Women's Basketball Suffers Home Setback to John Jay, 69-55, Wednesday Night

WEST HARTFORD, Conn. — The University of Saint Joseph (USJ) women's basketball team dropped a non-conference hoem game to John Jay College (John Jay), 69–55, Wednesday night inside the James A. Calhoun Gymnasium in West Hartford, Conn. Sophomore guard Nevaeh Yorke (Norwich, Conn.) posted her second double-double of the season, scoring 11 points while hauling in a career-high 12 rebounds. With the result, the Blue Jays fall to 0–7 on the season, while the Bloodhounds moved to 1-7.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The two sides traded shots early in the first as sophomore guards Ella Kulas (Cheshire, Conn.), Trinity Cruz (Windsor Locks, Conn.) and Sequoia Turcotte Briggs (Andover, Conn.) all recorded points to see the Bloodhounds hold a slim 8-6 edge at the 5:18 mark. John Jay would begin to break open a gap, using a quick 4-1 spurt to close the quarter and establish a 16-10 lead.

USJ answered quickly to open the second as junior forward Gjamory'a McTier (Palmer, Mass.) netted back-to-back buckets, closing the gap to two, 16-14, with 8:49 on the clock. However, John Jay took control of the contest, using an 11-3 run to increase the deficit to double-digits, 27-17, with 2:29 left in the half. The Blue Jays answered with a 6-0 run, featuring four points from Yorke, cutting the Bloodhound's edge to 27-23 entering the halftime break.

John Jay grabbed the momentum though to start the third quarter, going on an 8-0 stretch to hold a 35-23 lead with 6:50 on the clock. Kulas put a stop to the run with an old-fashioned three-point play, before Cruz knocked down a triple, followed by a Turcotte Briggs jumper that cut the gap back down to single digits, 39-31, at the 4:13 mark. However, the Bloodhounds answered with a 10-2 run to close the quarter, taking a 49-33 lead into the fourth.

The Blue Jays began to mount a fourth-quarter comeback, opening the fourth on a 10-2 run, featuring a triple from Turcotte Briggs, whittling the disadvantage down to 51-43, with 5:47 left to play. USJ continued to fight back, cutting the gap to six, 57-51, after a 6-0 spurt that saw freshman forward Reagan Heafey-De Angelis (South Windsor, Conn.), Cruz and Kulas find the bottom of the net. However, the Blue Jays would not get any closer, as John Jay held off the Blue Jays late, securing the win, 69-55.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Turcotte Biggs paced the offense with 14 points.

• Kulas and Yorke joined her in double-figures, scoring 13 and 11 points, respectively.

• Yorke hauled in a game and career-high 12 rebounds to notch her second double-double of the year.

• The sophomore guard also dished out a team-best four assists.

• John Jay outshot USJ, 46.6 percent (27-of-58) to 31.1 percent (19-of-61).

• The Bloodhounds won the battle of the boards, outrebounding USJ, 41–35.

• John Jay dominated inside the paint, scoring 42 points from inside.

UP NEXT

The Blue Jays round out a two-game homestand with a matchup against former conference foe Anna Maria College on Monday, December 8. Opening tipoff against the AMCATS inside the James A. Calhoun Gymnasium in West Hartford, Conn., is set for 6:00 p.m.

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