Women's Hoops Handles JWU, Advances To GNAC Quarterfinals

WEST HARTFORD, Conn. - The fifth-seeded University of Saint Joseph (USJ) women's basketball team defeated the 12th-seeded Johnson & Wales University (JWU) Wildcats, 65-50, in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) First Round game inside the O'Connell Athletic Center Tuesday night. With the victory, the Blue Jays improve to 15-10 overall on the season and advance to the GNAC Quarterfinals where they will take on fourth-seeded Regis College on Wednesday night at Higgins Court in Weston, Mass. at 7:00 p.m.

The triumph marked the first playoff win for the Blue Jays in exactly 11 years to the day when they beat Norwich University, 86-70, on the road in the GNAC Quarterfinals on February 22, 2011. It also marked the first home postseason game played and home postseason game won for USJ women's basketball inside the O'Connell Center since the 1998 GNAC Championship game, which they won, 85-75, over Albertus Magnus. The loss ends Johnson & Wales season at 2-22.

GAME INFORMATION
Score: #12 Johnson & Wales 50, #5 Saint Joseph 65
Records: JWU (2-22), USJ (15-10)
Location: O'Connell Center | West Hartford, Conn.
Notes: GNAC Tournament First Round

HOW IT HAPPENED
The Blue Jays wasted little time taking a stranglehold on this one, outscoring the Wildcats, 22-9 in the first quarter behind 11 first-quarter points from sophomore forward Jordan Ouellette (Bristol, Conn.), who went off on the visitors for what would end up being a career-high. Sophomore guard Sarah Wisniewski (Naugatuck, Conn.) kept JWU nearby with seven points in the second quarter, cutting the gap to 12 at the break.

In the second half, the Blue Jays looked to junior point guard and captain Amanda Fudge (Middletown, Conn.) for aid as she netted six big ones to propel the Blue Jays to their largest lead of the night (22). The third period ended with an 18-point advantage for the hosts. It was enough to keep the Wildcats at bay as the Blue Jays walked off the court with their first postseason win in exactly 11 years.

PLAYER QUOTE [Jordan Ouellette] "We knew we needed to come in here and play hard, even though we had beat them twice before, It's the playoffs, it wasn't going to be the same game. It feels good to get that first playoff win in a while. Everyone just wants to win. Everyone doesn't want their season to end."

COACH QUOTE [Wendy Davis] "Our offense played really well, but we need to make some fixes for our defense ahead of tomorrow [vs Regis]. We'll enjoy this one for about an hour, and then we need to be in prep mode. It is pretty intense back-to-back, but we are going to try our best."

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING
Ouellette dropped in a career-high 23 points (11-19 FG) along with nine rebounds and three assists. Fudge, along with senior forward and captain Deanna De La Cruz (Winsted, Conn.) added eight points each. Sophomore guard Jelly Frigo (Canton, Conn.) who has been very active as of late, tied a career-high with 12 rebounds in the effort. The Blue Jays struggled from the field at points of the contest but made up for it with their work on the boards, securing a season-high 56 rebounds in the victory. Saint Joseph also dominated inside, outscoring Johnson & Wales, 36-16 in points in the paint.

It's the 7th playoff win in program history for USJ (7-7 overall), and the 2nd over JWU (2-0). USJ last beat JWU in a postseason game in the 1998 quarterfinal matchup, 75-59.

UP NEXT
The fifth-seeded Blue Jays advance to the GNAC Quarterfinals where they will travel to fourth-seeded Regis College on Wednesday, February 23 for a showdown with the Pride on Higgins Court at 7:00 p.m. The Blue Jays fell to the Pride in their lone meeting this season, 68-63, back on January 28 in Weston, Mass. Fans can catch all the action live by visiting the links www.usjbluejays.com. 

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