PAXTON, Mass. – Saint Joseph's College (2-3, 1-0 GNAC) defeated Anna Maria College (0-6, 0-1 GNAC), 61-54, in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) men's basketball action on Tuesday evening.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

Saint Joseph's trailed by four (53-49) with 7:05 left in the second half but erased the deficit - and then some - with a 15-1 run spanning the remainder of the contest en route to securing a 61-54 triumph in what was the 2016-17 conference-opener for both programs.

LEADERS – SAINT JOSEPH'S:

• Sophomore guard Darian Berry (Rochester, N.H.) was 5-8 from downtown and 7-10 overall with a game-high 19 points in just 18 minutes on the court
• Senior guard John Crawley (Fitchburg, Mass.) scored nine points with three rebounds
• Senior guard Andrew Ruffen (Salem, N.H.) added eight points with three caroms
• Junior forward Aaron Hall (Haverhill, Mass.) tallied seven points, six rebounds, and five assists
•  Sophomore Marc Corey (Londonderry, N.H.) added five points and nine rebounds

LEADERS – ANNA MARIA:

• Freshman Mike Rapoza (Charlton, Mass.) posted a double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds
• Freshman Malik Forouzan (Houston, Texas) came off the bench to net eight points with four rebounds
• Senior David Jean-Louis (Miramar, Fla.) scored eight points

NOTEWORTHY:

• A Jean-Louis three-pointer with 8:43 left to play was the last field goal made by the AMCATS in the contest – Anna Maria was 0-6 from the floor and 1-5 from the FT line in the closing minutes
• The Monks were 4-6 on free-throw attempts, the fewest freebies made and attempted in a contest this season
• St. Joe's connected for 11 three-pointers in tonight's victory – the most drained by the team this season and highest downtown tally since the Monks made 12 in an 80-71 win over Rivier University on February 9th, 2016
• Tonight's contest featured 11 lead changes and seven tie scores

HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:

With the victory, Saint Joseph's improves to 9-9 in the history of the series with Anna Maria College. Prior to this evening, the Monks had dropped four-consecutive games to the AMCATS with nine setbacks at the hands of their GNAC counterparts in the last 11 meetings dating back to the 2011-12 season – the AMCATS' first as a member of the conference.

NEXT!

Saint Joseph's plays at Suffolk University Saturday in a GNAC tilt slated to begin at 3:15 PM while Anna Maria is set to host conference-rival Mount Ida College Thursday at 5:30 PM.

#GOMONKS 

Follow Saint Joseph's Athletics on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram!

Saint Joseph's College is Maine's only Catholic liberal arts college, providing a supportive, personalized and career-focused education for more than 100 years. From its 474-acre campus on the shores of Sebago Lake, the College offers more than 40 undergraduate programs to a population of approximately 1,000 students. Saint Joseph's College Online provides certificates, undergraduate and advanced degrees for working adults through an online learning program. For more, visit www.sjcme.edu.