Lady Bears Unable to Use Fast Start to Hold Off Clarkson

NEW YORK, NY – The St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) women's basketball team led by as many as 16 in the first half, but couldn't hold off Clarkson University, falling 68-65 in the consolation game of the NYU Tip-Off Tournament on Saturday afternoon at the Coles Sports Center.

The Lady Bears (0-2) were led by senior Joanna Marciniec (Glendale, NY/Baruch) who posted a career-best 19 points on 7-for-8 shooting, which included 4-of-5 from behind the arc. Fellow senior Ashley McQuillan (Brooklyn, NY/St. Francis Prep) added 15 points with five assists and junior Teresa Mangan (Cleveland, OH/St. Joseph's) scored 13 points.  Janine Doran (South Ozone Park, NY/Archbishop Molloy) secured a team-high nine rebounds.

Noelle Miller scored 16 points and grabbed 14 rebounds to lead three Golden Knights who tallied double-doubles for Clarkson (1-1). Carey Turner and Taliah Pounds each scored 13 points to go along with 14 and 10 rebounds, respectively.

St. Joseph's got out of the gates quickly, jumping out to a 16-0 lead before Clarkson tallied their first field goal at the 10:49 mark of the opening frame. The Golden Knights pulled within five with a 14-3 run over the next five minutes, but Marciniec singlehandedly pushed the lead back to double digits, scoring 10 points unanswered in a 1:30 span with a jumper, layup and two trifectas giving the Lady Bears a 29-14 lead with 4:15 remaining before intermission. St. Joseph's carried a 35-24 advantage into the locker rooms.

In the second stanza, Clarkson slowly chipped away at the Lady Bear lead, controlling the offensive glass to secure 17 rebounds which led to 12 second chance points. For the game, the Golden Knights maintained a 65-40 rebounding advantage, 33 coming on the offensive end. A layup by Chrissy Scanlon knotted the game at 44-44 with 11:42 to play.

St. Joseph's struggled to find their range and three starters – Moran, Doran and Marciniec – found themselves in foul trouble allowing Clarkson to build an 11 point lead with 5:35 remaining.

But the Lady Bears clawed their way back into the game, McQuillan scoring eight of her 15 points in the final five minutes to bring St. Joseph's within three with 46 seconds left. After the St. Joseph's press forced a turnover in the backcourt, McQuillan had a good look to equalize, but her three-point attempt drew iron.

With five seconds left, St. Joseph's was still down one possession, 68-65, with the full length of the court to go, but a McQuillan desperation attempt from halfcourt at the buzzer fell short and left.

In ceremonies following the championship game, Marciniec was named to the All-Tournament Team. NYU captured the tournament title, their 10th straight, with a 64-52 victory over FDU-Florham.

St. Joseph's heads to the west coast for a three-game stretch beginning with Capilano University in Vancouver, Canada on Tuesday, November 23rd. The game will mark the first international appearance by any St. Joseph's team.