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Richmond, Va. – The Saint Joseph's Hawks hit just one three-pointer on the night but it was with just one second remaining in regulation of a tie game to push past the Fordham women's basketball team and advance to tomorrows Atlantic 10 semifinals. With the loss, the Rams fall to 22-9 on the year, while the Hawks improve to 17-13 overall. Fordham now awaits word on a postseason invitation.
Fordham led by as much as 14 in the first half but Saint Joseph's erased a 10-point halftime deficit, using a 12-5 run to open the second half and take its first lead of the contest, 30-29. After that, the two schools traded baskets down to the final seconds. Down two with 16 seconds to go, redshirt freshman
Bre Cavanaugh was fouled in the act of shooting behind the arc. Cavanaugh missed her first attempt but hit the final two to tie the game up at 49-49. On the final possession, the ball went to Chelsea Woods, who hit the game winner last Saturday in the Bronx. Double-teamed, Woods found Sarah Veilleux open in the near corner for the go-ahead basket.
#6 Saint Joseph's advances to play #7 Saint Louis in game two of tomorrow's semifinals.
G'mrice Davis finished with a game-high 18 rebounds to go with 13 points for her third straight double-double, while Cavanaugh finished with 17 points, eight rebounds, and three assists over 40 minutes. Davis' 18 rebounds sets a school record for postseason play, dating back to 1996, the earliest it can be tracked.
Lauren Holden chipped in nine points on 3-of-5 shooting from behind the arc and
Mary Goulding added eight points, both playing all 40 minutes.
Fordham slightly won the battle of the boards, 38-37, although the Hawks totaled more on the offensive end, 12-9. Saint Joseph's shot 36.2% from the floor overall but just 1-of-9 from downtown. The Rams shot 34.0% overall and 41.2% (7-of-17) from deep.
Saint Joseph's outscored Fordham in the paint, 30-16, off turnovers, 10-1, and on second-chance opportunities, 8-4.
Davis' final rebound was the 400
th of her season, moving her up to sixth-most in a single season. Holden's three triples pushes her up to eighth with 68 and within three of Becky Peters ('12) for seventh all-time. Her 1,212 minutes played this season are the fifth-most in school history, while Cavanaugh's total of 1,189 ranks seventh. Cavanaugh also entered the all-time top-10 for points in a campaign, with 509. She's also tied with Anne Gregory O'Connell for eighth-most free throws in a season, with 132.
