PHILADELPHIA – The Saint Joseph's women's basketball team opened the season with fireworks, cruising to a 102-30 win over Goldey-Beacom on Wednesday evening in Hagan Arena.
 
The 72-point margin of victory set a school record, surpassing the previous high set against Gwynedd Mercy in a 115-44 rout in February 1977.
 
FIRST QUARTER

• The Hawks opened the game with points on six of the first seven possessions, quickly building a 12-3 lead. Talya Brugler and Laura Ziegler combined for 10 of the 12 points in the span.
• After a timeout from the visitors, the Hawks extended the run to 15-0 to build a 19-3 lead before the Lightning ended the six-minute drought.
• Goldey-Beacom responded with eight of the final 10 points of the quarter to cut the St. Joe's advantage to 21-12.

 
SECOND QUARTER

• St. Joe's opened the second quarter on a 15-0 run to push the lead to 36-12. Ziegler and Aleah Snead both found a tally inside the paint before Gabby Casey and Ziegler knocked down threes on consecutive possessions. An old-fashioned three-point play from Talya Brugler forced the Lightning into a timeout. Brugler was able to bat the loose ball after the Hawk press into the arms of Snead as the sophomore capped off the run.
• Despite the reprieve from a three-point basket from the visitors, the Hawks attacked once more with eight consecutive points to push the advantage to 29.
• Ziegler pulled down her 10^th rebound of the half with a little over a minute remaining before freshman Meja Jägerskog found her on the baseline for her 17^th point of the contest.
• The Hawks outscored Goldey-Beacom 31-5 to take a 52-17 halftime lead.

 
THIRD QUARTER

• Mackenzie Smith sparked an 18-3 run over the first four minutes of the second half, knocking down three three-pointers and finishing an and-one for 15 of the 18 points. Gabby Casey hit a triple of her own in that run, all six scoring possessions in the span earning three points for the Crimson and Gray.
• On the other side of a timeout from Goldey-Beacom, Smith continued her dominant spell with another three points to continue the eventual 20-0 run.
• Freshman Rhian Stokes finished with six of the final eight points for the Hawks to help push the advantage to 85-21 with 10 minutes to play.

 
FOURTH QUARTER

• Meja Jägerskog earned her first bucket of her career to start the scoring in the fourth, tallying the first eight points of the frame for St. Joe's.
• With just over a minute remaining, Jägerskog capped off her night with a layup to put her into double digits and to give the Hawks the 12^th 100-point game in program history.
• Lauren Greer capped off the night with a deflection and a fast break layup on the other end as time expired to stamp a 102-30 opening night win.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• St. Joe's set a record for points scored in a season opener, besting the 93 points scored against Niagara in the 2017-18 season. The 102 points also ranks second during head coach Cindy Griffin's tenure on Hawk Hill, having eclipsed the 100-point mark in a 104-45 win against UMBC on December 28, 2015.
• The 72-point victory broke a program record that stood for more than 47 years. Coach Griffin's biggest margin of victory also came in the win over UMBC.
• The Hawks scored 31 points in the second quarter and 33 points in the third, the first time since November 12, 2017 that St. Joe's scored 30+ in a frame.
• Laura Ziegler recorded her 22^nd double-double of her career, needing just 18 minutes in the first half to reach that mark. Ziegler is eight double-doubles shy of matching Susan Moran and Maureen Costello for third in program history.
• Ziegler recorded 17 points and 11 rebounds in the first half, while Goldey-Beacom finished the opening 20 minutes with 17 points and nine rebounds. Ziegler finished with 19 points, 13 rebounds and four assists.
• Mackenzie Smith had a team-high 22 points, 18 of the points coming in the third quarter. Smith passed Amy Facer, who was recognized in the Big 5 Hall of Fame Class of 2024 earlier today, in career points to sit 20^th all-time in program history.
• Aleah Snead set a career high with 14 points on 5-8 shooting, adding five rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block.
• Talya Brugler scored 13 points and added 13 rebounds for a double-double, the third time in the last three years that a pair of Hawk teammates recorded a double-double in the same game.
• Rhian Stokes (10 points, three steals) and Meja Jägerskog (10 points, three rebounds) became just the second pair of freshmen in program history to each record 10+ points in their collegiate debut, joining teammates Talya Brugler and Mackenzie Smith after scoring 14 and 12 points against UMES in 2021-22.
• The Hawks finished with six scorers in double figures for the first time since February 18, 2015 in an 82-51 win over George Mason.
• Emma Boslet recorded her fourth career game with five assists, tying a game high for the Hawks. The graduate guard also added five rebounds and four points on the night.
• Gabby Casey produced a balanced stat line of six points, five assists, four rebounds, two steals and a block.
• Kaylie Griffin dished a career-high four assists and registered a career-high four steals while matching her best with two rebounds off the bench.
• As a team, the Hawks shot 39-77 (50.6%) from the field. St. Joe's recorded a 46-4 advantage in points off turnovers, a 58-12 margin in points in the paint, a 30-2 advantage in second chance points and a 21-0 discrepancy in fast break points. The Hawks' bench outscored Goldey-Beacom, 38-30.
• St. Joe's allowed 30 points or fewer for the 13^th time in program history and just the third time in the 21^st century.
• The 32 turnovers from Goldey-Beacom are the most by an opponent in at least the last 15 years.
• Dating back to the 2009-10 season, the Hawks have conceded fewer than 20 rebounds on three occasions: 19, Goldey-Beacom (11/6/24); 19, La Salle (1/15/24); 19, Davidson (2/15/23).
• The Lightning finished 10-39 (.256) from the field and knocked down just 3-13 (.231) attempts from distance.

 
 
UP NEXT
St. Joe's returns to action for a road trip to Syracuse, marking the fifth meeting all-time between the two teams. The Hawks and Orange meet up for a 2 p.m. contest on Sunday, November 10. The game will be streamed on ACCNX.