STANDISH, Maine – Saint Joseph's College (9-3, 1-0 GNAC) topped Albertus Magnus College (6-6, 0-2 GNAC), 83-71, in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) women's basketball contest at the Harold Alfond Center on Saturday afternoon. Freshman guard Kelsi McNamara (West Newbury, Mass.) led all scorers with 25 points in what was the Monks' 2015-16 conference opener.
THE LEAD
The Monks picked up their first GNAC victory of the season with the help of a solid effort from the bench, as Brianne Maloney (South Portland, Maine), Norma Waggett (Saugus, Mass.) and Hannah Marks (Waldoboro, Maine) paced a strong second unit by netting 25 points, collectively.
The conference counterparts played close in the early going, but the Monks started the second stanza with a 16-4 run and held a 33-22 cushion with 5:59 (69-52) before the break. St. Joe's maintained a 43-36 lead at intermission and owned a game-high 17-point advantage with four seconds left the fourth quarter.
The Falcons did not go down easily, however, as the visitors rallied with a late 12-4 outbreak to cut the hosts' lead to 79-71 with 59 seconds remaining. Saint Joseph's managed to hold off the visitors as senior Morgan Cahill (Yarmouth, Maine) hit a layup and McNamara netted a pair of freebies in the closing 10 seconds to account for the 83-71 final.
GAME HIGHLIGHTS:
LEADERS – SAINT JOSEPH'S
- Cahill added 14 points with six rebounds and a pair of steals
- Maloney tallied 11 points and five caroms
- Waggett produced seven points and five rebounds in 14 minutes off the bench
- Marks netted seven points with a trio of boards
- Freshman Emily Benway (Rochester, N.H.) contributed four points with a team-high seven rebounds
LEADERS – ALBERTUS MAGNUS
- Senior Kelsey Pendagast (Shelton, Conn.) notched a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds
- Sophomore Olivia Bolden (South Windsor, Conn.) scored 18 points with six boards
- Junior Liz Falcigno (Wallingford, Conn.) chipped in with 17 points, four caroms, three assists and two steals
TEAM STATS
Saint Joseph's shot 43.9% (29-66) from the floor, 40% (8-20) from three-point distance and 73.9% (17-23) from the free-throw line. Albertus Magnus shot 38.7% (24-62) overall, 26.7% (4-15) from downtown and 61.3% (19-31) from the FT line.
The Monks held slight advantages in rebounds (44-41), assists (15-14), turnovers (10-11) and points in the paint (36-32) while the Falcons led in points off turnovers (16-13) and second-chance points (19-16) on the afternoon.
NOTEWORTHY
For the Monks, today's victory is just the team's third since 2003 when allowing an opponent to score 70 or more points (in regulation)…St. Joe's is 3-52 over the last 13 seasons when foes reach the 70-point barrier…the Monks' last win when an opponent scored over 70 points: February 27th, 2014 when Saint Joseph's topped Rivier University, 79-72, in a GNAC Tournament Semifinal at the Alfond Center…the team record for most points allowed in a victory came in a 103-97 triumph over Colby College on February 26th, 1991.
HISTORICALLY SPEAKING
With the victory, Saint Joseph's remains undefeated – with a perfect 11-0 record – in the history of the series with Albertus Magnus College.
NEXT!
Both teams return to play on Tuesday, when Saint Joseph's hosts in-state rival Colby College at 7:00 PM and Albertus Magnus faces University of Saint Joseph in a GNAC game slated to start at 7:00 PM.
#GOMONKS
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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.
