NASHUA, N.H. – Saint Joseph's College (14-5, 6-1 GNAC) defeated Rivier University (8-11, 4-2 GNAC), 67-60, in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) women's basketball contest on Thursday evening. Senior guard Sarah Assante (Standish, Maine) tallied 18 points, nine rebounds, six assists and two steals in the victory.
After trailing for most of the first half, Saint Joseph's transformed a 16-10 deficit into a 23-18 lead after posting a 13-2 run that spanned just over four minutes. Assante netted seven points during the outburst and capped the effort with a layup, lifting the visitors to a five-point lead with 2:16 before the break.
The Raiders quickly tied the with five unanswered points, but sophomore guard Abbie Eastman (Norway, Maine) closed the half with a pair of free throws to provide the Monks with a 25-23 edge heading into intermission.
Assante and freshman guard Hayley Quirion (Augusta, Maine) led the Monks with seven points apiece in the first half while senior guard Deanna Purcell (Hudson, N.H.) scored eight for the Raiders, who shot just 21.4% (6-28) in the opening frame.
St. Joe's managed to hold a lead for the entire of the second stanza, but the contest remained a two-possession proposition until the Royal Blue posted an 11-4 run midway through the latter period. With the Monks ahead by a 42-38 score at the 11:40 mark, junior center Morgan Cahill (Yarmouth, Maine) kicked off the outburst with a traditional three-point play. Sophomore guard Emily Kehoe (Perkinsville, Vt.) netted three-consecutive jumpers to complete the outbreak, with the last bucket providing the visitors with a 53-42 lead and 7:20 left to play.
Rivier cut the Monks' cushion down to five points (61-56) with 1:10 remaining after Purcell and Caitlyn Perry (Nashua, N.H.) both connected from downtown over a 10-second span, but Assante and Kehoe combined to make eight of 10 free throw attempts in the final 90 seconds to clinch the victory.
For Saint Joseph's, Cahill scored 12 points with eight rebounds and three assists, Kehoe recorded 11 points and six boards, Hayley Quirion contributed 10 points and freshman forward Norma Waggett (Saugus, Mass.) added eight points and six caroms on the evening.
For Rivier, Purcell netted a game-high 24 points with five assists, Perry added 12 points, and sophomore forward Savanna Butterfield (Londonderry, N.H.) pulled down a game-high 12 rebounds with four assists in a losing effort.
With the victory, Saint Joseph's improves to 9-4 in the history of the series with Rivier University, a team the Monks defeated by a 69-63 margin in a GNAC Tournament semifinal contest last February.
Both teams hit the road for conference games this Saturday, when Saint Joseph's travels to Norwich University for a 1:00 PM start and Rivier plays at Anna Maria College at 1:00 PM.
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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 430-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.
