Feb. 18, 2012

Box Score

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Saint Joseph's guard Ashley Prim scored 15 points to lead six Hawks in double figures as Saint Joseph's downed Charlotte, 85-73, Saturday night in a key Atlantic 10 matchup at Halton Arena. The win snapped a three-way tie for third place in the conference as the Hawks moved into sole possession of fourth for the moment at 8-4 and 18-8 overall.

Down 45-40 early in the second half, Saint Joseph's kept it composure and rallied to take the lead, 50-48, on a layup by senior forward Kelly Cavallo off a pass from classmate Katie Kuester at 14:20.

Both teams would trade the lead three times over the next four minutes as Charlotte clung to a 58-57 lead.

That would be the last time Saint Joseph's would trail as the Hawks went on a 12-2 run from there, culminating with a Prim free throw to make it 69-60 with 7:05 to play. SJU was surgical over that span, converting 4-of-5 from the floor and hitting 3-of-4 from the foul line, while limiting the 49ers to just 1-of-2 from the floor and causing three turnovers.

Charlotte (15-11, 7-5 A-10) cut the deficit to 71-66 with just over five minutes to play, but that would be as close as the Hawks would led them get as SJU answered back with four straight points and opening a double figure lead in the final minutes.

In the first half, the Hawks jumped out to an early 7-2 edge, but the 49ers fought back to tie the game at 11-11 on a layup by Jennifer Hailey at 12:19.

Both teams would exchange baskets over the next three possessions before Saint Joseph's got a pair of stops and converted at the other end. A three pointer by sophomore guard Erin Shields and layup by senior center Samira van Grinsven gave the Hawks a 22-17 edge with 6:52 to go in the half.

The lead would change hands four times from there, with Charlotte's Olivia Rankin hitting a jumper with under six seconds to go to give the 49ers a 35-33 lead at the half.

For the game, the Hawks shot 45.8 percent (27-of-59), but converted 59.3 percent of their shots in the second half (16-of-27). Saint Joseph's finished 5-of-15 from three-point range and knocked down 26-of-29 from the foul line (897 percent), while managing just seven turnovers and finishing with a 34-32 edge in rebounding.

Individually, Prim hit 8-of-10 from the foul line and 3-of-9 from the floor for 15 points and added three steals and a pair of assists. Senior guard Michelle Baker added 14 points to go with six rebounds, while van Grinsven, Cavallo, Shields and Robinson all finished with 12 points apiece. On the glass, van Grinsven grabbed a team-best nine rebounds and added a pair of blocked shots, while Kuester's eight points rounded out the Hawks' scoring.

At the other end, Charlotte hit 31-of-62 from the floor (50.8 percent), 5-of-10 from three-point range, but hit just 6-of-14 from the foul line (42.9 percent). Hailey led all scorers with 27 point and added nine rebounds.

The Hawks return to action this Wednesday at Temple. Game time is set for 7 p.m.

Game Notes
Saturday's win is the Hawks' first at Halton Arena. They have now posted a victory at all 13 Atlantic 10 opponent's home arenas ... Junior Shelby Smith and sophomore Ilze Gotfrida both played versus Charlotte.