CLAREMONT, CA – Saint Joseph's (7-4) overcame a five-point halftime deficit in a 58-48 victory over Pomona-Pitzer (1-9) in a non-conference women's basketball game on Monday afternoon. Megan McDevitt '12 (Cumberland, ME) scored 16 points and drained four three-pointers in the SJC triumph.

The Sagehens carried a 29-24 lead into the intermission, but saw the advantage slip away thanks to a 3-19 (15.8%) effort from the floor in the second stanza. The Monks, who shot 42.9% (12-28) from the field during the final 20 minutes, secured their first second-half lead 5:25 into the latter frame and did not surrender the advantage for the remainder of the contest.

The victory caps the Monks' two-game set in sunny California. St. Joe's, which fell to Claremont-Mudd-Scripps on December 30th, return to Maine on Wednesday night.

For the Monks, Lindsay Moore '14 (Somersworth, NH) tallied 10 points and five rebounds in 16 minutes of playing time, while Casey Drake '11 (Lebanon, NH) and Ashley Geel '12 (St. George, ME) both registered eight points in the win. Abby Young '14 (North Yarmouth, ME) narrowly missed her first collegiate double-double with eight points and game-high 11 caroms for the Monks.

For the Sagehens, Emily Van Gulik scored 16 points and added nine rebounds and Christina Scheckler netted 15 points. Aside from Van Gulik and Scheckler, who combined to make 50% (10-20) of their shots, the hosts shot just 16.7% (5-30) from the floor in the losing effort.

The teams from opposite coasts swapped leads early. The Monks led 6-4 after Drake dropped a trifecta at the 17:02 mark, but Pomona-Pitzer responded by scoring 10 unanswered points and held a 14-6 lead after Vanessa Ho hit a jumpshot with 12:44 left in the first half.

Still trailing by eight, 18-10, nearly six minutes later, the Royal Blue proceeded to mount a surge of their own, as a pair of McDevitt treys sandwiched a Young bucket to account for an 8-0 run that tied the game at 18-all with 4:55 remaining in the half.

The Monks and Sagehens traded punches over the next three minutes, but the hosts netted a 7-2 run to close out the half with a 29-24 cushion.

In the first half, Saint Joseph's shot 32.1% (9-28) from the floor, 44.4% (4-9) from three-point range, and went 2-2 from the FT line, while Pomona Pitzer shot 38.7% (12-31) from the field, 33.3% (1-3) from beyond the arc and 57.1% (4-7) from the line.

Van Gulik led all scorers with 10 points in the opening stanza. McDevitt's nine first-half points paced the Monks.

Neither team played well in the first five minutes of the second half, but the Monks eventually put it all together and went ahead to stay - and led 32-30 - when Young nailed a jumpshot at the 14:35 mark.

With 11:59 remaining, the SJC cushion had swelled to 37-30 with the help of a 7-0 scoring burst, but the Sagehens crept back into the action with four unanswered freebies. As it turned out, 13 of the hosts' 19 second-half points came from the charity stripe.

Saint Joseph's wouldn't earn a double-digit lead until the 4:21 mark of the second half. The Monks gained a 10-point cushion with some nifty free-throw shooting of their own, as Young, Moore and McDevitt all connected on sets of free throws over a 53-second span. The final two freebies, sunk by McDevitt, put the Monks on top, 50-40.

The Monks shot 37.5% (21-56) overall, 41.7% (5-12) from three-point range and 73.3% (11-15) from the charity stripe during the victory. The Sagehens countered by shooting 30% (15-50) from the field, 14.3% (1-7) from beyond the arc and 63% (17-27) from the FT line in a losing effort.

St. Joe's held a 36-30 advantage on the glass and grabbed 12 steals. Drake led the way with four pilfers and newcomer Theresa Hendrix '14 (Portland, ME/Cheverus) added three loose-ball pickups in the triumph.

Mackenzie Dufour '14 (Augusta, ME) dealt a game-high six assists in the SJC victory.

Saint Joseph's will host non-conference opponent Wesleyan College on Sunday at 3:00 PM.