Skip to navigation Skip to content Skip to footer
T’Wolves finish season as NJCAA Region III Div. II runners-up; Bull, Karabetsos, Walker log final game in blue-and-gold
Posted: Mar 02, 2026

T’Wolves finish season as NJCAA Region III Div. II runners-up; Bull, Karabetsos, Walker log final game in blue-and-gold

*** PHOTO COURTESY OF GEOFF SCHNEIDER (GMSPHOTOWNY) ***

 

SUNY Niagara saw its season come to a close in an 84-76 loss versus Monroe CC in the NJCAA Region III Div. II championship Sunday in Sanborn. This was the Thunderwolves’ first meeting with the Tribunes since a 65-62 regular-season finale loss Feb. 21 in Rochester. 

The Thunderwolves entered the contest looking for their eighth consecutive and overall championship since 2019. The win marked Monroe CC’s first region divisional title since 2018.

The Thunderwolves had a 21-13 lead at the end of the first quarter as Isabella Karabetsos hit a buzzer-beating 3-pointer. SUNY Niagara then built a 37-30 at halftime before the Tribunes scored 54 points in the second half and Zakieya Williams finished with a game-high 37 points.

Sophomore Isabella Karabetsos scored a team-high and career-high 27 points on 10-of-17 shooting and went 4-of-9 from beyond the arc. She also recorded six assists and logged a team-best 37 minutes.

Freshman Shania Beylo scored 13 points in 27 minutes off the bench on 4-of-6 shooting and 2-of-4 from the 3-point line. Beylo also had three rebounds, three assists and one block.

Freshman Azriel Hall scored 12 points on 4-of-10 shooting along with two rebounds and one assist. Freshman Anna Astre had nine points and seven rebounds and sophomore Atarah Walker had nine points and six rebounds.

Sophomore Ava Bull had six points, seven rebounds, two assists, one steal and one block. Freshman Alana Rivers had three rebounds and two assists.

Freshman Allison Milleville had two rebounds, one assist and one block. Freshman Adriana Kennedy had one rebound.

SUNY Niagara shot 29-of-61 (47.5%) from the field, went 8-of-24 (33.3%) from the 3-point line and converted 10 of 17 attempts at the free-throw line (58.8%). The Thunderwolves also recorded 17 assists but only three steals. 

SUNY Niagara finished the season with a 15-10 record and were 7-4 since the start of the calendar year. The 15 wins under Maleik Agee are a new single-season record for a first-year coach in program history and surpassed Nate Beutel’s 13-15 finish in 2012-13. The Thunderwolves have posted 10-win campaigns in 13 of the last 14 seasons (since 2012-13). 

 

Four members of SUNY Niagara women’s basketball received honors from NJCAA Region III Div. II on Saturday. Azriel Hall was named Region III Div. II Player of the Year. Isabella Karabetsos was picked as a first-team All-Region III Div. II selection for a second time in her career and Anna Astre was a second-team All-Region III Div. II honoree. Head Coach Maleik Agee was named Region III Div. II Coach of the Year.

 

The following were named to the 2026 NJCAA Region III Div. II All-Tournament team:

 

Azriel Hall SUNY Niagara

Isabella Karabetsos SUNY Niagara

Taryn Goodness Monroe CC

Rihanna Love Monroe CC

Mila Espinoza Jamestown CC

 

MVP of Tournament: Zakieya Williams Monroe CC 

 

 

NOTES:

 

  • With the career-high 27 points, Karabetsos recorded just her third 20-point game of her career (21 vs CCBC Essex, Feb. 2, 2025; 20 vs Jamestown CC, Feb. 7, 2026). Karabetsos also reached double-digit scoring in 12 of SUNY Niagara’s last 13 games (33 in career) this season since a 12-point outing in a 75-47 loss versus Schoolcraft College on Dec. 14.

 

  • Karabetsos finished this season with a team-high 151 assists and is 11th among all NJCAA Division II players (average of 6.04), as of March 1. Karabetsos also finished tied for 11th last season with 191 assists (5.8 per game).

 

  • A sophomore guard from Brampton, Ont., Karabetsos recorded 622 points and 345 assists in 57 career games. Karabetsos joined 2023 graduate Aichata Ballo as the only SUNY Niagara women’s basketball players with at least 500 career points and 300 assists in a career over the last 10 seasons (since 2016-17). Ballo recorded 809 points and 389 assists in 81 career games from 2020-2023. Her 622 career points are now 14th all-time in program history.

 

  • In 25 career games, Hall recorded 492 points (team-high 19.7) and 125 rebounds (5.0) in 29.5 minutes per contest. She is ranked 17th among all NJCAA Division II players in points per game, as of March 1. Hall’s 492 points are the second most by a first-year player for SUNY Niagara, trailing only Paige Emborsky’s 530 in 2018-19, and are the sixth-most in a single season over the last 10 seasons (since 2016-17). Kenetria Redfern holds the single-season mark over this span with 734 in 2018-19.

 

  • With the 13 points, Beylo reached double-digit scoring for the eighth and final time this season. It was also the most points she had scored in a game since her back-to-back 15-point outings versus Herkimer and Lakeland CC (Jan. 6 - Jan. 12). The former Binghamton High School guard averaged 7.1 points, 2.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists and played 21.2 minutes per game. 

 

  • In 57 career games, Bull posted 446 points and 451 rebounds, nine career double-doubles and posted at least 10 rebounds in a contest 16 times (eight in each season) with SUNY Niagara. The sophomore and Burlington, Ont. native averaged 7.3 points and 7.8 rebounds in 25.2 minutes per contest this season. 

 

  • In 53 career games, Walker recorded 468 points and 474 rebounds, 14 career double-doubles, and posted at least 10 rebounds in a contest 21 times (9 times this season) with the Thunderwolves. The former Niagara Falls High School star is tied for 67th in rebounds per game among all NJCAA Division II players with her team-best 9.1, as of March 1. 

 

  • SUNY Niagara went 6-3 in Sanborn this season. Over the last 10 seasons (since 2016-17), the Thunderwolves are 95-10 in Niagara County and have won 56 of 61 home games since the 2021-22 campaign. SUNY Niagara has won at least 10 home contests in each of the last four years and five times overall in the 10-season span. 

 

  • SUNY Niagara finished 2-5 in games decided by 10 points or less this season.