RICHMOND, Va. – A matchup between two teams at the top of the Atlantic 10 standings lived to the billing, but the Saint Joseph's women's basketball team fell short in a 59-51 defeat to Richmond on Thursday evening inside the Robins Center.
Mackenzie Smith led the Hawks with 22 points after connecting on eight of her 15 attempts, including five three-pointers.
Laura Ziegler joined Smith in double-figures, finishing with 12 points on the evening.
Five Spiders tallied at least nine points, led by Addie Budnik's 12-point effort. Ally Sweeney and Maggie Doogan each finished with 11 points.
Defense led the way for both teams in the opening half as the two squads combined for just 17-59 (28.8 percent) in the first half. St. Joe's led by as many as five points before Richmond finished the opening half on an 11-0 run to take a 26-20 lead into the break.
After the Spiders extended the advantage to 10 points early in the third quarter, a quick 8-0 run from the Hawks in just over a minute drew the visitors to within two points. Richmond opened the final frame scoring nine of the first 12 points, and extended their lead to as many as 12, en route to a 59-51 victory.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Smith moved into seventh all-time in scoring in program history, surpassing 1,500 career points with her 22-point outing. The Shelburne, Nova Scotia native also sits two rebounds shy of 500 in her career.
- Ziegler's 12 points moved her into 14th all-time in scoring in program history.
- St. Joe's finished 21-61 from the field to shoot 34.4 percent. The 51 points were the second-lowest of the season, with the Hawks falling to 2-2 when scoring under 60 points.
- The Hawk defense held the Spiders to just 38.5 percent from the field, marking just the third time this season that the hosts were held under 40 percent. Richmond entered as the nation's leading team in shooting percentage, knocking down field goals at a 51 percent clip.
- Richmond registered a 16-4 advantage on the free throw line, converting on 12 of its 16 attempts.
- The nine assists tied for a season-low for the Hawks.
- St. Joe's saw its season-best eight-game win streak snapped with the loss, while Richmond moved to 11-consecutive wins.
UP NEXT
The Hawks get nearly a week off before heading back on the road as they take on Rhode Island on Wednesday, Feb. 19. Tip is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.
