STANDISH, Me. - The Albertus Magnus College women's basketball team opened Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) play with a 75-50 road setback against the Monks of Saint Joseph's College of Maine on Saturday afternoon. Caitlyn Scott (White Plains, N.Y.) and Katherine Raposo (Warwick, R.I.) led the Falcons attack, pouring in 16 points and 13 points, respectively.
THE BASICS
Final: Saint Joseph's Maine 75 | Albertus Magnus 50
Records: Albertus Magnus (0-6, 0-1 GNAC) | Saint Joseph's Maine (6-1, 1-0 GNAC)
Box Score
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Falcons struck first on a made jumper from Jakara Murray-Leach (Norwalk, Conn.) 34 seconds into the opening quarter, giving the blue-and-white the early 2-0 lead. The teams traded shots for the next five minutes, playing to a 6-6 tie as Scott and Raposo both nailed jumpers for the Falcons.
The Monks pulled away after that, putting together an 8-2 run over the final five minutes of the first to take a 14-8 lead, with Murray-Leach hitting another jumper at the 3-minute mark to close the deficit to six and send the teams into the second stanza.
The Monks continued to press their advantage, opening up the second quarter with three straight made free throws to go up, 17-8, before a Monks foul sent Scott to the charity stripe, where she swished both baskets to make it a 17-10 game. Diamond White (Hamden, Conn.) followed up with a short jumper to cut the deficit to five, 17-12, but the Falcons run was cut short when Monks' Kaleigh Walsh sent a long shot through the net for the trey, expanding the host's lead to eight, 20-12, with 6:54 on the clock.
Saint Joseph's (Me) continued to push its lead, scoring again and making it a 10-point game with 6:13 left in the quarter, forcing an Albertus time-out. Out of the break, Natasha Rivera (Ansonia, Conn.) found herself with the ball and quickly sent a short jumper through the net to cut the deficit to eight, 22-14.
The teams traded blows following the Rivera jumper, with Murray-Leech swooshing another trey and the Monks following up with a made free throw and jumper to make it a 29-17 game with 3:29 left to play in the half. The teams continued to battle basket-to-basket, before Scott hit back-to-back jump shots to make it an eight-point game, 31-23, with two minutes remaining in the half. The Monks took control of the game from there, ending the half on a 9-0 run and sending the teams into the halftime break, with the Falcons trailing 40-23.
Saint Joseph's (Me) didn't let up to start off the third quarter as the hosts opened the frame with a 10-3 run to take a commanding 50-26 lead over the Falcons with 5:04 left to play. Raposo took over from there, pouring in eight points behind three straight jumpers, with one of them coming from behind the arc to make it a 53-33 game. The Monks regained control offensively, ending the third quarter with a 10-1 run and sending the teams into the final stanza, with the Falcons down 63-34.
Rivera opened the fourth quarter with a three-point play before the Monks responded with a pair of made free throws. The teams traded baskets, pushing the score to 67-39, before the Falcons exploded for a 9-0 run, as Scott netted seven straight points, behind a three-point swoosh, a made jumper, and a lay-up, while Raposo followed up with her own made lay-up that forced a Monk's time-out with the score sitting at 67-48.
Despite the offensive surge, the Falcons were unable to fend off the Monk's final attack. The hosts closed out the game with an 8-2 push to seal the game and cement the 75-50 victory.
TEAM STATS
- Albertus: 31.3 % FG | 15.0 % 3PT | 38.5 % FT
- Saint Joseph's Maine: 39.7 % FG | 44.0 % 3PT | 77.8 % FT
KEY PERFORMERS
Albertus:
- Caitlyn Scott- 16 points (6-12 FG, 1-4 3PT, 3-4 FT) | 4 rebounds | 2 assists | 3 steals
- Katherine Raposo- 13 points (6-17 FG, 1-4 3PT, 0-2 FT) | 6 rebounds | 2 assists | 4 steals
- Jakara Murray-Leach - 9 points (4-14 FG, 1-7 3PT, 0-2 FT) | 3 rebounds | 1 assist | 1 steal
Saint Joseph's (Me):
- Cassandra Staplefield- 17 points (5-15 FG, 4-6 3PT, 3-4 FT) | 5 rebounds | 4 assists | 1 block
- Jayne Howe - 15 points (7-12 FG, 1-2 3PT) | 10 rebounds | 2 assists
- Grace Phillipon- 15 points (4-5 FG, 2-3 3PT, 5-6 FT) | 8 rebounds | 1 assist | 1 steal
- Kaleigh Walsh - 10 points (4-9 FG, 2-6 3PT) | 9 rebounds | 2 assists
NOTEWORTHY
- This is the 18th all-time meeting between the two programs.
- The Monks hold the edge with an 18-0 record.
- This is Scott's fourth game this season with 10+ points.
- Murray-Leech had a season-high nine points in the contest.
- The Falcons recorded a season-low eight turnovers.
UP NEXT
The women's basketball continues conference play with a home game against the AMCATS of Anna Maria College on Wednesday, Dec. 8. Tip-off is set for 5:30 PM in New Haven, Conn.
