PHILADELPHIA – Saint Joseph's women's basketball returns to Atlantic 10 action Wednesday afternoon inside Hagan Arena, hosting VCU in a New Year's Eve matchup.
 

Saint Joseph's (9-3, 0-1 A-10) vs. VCU (4-9, 0-1 A-10)
Date: Wednesday, December 31
Time: 2:00 p.m. ET
Site: Philadelphia, Pa. | Michael J. Hagan Arena '85
TV: ESPN+ (Mike Samsel, Renie Shields)
Series History: Saint Joseph's trails 11-14 (8-4 home, 3-9 away, 0-1 neutral)
 
SAINT JOSEPH'S  SCHEDULE | ROSTER | STATS | GAME NOTES
VCU                   SCHEDULE | ROSTER | STATS
 
 
OPENING TIP
Saint Joseph's returns to Atlantic 10 action Wednesday, hosting VCU at Hagan Arena in a New Year's Eve clash.
 
The Hawks closed the non-conference season with a 9-2 record, marking their fourth straight season with at least nine non-conference wins.
 
St. Joe's rolled past Arcadia in its last game, recording the 14th 100-point performance in program history with a 108-38 win. The 108 points set a program record under head coach Cindy Griffin and were the most by the Hawks since 1978.
 
Jill Jekot led five Hawks in double figures with a team-high 16 points. Emily Knouse added 14 points, while Rhian Stokes posted 13 points and a career-high 10 assists for her first double-double. Gabby Casey and Cecilia Kay each scored 11 points.
 
 
STOKES DELIVERING GIFTS
Stokes became the 13th player in the country this season to record at least 10 points and 10 assists without committing a turnover. Since 2002-03, only Stokes and Natasha Cloud have accomplished the feat for the Hawks.
 
 
SHARING IS CARING
The Hawks lead the nation with a 74.2 percent assist rate, assisting on 236 of their 318 field goals through the opening 12 games. Only seven teams have an assist rate above 70 percent, with Drake the next closest at 72.9 percent.
 
 
HEATING UP
Saint Joseph's leads the Atlantic 10 in field goal percentage at 45.3 percent. The Hawks are also among the nation's best from distance, shooting 37.1 percent from 3-point range to rank 25th nationally and lead the Atlantic 10.
 
(K)NIGHT (K)NIGHT
The Hawks closed the nonconference season with a dominant 108-38 win over Arcadia, collecting multiple program marks.
 
The 108 points are the most by a team under head coach Cindy Griffin, surpassing the previous high of 104 against UMBC on Dec. 28, 2015. It ranks fourth in program history (the program's 14th 100-point game) and is the most scored by the Hawks since 1978. The 70-point margin of victory was two shy of the program record set in last season's opener against Goldey-Beacom (72).
 
The 17 3-pointers against the Knights marked the third time the Hawks have tied or broken the program record, surpassing the previous high of 16 set against Le Moyne.
 
 
ABOUT ST. JOE'S
The Hawks replace four players from last year's starting lineup. Only Gabby Casey (33) entered the season having started seven or more games last year. Aleah Snead (6), Rhian Stokes (4) and Kaylie Griffin (1) also made starts in 2024-25.
 
Saint Joseph's has 14 players on the 2025-26 roster, representing four states and three countries outside the United States. Emirson Devenie (Australia) is the first Hawk to represent her country, while Meja Jägerskog (Sweden) and Olivia Lutterodt (Denmark) are each the second player from their respective countries to join the program.
 
A local influx sees nine of the 14 Hawks come from Pennsylvania and New Jersey, while Faith Stinson (Ohio) and Cecilia Kay (Massachusetts) round out the roster.
 
 
SERIES HISTORY
VCU holds a 14-11 all-time record in the series, meeting for the only time this season on Wednesday. The home team has held the advantage in the series between the Hawks and the Rams, St. Joe's entering the game with an 8-4 record in Philadelphia. All 25 meetings between the teams have come under head coach Cindy Griffin's tenure.