WRITTEN BY CHRIS THEODORES '25

STANDISH, Maine – #1N Saint Joseph's College (20-5, 15-2 GNAC) will host #4S Johnson & Wales University (10-15, 7-11 GNAC) in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Women's Basketball Tournament Quarterfinal on Tuesday at 5:30 PM.

OVERVIEW:

Tuesday night's victor advances to the semifinal round of the GNAC Tournament and will face the winner of another quarterfinal matchup - #3N Rivier University at #2S Regis College – on Thursday evening, tip-off TBD. The higher seed serves as host throughout tourney play.

The other branch of the bracket features quarterfinal contests between #3S University of Saint Joseph at #2N Emmanuel College and #4N Colby-Sawyer College at #1S Albertus Magnus College.

The winner of the GNAC Championship game, which will be played on Sunday, February 25th, earns an automatic berth into the 2022 NCAA DIII Women's Basketball Championship, which begins on March 3rd.

BRACKETOLOGY:

Tuesday, February 21 - QUARTERFINALS

GAME 1: #4S JWU at #1N Saint Joseph's Maine - 5:30PM
GAME 2: #3N Rivier at #2S Regis - 7:30PM
GAME 3: #3S St. Joseph CT at #2N Emmanuel - 7:30PM
GAME 4: #4N Colby-Sawyer at #1S Albertus Magnus - 5:30PM

Thursday, February 23 - SEMIFINALS

GAME 5: Game 1 winner vs Game 2 winner
GAME 6: Game 3 winner vs Game 4 winner

Saturday, February 25 - CHAMPIONSHIP

GAME 7: at highest remaining seed

SEASON AT A GLANCE

Saint Joseph's:

• The Monks have won sixteen of their last 18 games and own a 10-2 record in Standish this winter
• Nationally, St. Joes ranks sixth in 3FG% (36.1%), seventh in assists average (18.1), and 11th in scoring margin (22.3)
• Saint Joseph's leads the conference in field goal percentage (43.3%), 3FG per game (8.6), 3FG% (36.1%), free throw % (75.2%), and PPG allowed (51.3%)
• St. Joe's also ranks second in points (1840), three point attempts per game (23.7), rebound margin per game (9), APG (18.1)
• Seven different SJC players are scoring at least 5.8 points per game
• St. Joe's averages 71.8 PPG in 12 games at the Harold Alfond Center this season

Johnson & Wales:

• JWU leads the GNAC in blocks average (5.0), and opponents' FG% (33.0).
• The Wildcats are 5-9 and averaging 51.7 PPG on the road this season
• Six different JWU players are averaging at least 7.3 PPG with two contributing at least 10.5 PPG

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Saint Joseph's:

• (#14) Junior guard Hannah Talon (Windham, Maine) leads the team in PPG (13.6), and FG% (54.1%); she ranks second in the conference in FG% (54.1%), third in 3FG% (40.3%), and fourth in FT% (79.4%).
• (#20) Junior guard Angelica Hurley (Groveland, Mass.) has been an all-around contributor for the Monks this season and averages 11.8 points, 7.3 rebounds and 3.2 assists; she ranks sixth in the conference in assists (77)
• (#23) Freshman guard Elisabeth Stapelfeld (Brookline N.H.) is the Monks' third-leading scorer and averages 10.1 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per contest; she ranks fifth in the conference in FG% (49.7%)
• (#11) Junior guard Nina Howe (York, Maine) ranks first in the conference in 3FG% (44.8%) and is third in assists (97); she is the Monks' fourth-leading scorer

Johnson & Wales:

• Junior guard Sarah Wisniewski (Naugatuck, CT.) leads the team in PPG (10.5); she averages 4.5 assists, and 1.7 rebounds per contest.
• Sophomore center Peyton Oliver (Ramsey, N.J.) has been a defensive powerhouse. Ranks first in the conference in blocks (58), second in defensive rebounds (182), and fourth in total rebounds (229); she is the Wildcats' second-leading scorer and averages 10.5 PPG.
• Junior guard Peyton Ryan (Nashua, N.H.) averages 8.3 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 2.1 assist per game; she ranks fourth in the conference in 3PT made (53-152)

ATTITUDE REFLECTS LEADERSHIP:

Saint Joseph's: Mike McDevitt '83 (620-211, .746) – 31st collegiate season

Among the most successful coaches in all of NCAA DIII Women's Basketball, McDevitt ranks 11th among active coaches in victories and 18th in winning percentage. Only two coaches in New England have more wins and just three (10+ years) have a higher win rate.

