Women's Basketball Silences Lasers, 68-61, In Gutsy Road Win

NEWTON, Mass. - The University of Saint Joseph (USJ) women's basketball team got back on track with a grind-out 68-61 win over the Lasers of Lasell University (LU), in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) road contest inside the Lasell Athletic Center Wednesday afternoon.

With the win, the Blue Jays improve to 12-9 overall on the 2021-22 season and 8-6 in GNAC play, while the Lasers fall to 8-12 and 6-8 in conference games.

Junior guard Tianna Asberry (East Hartford, Conn.) led all starters with 10 points. She also added three assists and three steals in her first start of the season. Junior point guard and captain Amanda Fudge (Middletown, Conn.) was the game's high scorer with 20 points (6-8 FT), eight rebounds and five assists. Sophomore forward Jordan Ouellette (Bristol, Conn.) was back in her groove Wednesday evening as she collected her fourth double-double of the season (19 Pts, 13 Reb). She shot 7-of-13 from the field. Senior forward Cheyenne-Mone Smith (Wethersfield, Conn.) finished four points shy of her second straight double-double (6 Pts, 13 Reb). Senior forward Meg Carroll (Douglas, Mass.) scored a game-high 15 points for the Lasers.

Lasell kept it tight in the early going, trailing by just two, 16-14 after one. Ouellette found her rhythm early in this one, scoring eight of her 19 in the first period. That momentum carried into the second stanza, where the Blue Jays outscored the hosts 17-9 to take a double-digit lead into the locker room. The Blue Jays were looking good after Fudge connected on a three in the fourth quarter with 7:00 to go, up 57-42, but credit the Lasers for continuing to fight, narrowing the gap to seven, 61-54, with 2:32 to play. The Saint Joseph defense got the stops it needed though, maintaining the lead on its way to the victory. The Blue Jays are now 13-6 all-time against Lasell, including back-to-back wins against the Lasers.

GAME INFORMATION
Score: Saint Joseph 68, Lasell 61
Records: USJ 12-9 (8-6 GNAC), LU 8-12 (6-8 GNAC)
Location: Lasell Athletic Center | Newton, Mass.

COACH QUOTE [Wendy Davis] "It was a great team effort tonight. We had balanced scoring, and won the battle on the boards. It wasn't the prettiest win, but at this point in the season, we will certainly take the win, and move on and get ready for Emmanuel this weekend."

Up Next
The Blue Jays now face their toughest matchup of the season in undefeated and 17-time GNAC Women's Basketball Champion Emmanuel College. The action kicks off between the Saints and Blue Jays at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, February 12, part of a home doubleheader with the men's teams in the O'Connell Center. You can purchase tickets, or you can head over to usjbluejays.com to catch the action live!

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