STANDISH, Maine – The Saint Joseph's College (2-1) women's basketball team defeated Husson University (0-1), 79-61, in what was the Monks' 2015-16 home-opener at the Harold Alfond Center on Thursday night.

THE LEAD

The Monks trailed by as many as seven points early in the first quarter, but closed out the first frame with a 17-7 scoring run, claiming a lead that would not be relinquished for the remainder of the contest.

LEADERS – SAINT JOSEPH'S

• Senior center Morgan Cahill (Yarmouth, Maine) netted a game-high 28 points with six rebounds and four assists and drained 10 of 11 free throw attempts on the evening
• Freshman guard Kelsi McNamara (West Newbury, Mass.) tallied 18 points, six assists, three boards and a pair of steals
• Sophomore guard Emily Quirion (Augusta, Maine) scored 11 points off a 4-6 shooting effort, including a 3-4 performance from beyond the arc

LEADERS – HUSSON

• Kenzie Worcester (Washburn, Maine) paced the Eagles with 13 points and added four assists and three caroms in the loss
• Chandler Guerrette (Presque Isle, Maine) added 12 points with four dimes and four boards
• Victoria McIntyre (Mars Hill, Maine) chipped in with 10 points and a game-high nine rebounds

FIRST QUARTER

• Husson sophomore Kylie Richards (Corinna, Maine) opened the game scoring with a pair of free throws 1:14 into play
• The Monks' first bucket at home this season was scored by sophomore Brianne Maloney (South Portland, Maine), who knotted the game with a layup off an Emily Kehoe (Perkinsville, Vt.) pass 20 seconds later
• Trailing 5-4 after SJC freshman Hannah Marks (Waldoboro, Maine) netted a three-pointer at the 5:14 mark, the Eagles mounted an 8-0 run, which was capped by a Worcester layup at 1:20 later, to secure a 12-5 lead
• A trio of freshmen helped the hosts jump back into play, as Marks, McNamara, Emily Benway (Rochester, N.H.) and Julia Champagne (Brunswick, Maine) all scored to knot the contest at 16-16 with 1:38 left in the first quarter
• The Eagles countered with a three-pointer from Guerrette, but Cahill connected on a layup and McNamara made a pair of shots to make it a 22-19 game heading into the second stanza

SECOND QUARTER

• Saint Joseph's began the second quarter with a 10-2 scoring outburst as Cahill accounted for all the offense during the stretch, which saw the hosts claim a 32-21 cushion with 6:35 before the break
• The Eagles answered with a 17-6 run of their own, cutting the Monks' lead down to 38-36, a score that stood heading into intermission

THIRD QUARTER

• Husson tied the contest at 38-38 on their second possession of the third period, as McIntyre tapped in a layup off a Worcester feed with 8:54 left in the third
• St. Joe's proceeded to post a 13-3 run, with Cahill capping the surge with a layup off a McNamara pass, making it a 51-41 game with 4:49 left third quarter
• The Eagles cut their deficit down to single digits with a Maegan True (Holden, Maine) bucket 21 seconds later, but the Monks outscored the visitors by a 10-2 during the remainder of the third frame, as Cahill closed the run with a traditional three-point play, which lifted the hosts to a 61-45 lead heading into the final stanza

FOURTH QUARTER

• Saint Joseph's proceeded to hold no less than a 14-point cushion for the remainder of the contest
• The Monks held a game-high 22-point lead (78-56) when junior guard Abbie Eastman (Norway, Maine) made a pair of freebies at the 2:28 mark

TEAM STATS

Rebounding (OFF-DEF): Saint Joseph's 32 (7-25), Husson 30 (9-21)

Assists: Saint Joseph's 23, Husson 19

Turnovers: Husson 23, Saint Joseph's 18

Steals: Saint Joseph's 10, Husson 7

FG%: Saint Joseph's 50% (27-54), Husson 40.4% (21-52)

3FG%: Saint Joseph's 46.7% (7-15), Husson 35% (7-20)

FT%: Saint Joseph's 85.7% (18-21), Husson 60% (12-20)

Points off TO's: Saint Joseph's 21, Husson 14

Points in the paint: Saint Joseph's 32, Husson 20

Second chance points: Saint Joseph's 8, Husson 4

Bench points: Saint Joseph's 31, Husson 11

HISTORICALLY SPEAKING

With the victory, Saint Joseph's improves to 39-31 all-time versus Husson University, a team the Monks defeated by an 82-78 margin in double-overtime in Bangor last season.

NEXT!

Saint Joseph's plays at Maine Maritime Academy in a 1:00 PM start on Saturday while Husson is off until Tuesday, December 1st when the Eagles host Maine-Farmington in a conference contest slated for a 5:30 PM tip-off.

HIGHLIGHTS:

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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.