Lady Bears Tame Cougars and Return to .500 Mark

BROOKLYN, N.Y. – Ten different Lady Bears scored a basket as the St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) women's basketball team led from start-to-finish in a 67-52 triumph over Medgar Evers College on Monday evening at Brooklyn Technical High School.

The Lady Bears (8-8) level their record for the fourth time this season, winning their second straight at home, ending a five-game home stand to open the new year. The Cougars (0-15) produced a season high in points, but left still seeking their first win of the season.

Senior Danielle Marino (Maspeth, NY/Mary Louis) and junior Kelly McNamee (Glendale, NY/Mary Louis) led a balanced team effort with 10 points each.  Seniors Stephanie Quick (Howard Beach, NY/Stella Maris) and Teresa Mangan (Cleveland, OH/St. Joseph's) contributed nine points each.

Sophomore Taylor Raccuglia (Brooklyn, NY/Bishop Kearney) turned in a solid all-around game registering six assists and five blocks, both team highs, to go along with eight rebounds and five points. Sophomore Samantha Retas (Brooklyn, NY/Bishop Kearney) grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds and registered three blocks.

Medgar Evers received career-high games from Nia Tompkins and Wanda Windslow who netted 22 and 19 points, respectively, coming off the bench.

St. Joseph's, who ranks 42nd in Division III in field goal defense, held Medgar Evers to one field goal over the first 10 minutes, racing out to a 17-2 lead and went into the lockers up 30-12 after a poor shooting first half that saw the Lady Bears shoot 28 percent (10-of-36) and the Cougars 15 percent (5-of-34).

The action picked up in the second half with Medgar Evers exploding for 40 points bolstered by of 10-of-14 shooting (71 percent) from behind-the-arc. Tompkins drained six treys en route to her game-high 22 points, all coming in the second stanza.

The Cougars clawed back into the game, trimming the Lady Bears lead to single digits on multiple occasions and as little as six, 40-34, on a Winslow triple with 8:48 to play.

But later in the half, the Lady Bears would put the game out of reach with a 9-0 Lady Bear run over two minutes sparked by three straight baskets from McNamee and the lead remained above 15 over the final five minutes.

St. Joseph's hits the road for the first time in 2013, traveling to Washington, D.C. to take on Trinity Washington University on Wednesday, January 16. Tip-off is slated for 5 p.m.