Kulyk Registers Double-Double in Career-Night in NJIT's First America East Win Over Binghamton

Freshman Olivia Kulyk registered a double-double, scoring a career-best 21 points and pulling down 12 rebounds leading the Highlanders to a 58-49 home victory over visiting Binghamton in the America East Conference opener Thursday evening inside the Joel and Diane Bloom Wellness and Events Center.

VIDEO: NJIT Highlights | NJIT Postgame w/ ESPN+ Edona Thaqi, head coach Mike Lane and Olivia Kulyk | Post Game Wrap Up with ESPN+ Drew Casey and Assistant Coach Colleen Moriarty

NJIT, winners of two in a row, outscored Binghamton in the fourth quarter, 17-4, improving to 4-10 overall, 1-0 in the America East while Binghamton moved to 8-6 overall, 0-1 in the America East.

Kulyk, a three-time America East Conference Rookie of the Week honoree, finished with a game-best 21 points on 6-of-16 from the field, 4-of-11 from three-point range, 5-of-6 from the free throw line. Her 12 rebounds is a new personal-best.

Alejandra Zuniga chipped in nine points and dished out three assists in the win while Trinity Williams returned back to the court after missing the last month due to injury, combining for eight points on 4-of-5 shooting from the field to go along with four rebounds and two blocks in 23 minutes.

Guards Enya Maguire and Aria Myers each added six and five points respectively for the Highlanders.

Binghamton was led by two players in double-figures – Yanniah Boyd (15 points) and Kendall Bennett (12 points). Bella Pucci grabbed eight rebounds for the Bearcats.

An early 7-2 start by Binghamton in the first quarter, NJIT scored six straight points for the Highlanders first lead of the contest, 8-7, at the 3:26 mark after a basket down low from Trinity Williams. The Bearcats scored eight consecutive points, extending its lead to eight, 19-11, with less than a minute to go.

Binghamton used a 9-2 spurt over the span 5:27 (8-0 over 4:34) to push the Bearcats lead to double-figures, 10, 28-18, at the under-five media of the second quarter. NJIT closed the Binghamton gap on an 8-2 run, heading in the locker room down three, 30-26.

Leading the Highlanders after the first 20 minutes of action was Olivia Kulyk with 10 points and six rebounds while Yanniah Boyd led all scorers with 11 points on 4-of-7 shooting from the field.

A low-scoring third quarter for both teams six minutes into the contest, the Highlanders got hot after a three-pointer by Marissa Gingrich at the 4:02 mark, using an 11-6 spurt to close the Bearcats gap to within two, 43-41, capped by a trey ball by Olivia Kulyk with less than thirty seconds to go in the quarter.

NJIT came on strong in the fourth quarter, outsourcing Binghamton 17-4 en route to a 58-49 home victory and recording the first America East Conference win of the 2025 season.

Next Up
NJIT will have a bye on Saturday and will return to action on Thursday, January 9 at UMBC. Tipoff is slated for 6:30 p.m. on ESPN+.