PHILADELPHIA – The Saint Joseph's women's basketball team defended its title in the 29^th annual Hawk Classic presented by Jersey Mike's, earning its second championship in as many seasons with a 59-54 win over College of Charleston on Saturday afternoon inside Hagan Arena.
 
The Hawks earned their 13^th trophy in the Hawk Classic, finishing the non-conference slate with a 9-2 record. Charleston dropped just its second contest of the season to fall to 9-2.
 
 
HAWK CLASSIC ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Laura Ziegler (MOP) – Saint Joseph's
Talya Brugler – Saint Joseph's
Taylor Barbot - College of Charleston
Taryn Barbot - College of Charleston
Caileigh Walsh - Northwestern
Saniyah King - Howard
 
 
FIRST QUARTER

• The teams combined for just 6-20 (30.0%) from the field over the first five minutes of the game as the teams were level at 6-6 after the opening media timeout.
• Gabby Casey gave the Hawks their first lead of the game with a pair of free throws. Casey's triple with over a minute to play gave the Hawks a three-point advantage before Charleston tied the game for the seventh time in the opening frame at 16-16.

 
 
SECOND QUARTER

• Talya Brugler scored her 10^th point of the game with a triple to put the Hawks up 22-20 in the early stages of the second frame before the visitors leveled the game once more.
• Laura Ziegler spearheaded a 7-0 run for St. Joe's with five of the seven points in that span.
• College of Charleston closed the half with a basket to cut the St. Joe's advantage to 29-24 at the break.

 
 
THIRD QUARTER

• Ziegler opened the half with a three-pointer for a 32-24 lead, but the visitors turned three Hawk turnovers into a quick six points to force head coach Cindy Griffin into a timeout.
• Taryn Barbot erased the deficit for Charleston on the other end of the pause in action before Casey buried a three-pointer to interrupt the Cougar's 8-0 run.
• Mackenzie Smith and Ziegler added points to give St. Joe's a three-possession lead with three minutes to play. With under two minutes remaining in the quarter, Brugler buried her third triple to give the Hawks a 42-34 advantage. The visitors cut into the deficit with one final bucket at the buzzer, St. Joe's taking a six-point lead into the final 10 minutes.

 
 
FOURTH QUARTER

• Charleston notched the first points of the frame to draw within four of the hosts.
• St. Joe's leaned on its three captains to keep the Cougars at bay as Smith, Brugler and Ziegler all made baskets to keep Charleston from closing within one possession.
• A clutch corner jumper from Aleah Snead pushed the Hawk's lead to eight points with under five minutes to play. The sophomore was called upon again in the late stages of the contest. Snead knocked down a pair of free throws to match the largest lead of the quarter with 17 seconds left on the clock to help the Hawks hang on for an eventual 59-54 win to claim a consecutive Hawk Classic title.

 
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Laura Ziegler moved into a tie for third place (Susan Moran, Maureen Costello) in program history after recording her 30^th double-double of her career, finishing with a team-high 23 points and 13 rebounds. Ziegler fell one point shy of becoming the 31^st Hawk to reach 1,000 career points. The junior finished with a career-best 6-6 effort from the free throw line.
• Talya Brugler finished with 15 points for her 14^th consecutive game in double figures and her 85^th game in her career with at least 10 points.
• Gabby Casey added 10 points, four rebounds and three assists in the win.
• St. Joe's finished just 18-55 (32.7%) from the field, the lowest field goal percentage in a win since Feb. 13, 2022 in a similar output against George Mason.
• The Hawks were held to just 16 points in the paint, the lowest mark of a season (prev. low – 26 vs. Villanova).
• Entering the game with a top 10 free throw percentage in the country, the Hawks continued the efficiency from the charity stripe with a 15-18 (83.3%) performance.
• SJU held a 44-29 margin in rebounding, registering a season-high against a Division I opponent with 16 offensive rebounds.
• The Hawks earned its 13^th Hawk Classic championship and its second in as many years, taking down Charleston in the first matchup between the programs.
• St. Joe's closed its non-conference season at 9-2, holding a 30-5 record in non-conference play since the start of the 2022-23 season.

 
 
UP NEXT
St. Joe's begins conference play inside Hagan Arena on December 29, taking on VCU in a 2 p.m. tip.