March 7, 2008

Box Score

PHILADELPHIA - Behind a 68 percent shooting effort in the second half, the sixth-seeded Saint Joseph's women's basketball team topped the 11th-seeded Saint Louis Billikens, 71-58, in the opening round of the Atlantic 10 Championship at Alumni Memorial Fieldhouse. The Hawks advance to face the third-seeded Xavier Musketeers at 6 p.m. Saturday.

Leading 45-41 with 9:47 left in the game, the Hawks put together an impressive 24-6 run over the next 6:01 to all but seal victory. Saint Joseph's shot 10-of-11 from the floor during that stretch, and was 2-of-2 from the foul line, while Saint Louis turned the ball over five times and went just 2-of-4. Saint Joseph's freshman center Sarah Acker and sophomore forward Brittany Ford accounted for 14 points during the SJU run

In the first half both squads traded the lead over the opening five minutes, with the Hawks holding a slight 7-6. Saint Joseph's offense soon took control, posting an 8-2 run over a 1:31 span as junior guard Jenna Loschiavo capped it with a three pointer at 13:02 to give SJU a 15-8 lead.

The Billikens chipped away at the Hawks' lead, cutting it down to 21-19 with 8:55 left in the first half. Saint Louis had four opportunities to tie it or take the lead, but failed to convert.

Saint Joseph's responded, posting a 9-0 run, from 7:34 to 5:32, upping its lead to 30-19, on a layup by sophomore forward Ashley Logue.

Saint Louis outscored SJU 4-1 to end the half, but the Hawks entered the lockerroom up 33-25, as they finished 13-of-29 (44.8 percent) from the floor and 4-of-9 from behind the arc. Saint Joseph's senior guard Timisha Gomez paced all scorers in the opening half with nine points and added two assists and two rebounds.

The Hawks continued to hold their distance early in the second half, but Saint Louis fought back to cut it to a two-possession game near the midpoint of final stanza. Trailing 43-32, the Billikens posted a 7-2 run, from 14:51 to 9:47, to cut the game to four before SJU made its final surge.

For the game, Saint Joseph's shot 30-of-54 from the field (55.6 percent), 6-of-13 from three point range (46.2 percent) and 5-of-6 from the foul line, while out rebounding the Billikens 31-26. At the other end, Saint Louis finished 24-of-53 from the floor (45.3 percent), 1-of-4 from behind the arc and 9-of-15 from the foul line as Katie Paganelli led the way with 13 points for SLU.

Individually, Loschiavo led the way for the Hawks with 16 points, including four three pointers. Gomez was 7-of-11 from the field for 15 points and added a game-high six assists, while Acker posted her 11th double-double of the season with 12 points and a game-high 12 rebounds. Ford led all bench players with 13 points and added two assists and two steals.

OF NOTE:
• Acker's 269 rebounds is a new Saint Joseph's single-season freshman record for rebounds, surpassing Tina Dishman's 261 set during the 1976-77 season.

• Gomez played in her 123rd game as a Hawk. She will tie Kim Foley's (1985-89) all-time games played mark of 124 tomorrow.