Old Westbury Ends Women’s Basketball’s Two-Game Win Streak

Old Westbury Ends Women’s Basketball’s Two-Game Win Streak

OLD WESTBURY, N.Y. — Coming in at sixth place in the Skyline standings, the St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) women's basketball team fell to Old Westbury in a one-sided contest on Thursday night. The Bears were led by scoring leaders Victoria Porcasi (Franklin Square, N.Y./H. Frank Carey) and Kelly O'Donnell (Brooklyn, N.Y./St. Edmund Prep) as they combined for 32 points in defeat, and even though their record dropped to 9-13 (7-8 league), they still control sixth place in the conference.

The Basics

  • Final Score: Old Westbury 82, St. Joseph's 64
  • Records: Old Westbury (18-3, 12-3), St. Joseph's (9-13, 7-8)
  • Location: Old Westbury, N.Y. — Clark Athletic Center
  • SJC Starters: O'Neill (G), Porcasi (G), O'Donnell (G), Raccuglia (F), Staab (C)

Turning Point

  • Old Westbury opened the second quarter on a 12-3 run pushing their lead to 31-16 (4:04) to give them control of the game.

How It Happened

  • Charlotte Renker scored six-straight Panther points (3:03) to push their first quarter lead to double-digits (17-7), but St. Joseph's used a 6-2 advantage over the period's final three minutes to cut the deficit to 19-13 after one.
  • The hosts clamped down in the second, using their 12-3 run to regain a double-digit lead. However, the Bears mustered late-quarter heroics again as a 9-3 spurt over the final 2:20 of the stanza, capped by a pair from O'Donnell at the line, narrowed the halftime gap to 39-29.
  • A Kellie O'Neill (Brooklyn, N.Y./St. Edmund Prep) three-ball brought the Bears back within single digits (44-36) four minutes into the second half, but five-straight points from OW extended the lead.
  • Back-to-back triples from Porcasi and rookie forward Samantha Wilber (Island Heights, N.J./Central Regional) gave SJC momentum bringing the score to 57-49 (0:50) as they trailed 58-49 entering the final frame.
  • O'Donnell made things interesting with a long-range bomb at 6:18 in the fourth as the Bears were down by just six, 56-48. Back-and-forth play continued for a short time, but Old Westbury held SJC scoreless over the final 3:29 to secure their 12th Skyline win of 2017-18.

For the Bears

  • O'Donnell poured in a team-high 17 points as well as seven boards, three assists, three steals, and two swats.
  • Porcasi followed with 15, adding five dimes, two steals, and a block.
  • O'Neill filled the box score with 11 points (4-7, 2-4, 1-2), four assists, four takeaways, and three caroms.
  • Center Caitlyn Staab (Lynnbrook, N.Y./Kellenberg Memorial) chipped in seven points and six rebounds to compliment a career-high four blocks.

Inside the Box Score

  • The Bears significantly outshot their opponents from three (35.5% vs. 23.5%), largely thanks to Wilber's 3-5 long-range shooting en route to a career-high nine points (1 stl).
  • Control of the glass was all Panthers as they dominated the rebound battle 72-30.

The Bear Facts

  • With one block tonight, graduate forward Taylor Raccuglia (Brooklyn, N.Y./Bishop Kearney) tied assistant coach Samantha Retas '15 for the program's career blocks record (181).
  • Currently, in control of the Skyline's final playoff seed (sixth), the Bears will clinch with a win in their final three games along with SJC Long Island and Purchase losses. SJCBK battles the Golden Eagles in the last game of the regular season (Feb. 17) in Patchogue.

Next Up for the Bears

  • A showdown at Sarah Lawrence on Saturday (Feb. 10) at 1 p.m. Live stats and video at SJCBears.com.