Nov. 30, 2005

Box Score

PHILADELPHIA - Saint Joseph's women's basketball team streaked out of the gates to a 12-point lead and never trailed as the Hawks downed Seton Hall 72-48 Wednesday evening at Alumni Memorial Fieldhouse to improve to 4-0 on the season.

Behind a 14-2 run over the opening six minutes, Saint Joseph's took control of the tempo early as senior forward Faith Schutte scored 11 point during the run.

Following a jump shot by Seton Hall's Monique Blake at 13:26, the Hawks reasserted their offense prowess on a 13-4 run over the next five minutes. Saint Joseph's freshman guard Jen Oyler scored six of her career-high 15 during that stretch.

Leading 34-17 with 1:20 remaining, the Hawks scored the final five points of the half to take a 39-17 lead into the lockerroom.

The second stanza had a similar start to it as Saint Joseph's outscored Seton Hall 14-3 over the opening 7:32, taking a 53-20 lead on a pair of Oyler free throws.

Trailing by 32, the Pirates used a full-court press against the Hawks, but could only come as close as 63-41 on a pair of free throws by Brittney Messina at 5:26 as Saint Joseph's outscored the Pirates 8-7 in thw final minutes to earn the victory.

"We had a great night offensively," said Saint Joseph's head coach Cindy Griffin. " Our goal tonight was to come out and be aggressive on offense. We came out focused, put points on the board quickly and we carried that momentum through the entire game."

For the game, Saint Joseph's finished 24-of-55 from the field (43.6 percent) and 4-of-13 from behind the arc (30.8 percent). At the other end, the Pirates shot just 25.4 percent from the floor (15-of-59) and went 2-of-10 from three-point range. The Hawks edged Seton Hall at the free throw line as Saint Joseph's finished 17-of-24 (71.4 percent), while the Pirates shot 16-of-24 (66.7 percent).

Individually, Schutte had a career game from the field, going 6-of-9 from the floor and 5-of-5 from the free throw stripe for 17 points. Oyler was the only other Hawk in double figures, as the Oregon City, Oregon native added 15. Freshman center Hillary Klimowicz added nine points and a team-high 12 rebounds, while junior guard Ayahna Cornish finished with nine. Sophomore forward Krista Hutchison and freshman guard Mary Kate McDade each tallied their first collegiate points on the evening as both went 1-of-2 from the foul line.

Messina paced Seton Hall with 11 points, while Blake added nine points and a game-high 22 rebounds.

With the victory, the Hawks improve to 4-0 on the season, their best start since the 1994-95 season in which they started 5-0. The loss drops the Pirates to 2-3 on the year.

Saint Joseph's returns to action Friday versus Houston in the opening game of the Commerce Bank Wildcat Classic in Manhattan Kansas. Game time is scheduled for 4 p.m.