PHILADELPHIA - Saint Joseph's junior Kathleen Fitzpatrick tallied a career-high 26 points and senior Ciara Andrews became the 25th Hawk in program history to reach 1,000 points as SJU topped Rhode Island, 74-63, Saturday afternoon at Hagan Arena.
Needing just a point to reach 1,000 points, Andrew hit the milestone with SJU's first basket with 8:26 to go in the first. From there, it would be all Saint Joseph's as the Hawks earned the victory on Senior Day.
Behind a barrage of three-pointers by Fitzpatrick, the Hawks (12-14, 6-8 Atlantic 10) took control. Connecting on three of her career-best eight three-pointers, Fitzpatrick gave Saint Joseph's a 25-14 edge after the first quarter.
Rhode Island (11-15, 5-9 A-10) scored the first five points of the second quarter to get within 25-19, but Saint Joseph's answered. Using a 15-0 run, the host Hawks took a 40-19 lead on a three-pointer by Alyssa Monaghan with 2:28 to go in the period.
The Hawks continued to pull away for the Rams in the third as Fitzpatrick hit 4-of-4 from behind the arc, leading to a 63-41 advantage heading into the fourth quarter.
Staying aggressive, the Rams chipped away in the final period, but it wasn't enough as Fitzpatrick and senior Ciara Andrews got key jumpers late in the quarter to preserve the victory.
For the game, Saint Joseph's shot 48.1 percent overall (25-of-52), hit 11-of-23 from three-point range (47.8 percent) and knocked down 13-of-17 from the foul line (76.5 percent).
Joining Fitzpatrick in double figures was sophomore Chelsea Woods who posted her fifth double-double of the year, tallying 11 points to go with 10 rebounds, five assists and three steals. Senior Sarah Fairbanks added 11 points and seven rebounds, while Monaghan finished with 11 points and three assists.
At the other end, Rhode Island went 24-of-68 from the floor (35.3 percent), 8-of-26 from three-point range (30.8 percent) and 7-of-14 from the free throw line. Charise Wilson led three Rams in double figures with 23 points.
The Hawks return to action this Wednesday at home versus Davidson at 7 p.m.
Game Notes: SJU honored its senior class - Andrews, Fairbanks, Jordan Strode, Camie Redfern and Courtney Rowan - in a postgame ceremony...Sophomore Sarah Veilleux added eight points, three boards and two assists...Andrews had a game-high six assists to go with seven points and five rebounds...SJU finished with a 40-32 edge in rebounding...Fitzpatrick's previous career high was 25 at Rhode Island (2/11/15).
