Dec. 28, 2005

Box Score

PHILADELPHIA - The Saint Joseph's women's basketball team advanced to the title game of the 15th Annual Hawk Classic thanks in part to a jumpshot by sophomore Timisha Gomez with 2.4 seconds remaining as the Hawks downed Iona 52-50.

With the scored knotted at 50 apiece with just over 30 seconds remaining, Saint Joseph's brought the ball up the court and held for a last-second shot. Gomez received a pass with just over 10 seconds remaining and drove down the middle, spinning around Iona's Martina Weber at the top of the key. Getting past Weber, Gomez stopped and made an uncontested jumpshot from 12 feet to put the Hawks ahead 52-50.

A last-second heave by Iona was off the mark as Saint Joseph's earned the victory, advancing to the title game of the 15th Annual Hawk Classic.

In a game that saw 11 lead changes, The Hawks fought back from an early deficit to take a 12-8 lead on a three-pointer by freshman guard Jenna Loschiavo at 10:17.

Following a 5-0 Iona run that gave the Gaels a 13-12 edge, Saint Joseph's responded with a 5-0 run of their own to take a 17-13 lead on another Loschiavo three pointer.

Over the final five minutes, Iona outscored the Hawks 5-4 to cut Saint Joseph's lead to 21-18 at the half.

In the second stanza, the Gaels pressured the Hawks, causing three turnovers in the opening four minutes, allowing Iona to take a 24-23 edge.

With the score knotted at 26 at 14:21, Saint Joseph's went on a 15-7 run over the next six minutes. Hawks' freshman guard Jen Oyler accounted for 11 of Saint Joseph's 15 points during the run.

Despite trailing by nine, 43-34, Iona fought back and behind a 14-1 run, took a 48-44 lead on a Melissa Yeagley three-pointer at 2:56.

Facing its biggest deficit of the game, the Hawks responded by scoring the next six points to take a 50-48 lead on a layup by freshman Hillary Klimowicz with 52 seconds remaining.

Iona tied the score at 50 as Weber added two of her game-high 17 with 32 seconds remaining.

Thankfully for the Hawks, Gomez knocked down a jumper with two seconds remaining to help Saint Joseph's earn the victory.

For the game, the Hawks shot 37 percent from the field (20-54), while the Gaels finished 20-of-51 for 39.2 percent. Both teams added seven free throws apiece, while Iona won the battle on the boards 35-30.

Individually, Klimowicz paced the Hawks with 14 points, six rebounds and three blocks, while Oyler added 11 points off the bench.

For Iona, Weber led all scorers with 17 points and added eight rebounds and three steals.

With the victory, the Hawks improve to 8-2 overall and surpass their victory total for all of 2004-05 (seven). The loss drops the Gaels to 3-6 on the season. Saint Joseph's will face Delaware in the title game of the 15th Annual Hawk Classic, while Iona and Bowling Green open play in the consolation game at 2 p.m. at Alumni Memorial Fieldhouse.

In the nightcap, Delaware outscored the Falcons 31-23 in the second half to earn a 48-44 decision. The Fightin' Blue Hens were led by Tyresa Smith's 12 points, while Ali Mann scored a game-high 14 for Bowling Green. The loss also snapped the Falcons 8-0 start to the season.