WEST HARTFORD, Conn. – Saint Joseph's College (11-3, 6-0 GNAC) held off University of Saint Joseph (9-6, 5-3 GNAC), 65-60, in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) women's basketball contest on Saturday afternoon.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
The Monks held a comfortable 56-40 lead heading into the fourth quarter, but the Blue Jays quickly cut their deficit down to just seven points (56-49) with a 9-0 run in the first three minutes of the final frame.
A layup from senior forward Mikayla Van Zandt (Westbrook, Maine) halted the SJC scoreless drought at the 6:41 mark and an Elisabeth Stapelfeld (Brookline, N.H.) jump shot made it a 60-51 game with 5:13 remaining. As it played out, the Monks did not make another shot for the rest of the contest with an 0-for-7 effort from the floor in the closing five minutes.
USJ proceeded to net seven unanswered points as a Janai Oliver free throw closed out the run and cut the hosts' margin down to just two (60-58) with 24 seconds on the clock. Fortunately for the Monks, time was on their side and the Blue Jays were forced to foul. Junior guard Angelica Hurley (Groveland, Mass.) was tagged three times as the clock wound down and made 5-of-6 FT attempts to help her team clinch the victory.
STATS OF THE GAME:
Saint Joseph's scored 22 points off 14 USJ turnovers while the Blue Jays netted only five points on 12 SJC miscues…The Monks also held an 18-9 lead in second-chance points and a 19-12 advantage in bench points on the afternoon…SJC managed to win despite shooting just 12.5% (2-16) – and going 0-for-6 from downtown - in the fourth quarter.
LEADERS – SAINT JOSEPH'S:
- Hurley recorded her fourth double-double of the season with 16 points and 10 rebounds and added six steals and four assists
- Stapelfeld tallied 14 points with four boards
- Junior guard Hailey Anderson (Beverly, Mass.) came off the bench to net 12 points on 5-for-8 shooting in 19 minutes
- Van Zandt chipped in with six points and pulled down a career-high 10 rebounds – including six on the offensive glass – in 16 minutes off the bench
LEADERS – UNIVERSITY OF SAINT JOSEPH:
- Maya Slisz scored 17 points with three rebounds, three assists, and a pair of steals
- Jordan Ouellette added 14 points and five rebounds
- Taylor Verboven contributed 13 points, four boards, and two assists
- Oliver left the bench to net five points and pull down seven rebounds in 17 minutes
HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:
With the victory, Saint Joseph's improves to 13-2 all-time versus University of Saint Joseph and has now defeated the Blue Jays in seven straight meetings dating back to the 2015-16 campaign.
NEXT!
Saint Joseph's will host Emmanuel College in a rematch of the 2022 GNAC Championship on Tuesday at 5:30 PM.
