Women’s Basketball Grounds Golden Eagles to Keep Playoff Hopes Alive

BROOKLYN, N.Y. — Powered by three Bears nearly finishing with 20-plus points, the St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) women's basketball team defeated sibling rivals St. Joseph's (Long Island), 87-76, in Skyline Conference action on Thursday evening at The Hill Center.

Junior Destiny Marino (Howard Beach, N.Y./Christ the King) led all scorers with 27 points, sophomore Victoria Porcasi (Franklin Square, N.Y./H. Frank Carey) added 24, and reigning Rookie of the Week Lauren Quesada (Westbury, N.Y./St. Francis Prep) had another monster double-double with 19 points and 18 rebounds as the Bears led for all but five minutes of the contest for their sixth straight over their Long Island counterparts.

The Basics

• Final Score: SJC Brooklyn 87, SJC Long Island 76
• Records: SJC Brooklyn (9-15, 7-10), SJC Long Island (6-18, 5-12)
• Location: Brooklyn, N.Y.
• Arena:  The Hill Center
• SJC Starters: Marino (G), Simon (G), Porcasi (G), Quesada (F), Candelaria (F)

Turning Point

• After Long Island pulled within early in the third period, a Bears 10-0 run with back-to-back trifectas from Destiny Marino and Victoria Porcasi gave Brooklyn a double-digit advantage until the final buzzer.

How it Happened

• Long Island held the lead briefly in the first quarter before a 10-2 spurt highlighted by a Samantha Simon triple built a six-point cushion before the Golden Eagles closed out the frame on a 7-1 spurt to trail by just 1, 18-17, at the first break.
• Brooklyn scored eight straight to open the second stanza powered by four quick points from Destiny Marino and pushed their lead to nine on multiple occasions throughout the second and carried a 37-29 lead into the lockers. Marino led all scorers at the intermission with 14 points and Lauren Quesada already notched a double-double with 11 points and 15 boards.
• The Golden Eagles opened the third period on a 9-2 run to shrink the Bears lead to one on a Danielle Gehring three-point play at the 6:49 mark. But Brooklyn took control for good scoring 10 straight points in just under two minutes, Porcasi capping off the spurt with five points. A Marino three-point play extended the Bears lead to 17 just before the end of the period.
• Brooklyn remained in control throughout the fourth as the Bears shot 61 percent in the frame, including 3-of-3 from distance. Long Island managed to chip away at the deficit late as the game slowed down with 17 combined fouls called in the period and the visitors shot 10-of-10 from the line.

For the Bears

• Junior Destiny Marino shot 9-of-18 from the field and 6-of-7 from the stripe to post a season-high 27 points—her seventh game this season crossing the 20-point barrier. She filled the stat sheet with a season-high seven assists, six boards, three steals and one block.
• Sophomore Victoria Porcasi also recorded her seventh 20-point game of the season with 24 points, shooting a perfect 4-of-4 from the free throw line, while handing out three assists and grabbing two boards.
• Reigning Skyline Rookie of the Week Lauren Quesada fell one point shy of three Bears finishing with 20-or-more points and recorded another monster double-double with 19 points, 18 caroms and four assists.
• Kellie O'Neill chipped in six points and Kristin Ferrigno added five in reserve roles. Kristen Candelaria grabbed eight rebounds.

Inside the Box Score

• Brooklyn drained nine three-pointers at a 47 percent rate with five different Bears nailing a trey.
• The Bears shot 57 percent and posted 50 points in the second half. 
• Brooklyn held a 42-31 rebounding edge and dominated scoring in the paint, 42-18.
• Jackie Zizzo led three Golden Eagles in double figures with 24 points, draining six three-pointers.

The Bear Facts

• Destiny Marino moves to 5th in the all-time scoring list, surpassing Annamarie Ciorciari '08. Marino now has 1,215 career tallies and sits behind Lynette Reyes with 1,438 points.
• Brooklyn wins the sixth straight meeting in the all-time series and closes the Long Island lead to 14-11.
• Brooklyn remains in the playoff hunt with matching 7-10 league records with USMMA, but the Mariners hold the tiebreaker with a season sweep of the Bears.
• The Bears win knocks the Golden Eagles out of playoff contention but Brooklyn will now root for their sibling rivals on Saturday at they need Long Island to defeat USMMA in addition to the Bears defeating Mount Saint Mary to clinch their second straight Skyline Conference Championships berth.

Next up for St. Joseph's

The Bears celebrate Senior Day and wrap up the regular season on Saturday, February 18th hosting Mount Saint Mary College in the first game of a doubleheader starting at 2 p.m. The team will honor their three seniors—Kristen Candelaria, Kristin Ferrigno, and Samantha Simon—prior to the game. Live stats and video with Michael Kerr calling the action will be available on SJCBears.com.