Women's Hoops Halted by Regis, 73-63, at Home Thursday Night

WEST HARTFORD, Conn. – The University of Saint Joseph (USJ) women's basketball team fell at home against Regis College (Regis), 73-63, during Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) play Thursday night inside James A. Calhoun Gymnasium. 

GAME INFORMATION 
Score: USJ 63, Regis 73
Records: USJ (10-7, 6-4 GNAC), Regis (6-9, 6-3 GNAC)
Location: James A. Calhoun Gymnasium (West Hartford, Conn.)

HOW IT HAPPENED

The opening of the game was a defensive battle as both sides forced turnovers in the opening possessions. Regis would break open the scoring, knocking down a three-pointer to take the lead at the 8:00 mark. Jordan Ouellette (Bristol, Conn.) quickly answered back, finding herself open down low before knocking down the low post jumper while being fouled. She went on to sink the and-one freebie, leveling the score at 3-3. The Pride responded with an old-fashioned three-point play of their own, sparking a 5-0 stretch that saw the visitors take an 8-3 lead with 6:46 remaining. Amanda Fudge (Middletown, Conn.) fired back for USJ, cutting the gap back to three, 8-6, after knocking down a triple of her own at the 6:16 mark. 

The rain outside the James A. Calhoun Gymnasium trickled its way inside as both teams started raining down threes. Regis knocked down the first triple to extend their lead to five, 11-6, but Fudge immediately tallied her second triple of the game to bring USJ back within two, 11-8, at the 3:48 mark. USJ continued to claw its way back into the game, using a 5-2 stretch, featuring a Jelly Frigo (Canton, Conn.) fast break layup to cap the run, to take its first lead of the contest, 14-13, with 1:32 remaining. However, the Pride would score with seven seconds left to take a 15-14 edge entering the second quarter.

Jordan Farrell (West Hartford, Conn.) got the Blue Jays going early, sinking a jumper from the left block to retake the lead for USJ, 16-15. The Pride wasted little time gaining the lead back, knocking down another three-pointer to hold a 18-16 edge at the 8:52 mark. Maya Slisz (New Britain, Conn.) evened the score with a pair of free-throws, kickstarting a back-and-forth affair as the Blue Jays and Pride traded the lead, as Regis held a 21-20 advantage with 6:19 left in the second. Regis extended the gap to as much as three, but Oliver brought USJ within one, 23-22 after sinking a pair of free throws at the 5:01 mark. However, a 4-0 stretch increased the deficit back to five, 27-22. The Blue Jays continued to fight though, using a 5-0 run, featuring Fudge's third triple of the game, knotting the score up at 31-31 with one minute left in the half. The Pride would end the half on a 3-o stretch though, heading into the locker room leading, 34-31.

Regis opened the second half strong, extending the gap to 39-31 after a 5-0 stretch to start the third quarter. Ouellette put an end to the early run after knocking down a free throw to cut the score to 39-32 at the 6:45 mark. The two sides would trade buckets back-and-forth, as the Pride held a 41-36 lead going into the third quarter media timeout with 4:28 left in the third. Regis would extend its lead to as many as eight, 48-40, but an Ouellette midrange jumper in the closing seconds brought the Blue Jays within six, 48-42, heading into the fourth quarter.

The Pride controlled the opening stanza of the fourth quarter, using a 7-0 stretch to extend the gap to 55-42, forcing a USJ timeout at the 7:07 mark. The Blue Jays gained momentum out of the timeout, exploding for a 7-1 run, capped off by a three-point play from Janai Oliver (Hartford, Conn.) cutting the gap to 57-49 with 5:41 left to play. Regis quickly increased its lead back to double-digits, 61-49, but a 5-0 USJ run cut the gap back to single-digits, 61-54, with 4:07 on the clock. Fudge capped off the run with an outstanding solo effort, cutting off an inbounds pass before knocking down her fourth three pointer of the game. However, the Pride gained momentum of their own, increasing the lead back to 10, 67-57 at the 2:21 mark. The Blue Jays continued to fight back, as a 3-0 stretch, capped off by a tough driving layup from Slisz, brought the hosts within seven, 67-60, forcing Regis to call for a timeout with 1:15 remaining. However, USJ would not get any closer as Regis held on for a 73-63 victory.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Ouellette paced the Blue Jays offense with 15 points.
• Farrell, Fudge and Oliver joined her in double-figures, dropping 12 points each.
• Ouellette continued her double-digit scoring streak, recording the mark in every game this season.
• She also secured her sixth double-double of the season, hauling in a team-high 13 rebounds.
• Ouellette continued to stuff the stat sheet, dishing out a team-high four assists.
• Regis outshot USJ, 43.8 percent (28 of 64) to 32.3 percent (21 of 65).
• The Pride dominated inside the paint, scoring 48 points inside compared to the Blue Jays 26.
• USJ won the battle on the glass, outrebounding Regis, 45-36.
• Regis secured a split in the regular season series with the win.
• Regis extended its lead in the all-time series to 6-2.

UP NEXT

Women's basketball remains inside James A. Calhoun Gymnasium with a matchup against Norwich University on Saturday, January 21. Tipoff against the Cadets is set for 1:00 p.m. in West Hartford. Tickets to attend Saturday's game can be purchased by visiting www.usjbluejays.com/tickets. Fans who cannot make it to the game in person can watch all of the action live by visiting https://portal.stretchinternet.com/usj/.

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