Marino Posts Game-High 24 as Women's Basketball Falls to Old Westbury

OLD WESTBURY, N.Y. — Junior Destiny Marino (Howard Beach, N.Y./Christ the King) poured in a game-high 24 points leading three Bears in double-figures, but the St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) women's basketball team came up short to second place SUNY College at Old Westbury, 79-63, in a Skyline Conference battle on Saturday afternoon .

The Basics

• Final Score: Old Westbury 79, St. Joseph's 63
• Records: Old Westbury (19-3, 12-3), St. Joseph's (8-14, 6-9)
• Location: Old Westbury, N.Y.
• Arena:  Clark Athletic Center
• SJC Starters: Marino (G), Simon (G), Porcasi (G), Quesada (F), Candelaria (F)

Turning Point

• A 13-3 Old Westbury run spanning the first and second quarters broke open a tie game and built a 10-point advantage and SJC couldn't get any closer than five the rest of the way.

How it Happened

• The Bears raced out to a five-point lead after jumpers from Victoria Porcasi and Kristen Candelaria and a free throw from Lauren Quesada. St. Joseph's led for a good portion of the opening quarter before the Panthers closed the period on an 8-1 spurt to lead 19-15 at the first break.
• Old Westbury tried to pull away and built 10-point leads on two separate occasions in the second quarter and the Panthers carried a 35-27 lead into the lockers.
• Three quick points from Quesada brought St. Joseph's within five, 35-30, in the third but the hosts responded with seven straight and led by double digits nearly the rest of the way.
• St. Joseph's shrank the deficit to nine, 56-47, early in the fourth on a pair of Marino free throws but Old Westbury responded with an 8-0 spurt to put the game back out of reach.

For the Bears

• Junior Destiny Marino led all scorers with 24 points on 9-of-22 shooting and a perfect 6-of-6 from the charity stripe. She also pulled down three rebounds and swiped as many steals.
• Sophomore Victoria Porcasi played 40 minutes and scored 16 points, also shooting a perfect 4-of-4 from the free throw line, while handing out three assists and swiping three thefts.
• Freshman Lauren Quesada recorded her third game out of the last four in double figures with 14 points and a team-high seven caroms and four steals.

Inside the Box Score

• The Panthers controlled the glass holding a 54-32 advantage and outscored SJC 50-28 in the paint. 
• All five starters for Old Westbury finished in double figures led by Ruth Vargas' 18-point, 12-rebound double-double. Monique Joseph added a 16-point, 10-rebound double-double.

The Bear Facts

• The Bears first win streak of the season is halted at two games.
• The Bears (6-9) sit just a half a game behind USMMA (7-9) in sixth place, but the Mariners hold the tiebreaker sweeping the season series. Both teams are still slated to play Mount Saint Mary and SJC Long Island with the Bears holding an extra game against The Sage Colleges.

Next up for St. Joseph's

The Bears will head to Albany, N.Y. to face The Sage Colleges on Tuesday, February 14th for a 5:30 p.m. Valentine's Day Skyline showdown. Live stats and video will be available on SJCBears.com.