PHILADELPHIA – Trailing by 11 points, 51-40, with 1:35 remaining in regulation, the Hawks tore off for seven unanswered points to bring the game to within four, but time would run out on the Crimson and Gray as the Saint Joseph's women's basketball squad (9-18, 3-12 A-10) fell to UMass (18-10, 8-7 A-10) by a final score of 51-47 in the 2020 home finale in Hagan Arena on Wednesday evening.

Sophomore guard Katie Jekot dropped 16 points for her 17th double-figure scoring game of the season and dished out a career-high seven assists while sophomore forward Katie Mayock added 10 points and a game-high two blocks and freshman guard Kaliah Henderson chipped in eight points.

How It Happened
Q1 and Q2 – Leading 8-7 after the first quarter, the Minutewomen opened the second half on a 6-2 run to take a five-point advantage, 14-9, at the 5:52 mark. However, the Hawks battled back as Jekot hit seven of the game's next 11 points to push SJU ahead by two, 18-16, at the halftime break.

Q3 – UMass opened the third quarter on a 9-1 run and held Saint Joseph's scoreless from the field for 3:36 to go up by six, 25-19, before a steal by senior guard Nailah Delinois (6:39) led to a Mayock lay-up on the other end (6:24) to stop the field goal drought. Henderson would then hit back-to-back buckets to keep the Hawks within two, 27-25, but the Hawks shot 1-of-5 from the field and turned the ball over three times in the final 84 seconds of the third quarter and the Minutewomen cashed in to extend their lead to nine points, 36-27, to close the third.

Q4 – The Hawks shot 57.1 percent in the fourth quarter. With SJU trailing by 10 points, 48-38, Newman hit back-to-back jumpers (8:27, 7:48), junior guard Mary Sheehan (5:24) and Jekot (3:59) hit big three-pointers, and Mayock drilled a jumper (3:14) to keep the Hawks to within seven, 47-40. UMass scored four unanswered points to take an 11-point lead into the final 1:35, but the Hawks staged a furious rally. Mayock opened the 7-0 run with a lay-up (1:19) before Sheehan followed with a block, which led to a deep three from Jekot on the other end of the floor (:42). However, the Hawks ran out of time as a Sheehan jumper with two ticks to go saw the Hawks trail by four, 51-47, as time expired.

Next Up
Saint Joseph's closes the regular season at Fordham (18-10, 10-5 A-10) this Saturday, February 29. Opening tip is set for 2:00 p.m. at Rose Hill Gym in the Bronx.