 points per game, good for a tie for 16th in NJCAA Division III, and played in 29.5 minutes per contest.
Hall now joins SUNY Niagara's list of NJCAA All-Americans in women’s basketball, which includes Michelle Milleville (1998), Jaclyn Welch (2014), Taliyah Hopkins (2017), Kenetria Redfern (2019), Paige Emborsky (2020), Alaina Forbes (2021 & 2022), Aichata Ballo (2023) and Faith Alessandra (2024). Forbes (1,032), Milleville (1,029) and Emborsky (1,011) remain the only 1,000-point scorers in Thunderwolves history.
“Azriel had a dominant season for us, consistently scoring in double-figures and establishing herself as one of the premier scorers in junior college basketball,” former SUNY Niagara women’s basketball head coach Maliek Agee said. “Beyond her production, she is a high-character student-athlete who represents our program the right way. With her work ethic and talent, her future is extremely bright, especially considering she’s only a freshman.”
Shooting 54.1% from the field, Hall finished in double-digit scoring in all 25 games, including 11 games with at least 20 points. Hall also recorded 29 3-pointers and 49 steals (2.0 per game), which ranked second on the Thunderwolves, while her 125 rebounds (5.0 per game) ranked third on the team.
Hall’s 492 points this season are the second most by a first-year player for SUNY Niagara, trailing only Emborsky’s 530 in 2018-19. The total is also the sixth-most in a single season over the last 10 seasons (since 2016-17), with Redfern’s 734 in 2018-2019 still the most.
Hall also made single-game history when she recorded a season-high 40 points in SUNY Niagara’s 100-59 win versus Lakeland Community College on February 1. She became the program’s first 40-point scorer since 1998 graduate Michelle Milleville did in a 72-46 win versus Niagara College (Ont.) on Dec. 15, 1997.
A former two-time Niagara Frontier League first team selection and just the 10th 1,000-point scorer in Lockport girls basketball history, Hall was also named the NJCAA Region III Div. II player of the year and an all-tournament selection in March. Hall is the fifth Thunderwolf to win this honor in the last six seasons and the eighth overall, joining Kristine Ripson (2013), Welch (2014), Redfern (2019), Emborsky (2020), Forbes (2021) and Alessandra (2024).
Azriel Hall Game Log:
19 points, 5 rebounds, three assists, four steals versus Lackawanna College, Nov. 1 (W 112-48 win)
21 points, 5 rebounds at Harcum College, Nov. 2 (L 99-76)
19 points, 6 rebounds, three assists, two steals versus WVU Potomac State College, Nov. 7 (W 100-65)
23 points, seven rebounds, two steals versus Garrett College, Nov. 8 (W 84-61)
23 points, nine rebounds, four assists, four steals versus Allegany College of Maryland, Nov. 9 (W 92-41)
24 points, five rebounds, one assist, one steal at St. Clair County Community College, Nov. 13 (W 63-59)
18 points, five rebounds, one assist, one steal versus Lansing Community College, Nov. 14 (L 82-76)
13 points, five rebounds, five steals versus Pima Community College, Nov. 15 (L 91-54)
22 points, seven rebounds, two assists versus Beaver County Community College, Nov. 22 (L 106-101)
12 points, four rebounds, four assists versus Villa Maria College, Nov. 23 (W 90-30)
22 points, six rebounds, two assists, three steals versus Corning Community College, Dec. 3 (W 100-57)
14 points, three rebounds, one steal versus Mid Michigan College, Dec. 13 (L 81-62)
11 points, one rebound, two assists, two steals versus Schoolcraft College, Dec. 14 (L 75-47)
16 points, eight rebounds, two assists, four steals at Lorain County Community College, Dec. 20 (W 100-45)
27 points, five rebounds, two assists, four steals versus Herkimer College, Jan. 6 (W 88-61)
23 points, seven rebounds, one assist, three steals at Lakeland Community College, Jan. 12 (W 84-56)
13 points, five rebounds at Monroe University, Jan. 17 (L 88-55)
13 points, one rebound, one assist, two steals versus Montgomery College (Md.), Jan. 18 (W 69-61)
13 points, two rebounds, one assist, one steal at CCBC Essex, Jan. 24 (L 69-62)
27 points, six rebounds, four assists, three steals, season-high 5-of-7 3-point at Jamestown Community College, Jan. 28 (W 85-61)
19 points, four rebounds, two assists, two steals versus Monroe Community College, Feb. 4 (W 90-69)
30 points, six rebounds, three assists versus Jamestown Community College, Feb. 7 (W 98-63)
40 points, seven rebounds, two assists, one steal versus Lakeland Community College, Feb. 15 (W 100-59)
18 points, four rebounds, two assists, three steals at Monroe Community College, Feb. 21 (L 65-62)
12 points, two rebounds, one assist versus Monroe Community College, March 1, NJCAA Region III Div. II Championship (L 84-76)