During his tenure at Saint Joseph's, Coach McDevitt has guided the Monks to at least 20 wins in 21 different seasons, the fifth-highest total in the history of NCAA DIII Women's Basketball, with 18 championships. During his career, McDevitt has garnered 14 'Coach of the Year' accolades, including GNAC top coach honors in 2014, 2017, 2018, and 2019.

With an 89-28 win over Lasell on February 19th, 2022, Coach McDevitt hit a major milestone by becoming the 24th coach in NCAA DIII Women's Basketball history to reach the 600-victory mark. He is one of just 12 active coaches to have reached the landmark.

Johnson & Wales: Kim Dweck (12-37, .245) - third collegiate season

In her first full season at JWU, Coach Dweck oversaw a team that went 2-22 overall with a 2-15 mark in conference play. She has guided the Wildcats to a drastic turnaround this winter with an eight-win improvement and the program's first GNAC Tournament appearance since 2020.

Prior to Johnson & Wales, Dweck served as an assistant coach at Division I Robert Morris University in the Northeast Conference. Before joining the Colonials, she was an assistant coach at Rhode Island College.  Dweck played Division I basketball during her four years at New Jersey Institute of Technology, where she helped lead the team to a Great West Conference championship her senior year.

In her last two seasons at Robert Morris, Dweck was a part of a that led the Colonials to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances after winning the NEC Tournament. On the court, Dweck was primarily responsible for the guards who led RMU to the best three-point shooting percentage in the NEC as well as the number one scoring defense and second-ranked scoring offense.

THE LAST TIME WE MET – Saint Joseph's 76, Johnson & Wales 44 (1/21/23, Standish):

The game was close early, but St. Joe's posted a sizeable run spanning seven minutes in the first and second quarters combined to claim a double-digit lead that would not be relinquished. Leading 11-9 with 4:51 left in the first frame, the hosts recorded a 15-1 surge to extend their advantage to 26-10 with 7:29 before the break. Junior guard Angelica Hurley (Groveland, Mass.) netted six points during the SJC outbreak.

After doubling up the Wildcats, 38-19, in the first half, the Monks put the game well out of reach with a 20-5 run, which was capped by an Elisabeth Stapelfeld (Brookline, N.H.) layup and the Royal Blue on top, 61-29, with 9:18 remaining.

HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:

With the triumph, Saint Joseph's improved to 16-6 all-time versus Johnson & Wales University. The Monks have defeated the Wildcats in 10-consecutive meetings dating back to the 2015-16 campaign.

GNAC TOURNAMENT HISTORY:

The Monks have appeared in the GNAC Tournament in 14 of 15 seasons as a member of the conference and claimed the program's first GNAC Championship in 2014, when the Royal Blue defeated Norwich University, 63-47, in the title game at the Alfond Center on March 1st, 2014.

Including the 2014 title, Saint Joseph's has won four conference championships. The Monks are 20-1 at home – and 22-9 overall - in GNAC postseason play since joining the conference in 2007.

In the midst of their 21st GNAC Tournament run, the Wildcats have advanced to the semifinal round seven times since joining the GNAC in 1996 and played in two GNAC Championship games with a conference crown in 2015.

The Monks and Wildcats have met in the postseason four times with St. Joe's holding a 3-1 record in the tourney series. SJC defeated JWU in the 2020 quarterfinals (59-54), the 2017 semifinals (91-90, 2OT), and the 2013 quarterfinals (59-45) with all three contests being hosted in Standish. The lone JWU win over SJC in the postseason was a 70-62 decision in a 2015 first round game played in Providence.

Overall, Johnson & Wales is 9-20 all-time in GNAC postseason play.