TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Florida State’s trio of junior captains led the Seminoles to a 101-49 victory on Sunday over Flagler College in an exhibition game at the Donald L. Tucker Center.
Redshirt junior forward Kiah Gillespie led the Seminoles with 24 points on 10-of-13 shooting. The Blue Ribbon Panel Newcomer Watch List member added five rebounds in her debut for the Garnet and Gold.
“I definitely learned the traditions and the values from just how hard they went last year. Sitting out made me really want to come in this year and really just show that,” Gillespie said.
“I knew this team was going to need leadership and with Nicki [Ekhomu] and Nausia [Woolfolk] I think we can do a lot of things. Sitting out and seeing that was really helpful to me and I knew what I had to do already coming into this year.”
Junior guard Nausia Woolfolk contributed 19 points on the afternoon and five rebounds of her own. Her fellow junior guard, Nicki Ekhomu, added 11 points and led Florida State with nine assists. The Seminoles’ three captains combined to score 36 of Florida State’s 51 first-half points.
“Nicki [Ekhomu] and Nausia [Woolfolk] are obviously the two that have seen significant playing time in the ACC,” Florida State Head Coach Sue Semrau said. “Beyond that Kiah Gillespie has been tremendous in her leadership role. Those three are the ones that are going to have to hold it down, but there’s a lot of players that can step up and do some things for us.”
Freshman forward Valencia Myers led the newcomers with 17 points and five rebounds Sunday afternoon. Myers went 7-of-9 on the day and led the Seminoles with four steals.
“She’s [Valencia Myers] one of the best low-block scorers that we’ve had here. She’s just figuring it all out,” Semrau said. “As a freshman, you’re figuring out the tempo, you’re figuring out what to do on the defensive side. She’s somebody that’s extremely capable and we just have to continue to help her grow.”
Redshirt freshman guard Sayawni Lassiter added 12 points on the afternoon, all of which came from 3-point range, shooting 4-of-6 from beyond the arc. Freshman guard Amaya Brown contributed eight points and was the fifth different Seminole to record five rebounds.
The Seminoles shot 57.6 percent (38-of-66) from the floor, including 11-of-22 from 3-point range. From the free throw line, Florida State shot 82.4 percent (14-of-17), including 100 percent on nine attempts in the second half.
“Now you put on the uniform, you have people in the stands, it’s a whole ‘nother feeling,” Semrau said. “We thought there are a lot of things that we could learn from, but I do think that we overcame a lot of things and we’ll learn from it and we’ll continue to learn throughout the season.”
Florida State begins its 2018-19 season at home on Tuesday, Nov. 6 at 11 a.m. against Troy. The game will serve as Field Trip Day at the Donald L. Tucker Center.
