PHILADELPHIA, PA (12/06/00) - Nationally ranked Virginia (6-3) received a 26-point, 15-rebound performance from Schuye La Rue and escaped with a 62-58 decision over St. Joseph's (3-4) at Alumni Memorial Fieldhouse. The Hawks were paced by Angela Zampella, who netted 21 points, and Susan Moran, who tallied 19 and 10 rebounds. In the second half, SJU could not find an answer to La Rue. The Cavaliers' "go-to" player down the stretch, she scored 20 points and grabbed 11 caroms in the second half, answering every Hawk basket. With the Crimson and Gray leading by nine at the 13:22 mark, UVA began to whittle away the lead until the contest was knotted at 50-50. Eventually, Virginia crawled ahead by five points, 61-56, on a jumper by La Rue. With less than a minute to play, the Hawks needed help and they nearly received it, as the Cavaliers missed six consecutive free throws. SJU, however, was unable to capitalize on the misses and the Cavaliers held on for the hard fought victory. Following the contest UVA head coach Debbie Ryan had nothing but praise for the Hawks, "I just want to say that I think St. Joe's has a really fine team. Stephanie [Gaitley] does a fine job with them and they are going to beat a lot of people." The Hawks were frigid out of the gate, falling behind 10-0 to start the contest. They connected on their first field goal, a three-point basket by Zampella, at the 10:34 mark. That hoop was the first basket of an 11-0 Hawk run, however, which turned the 10-point deficit into an 11-10 SJU lead. From that point, the contest bounced back-and-forth. The Crimson and Gray took a 26-24 lead into the break. In addition to the 21 points, Zampella added 9 rebounds, one off her career high, and six assists. Moran fiished with her first double-double of the year, netting 19 points and 10 boards. Both fouled out late in the match. Reflecting on the Hawks' two big guns, Ryan commented, "If Zampella is their heart, then Moran is their soul. You look at those two players and they are just so tough. They get so much out of those two it amazes me." SJU will next take the floor on Saturday, December 9, as it hosts Villanova in the second game of an Atlantic 10/Big Five doubleheader at the Fieldhouse. Temple and Penn will meet in the first game of the twin-bill at noon. The Hawks and Wildcats will then face-off in the annual "Holy War" at 2:00 p.m. St. Joseph's will then take a 12 day hiatus during exams, before returning to the floor on December 21 at Rutgers.