Comeback Bid Falls Short as Women’s Basketball Drops Home Opener to Mount Saint Vincent

BROOKLYN, N.Y. — For the third straight game, the St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) women's basketball team rallied with a strong fourth quarter and shrank a 17-point deficit to two, but couldn't steal away a victory from the College of Mount Saint Vincent falling 77-72 in their home opener on Saturday afternoon. Junior Destiny Marino paced four Bears finishing in double figures with a game-high 20 points and seven rebounds. 

The Basics

• Final Score: Mount Saint Vincent 77, St. Joseph's 72
• Records: Mount Saint Vincent (2-4, 1-1), St. Joseph's (2-4, 1-1)
• Location: Brooklyn, N.Y.
• Arena: The Hill Center
• SJC Starters: Marino (G), Simon (G), Porcasi (G), Candelaria (F), Staab (C)

Turning Point

• St. Joseph's faced a sizeable deficit for much of the second half and trailed by 17 points, 64-47, early in the fourth quarter before a 16-2 run pulled them within three. Still trailing by three with 22 seconds left, the Bears were unable to get a shot off to tie as a costly turnover halted their comeback bid.

How it Happened

• The Bears built an early 7-4 lead off five quick points from Marino, but the Dolphins surged ahead and closed the first period up 17-10.
• St. Joseph's fell behind by as a many as 10 in the second quarter at the six-minute mark but later saw a Kellie O'Neill trifecta followed by four straight points from Cailtyn Staab power a 7-0 run the pulled the Bears within one and they trailed 35-32 at the intermission.
• The Dolphins shot a blistering 67 percent (10-15) in the third quarter and scored 11 of their 26 points off Bears turnovers to pad their lead to 14, 61-47, at the final break.
• The visitors scored the first three points of the fourth quarter to grow their largest lead, 17, before the Bears started a furious comeback bid. SJC ran off eight unanswered points in a span of just over two minutes and continued that outburst pulling within three at 4:21 on a Catherine Drago jumper, that capped a 16-2 spurt over five minutes. 
• St. Joseph's remained within striking distance, and couldn't get any closer than three until an O'Neill layup with 31 ticks left brought a two-point ball game, 74-72. After intentionally sending the Dolphins to the line in the bonus, Christina Barone only made one of two to leave some hope for the Bears with 22 seconds remaining. Trying to set up a good look for a game-tying trey, St. Joseph's coughed the ball up and saw their comeback bid fall short.

For the Bears

• Junior Destiny Marino paced the offense with 20 points on 7-of-14 shooting along with eight rebounds and a team-high-tying five assists.
• Sophomore Victoria Porcasi scored a season-high 18 points, also on 7-of-14 shooting, and pulled down four rebounds.
• Senior Kristen Candelaria secured a game-high 13 rebounds and netted four points, filling up the stat sheet with a career-high five assists, two blocks and two steals.
• Sophomore Kellie O'Neill provided a spark off the bench with 13 points, draining 3-of-7 from behind-the-arc.
• Freshman Catherine Drago also scored 10 points and grabbed six rebounds in a reserve role, rounding out four in double figures.

Inside the Box Score

• The Bears closed the game outscoring the Dolphins, 25-16, in the fourth quarter shooting 56 percent (10-18) and holding the visitors to just 23 percent (5-22) in the frame.
• St. Joseph's outshot Mount Saint Vincent for the contest, 44 percent (27-61) to 40 percent (29-73).
• Both teams finished even in the rebounding battle 46-46.
• The Dolphins converted 24 forced turnovers into 21 points, while the Bears managed just 11 points of 17 Dolphin miscues.
• Riding two straight double-double efforts, freshman Lauren Quesada was plagued by foul trouble for most of the contest and saw just five minutes of action before fouling out with just two rebounds in five minutes of action.

The Bear Facts

• Mount Saint Vincent takes the fifth straight meeting in the all-time series and improves to 18-10.

Next up for St. Joseph's

The Bears continue a six-game stretch of home games at The Hill Center hosting league newcomer United States Merchant Marine Academy on Tuesday, December 6th in the first meeting between the two squads since the 2002-03 season. Tip off is slated for 5 p.m. with live stats and video available at SJCBears.com