Skip to content
Sports
Link copied to clipboard

Saint Joseph's Women's Basketball Tops Providence, 64-49, in Season Opener

    by Saint Joseph's Athletics, Saint Joseph's
    Published 

The Saint Joseph's women's basketball team shot 52.9 percent from the field as it opened the 2010-11 season with a 64-49 victory over Providence Friday evening at Hagan Arena.

The Hawks shot 27-of-51 from the floor for the game and got 55 points from their junior class en route to the win.

In a very close first half, Saint Joseph's (1-0) held the lead for nearly eight minutes early on before the Friars came back to regain the advantage. Down 15-10, Providence took its first lead since the opening minutes on a three pointer by Miranda Tate at 8:17. From there though, Saint Joseph's went on an 11-2 run as sophomore guard Ashley Prim gave her squad a 26-19 edge on a fast-break layup with 2:57 left in the opening half.

Up 30-23 to start the second stanza, Saint Joseph's quickly pulled away from the Friars. A jump shot by junior forward/center Samira Van Grinsven at 17:01 capped a 6-0 run that saw the Hawks open their first double-digit lead of the game. Junior forward Kelly Cavallo gave SJU a 47-32 lead on a put-back layup at 13:10, but the Providence fought back, making it a 55-46 game with 6:06 left on a layup by Symone Roberts.

The Friars would get no closer as a pair of free throws by junior guard Katie Kuester sparked a 7-0 run that put the game away for Saint Joseph's For the game, Saint Joseph's went 8-of-11 from the foul line (72.7 percent) and 2-of-8 from behind the arc, while scoring 40 points in the paint. At the other end, Providence was held to just 31.3 percent from the floor (20-of-64), while going 3-of-7 from three-point range (42.9 percent) and 6-of-11 from the foul line (54.5 percent).

Individually, junior Michelle Baker led the Hawks with a career-best 16 points, while Cavallo added 14 points and a team-best nine rebounds. Van Grinsven, playing her first game as a Hawk after transferring from Casper College, added 12 points, five boards and seven blocked shots, with Kueter accounting for both SJU three pointers in a 13-point performance.

Additionally, Prim handed out a team-best six assists to go with six points, with freshman Erin Shields adding two points and three assists. Sophomore guard/forward Mireia Vila capped the Hawks' scoring with a point and three assists. Teya Wright and Mi-Khida Hankins each scored 12 points to lead Providence (0-1).

Saint Joseph's returns to action Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Sacred Heart.