PHILADELPHIA  – Trailing by as many as 23 points in the first half, the Saint Joseph's women's basketball team nearly clawed back as the Hawks' comeback bid fell short in a 71-65 effort against Fordham on Sunday afternoon.
 
The Hawks move to 14-5 on the season, 4-3 in Atlantic 10 action. Fordham moves to 13-7, 5-2 in the A-10.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Hawks garnered an early 6-4 lead through three different scorers to get things started inside Hagan Arena. However, the visitors responded with a 13-0 run to gain a 17-6 advantage before Talya Brugler ended the drought with a deep two.
• The Rams remained on fire throughout the course of the opening 10 minutes, knocking down 68.8% of its attempts from the field and more than 70% of shots from deep to hold a 27-12 advantage.
• Taking advantage of the Hawks slow start, the Rams continued to light the nets ablaze, outscoring St. Joe's 16-13 in the second quarter to take a halftime advantage into the break. Laura Ziegler hit the first three for the Hawks as time expired, cashing in from deep to cut the deficit to 43-25 entering the locker room.
• The Hawks came out in the third quarter with 10 of the first 15 points, Mackenzie Smith knocking down a pair of triples to cut the deficit to 13 midway through the quarter.
• With the Crimson and Gray trailing 54-35 with 4:45 remaining, Smith's jumper started a 15-0 run through the end of the period. Olivia Mullins stamped the run with a corner three that sent Hagan into a frenzy, later finishing the quarter with a tough finish at the rim to see the Hawks trim the deficit to 54-50 heading into the final frame.
• Smith's 15^th point cut the Fordham lead to 56-53 just moments into the fourth, but the Rams used two quick buckets to push the advantage back to eight after an Anna DeWolfe three-pointer. St. Joe's wouldn't go away, chipping back at the lead after a pair of free throws from Brugler cut the Ram advantage to 65-62 with under a minute to play.
• With 54 seconds remaining, the Rams gathered the ball as they waited until the shot clock ran low to run the set. Good Hawk defense forced the Rams into a rushed opportunity, one that Kaitlyn Downey cashed from distance to give the visitors a two-possession advantage with 25 seconds remaining.
• Mullins would knock down a triple on the other end to cut the lead yet again to three, but the Rams converted at the free throw line down the stretch to avoid the St. Joe's comeback.

 
GAME NOTES

• Olivia Mullins scored a career-high 16 points on 6-11 (54.5%) from the field, adding five rebounds and four assists.
• Talya Brugler paced the Hawks with 20 points and nine rebounds, one-rebound shy of her first double-double of the season. Brugler was flawless from the free-throw line (8-8), adding three assists.
• Mackenzie Smith overcame a 1-10 effort in the first half for 17 points, shooting 6-10 from the field in the second half. Smith secured five boards and recorded four steals.
• Katie Jekot tied Natasha Cloud, who was in attendance as part of the 2013 Atlantic 10 Championship team that was recognized, in career points with 1,049 – t-22^nd most in program history. Jekot's seven assists moves her within 20 of current assistant coach Ashley Prim in the all-time Hawk leaderboard. Prim sits in 8^th in program history with 417.
• Laura Ziegler tallied eight points and nine rebounds in defeat, recording her fourth-straight game with multiple blocks.
• St. Joe's shot 24-59 (40.7%) from the field. Fordham shot 18-28 in the first half, finishing the contest 28-58 (48.3%) on the afternoon.

 
UP NEXT

• The Hawks conclude a home stretch of three games when they host St. Bonaventure on Wednesday, January 25. The Hawks and Bonnies tip at 7 p.m. on ESPN+.