Blue Jays Fly to 75-65 Win over Anna Maria

PAXTON, Mass.—Four different players scored in double-figures to lead the University of Saint Joseph women's basketball team to a 75-65 road victory against the AMCATS of Anna Maria College in Saturday's Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) contest.

The win marks the second on the season for USJ, who improves to 2-15 overall and 1-4 in GNAC play. Anna Maria falls to 6-11 overall and 0-5 in league action.

THE SERIES

The victory puts USJ back in the wins-column against Anna Maria after suffering their first loss in the series last year. The Blue Jays now lead 5-1 dating back to 2010.

AMCAT LEADERS

Anna Maria's Deja Taitt (Cambia Heights, N.Y.) paced the hosts with 21 points, six rebounds, and three assists. She finished 9-for-17 from the floor and 2-for-4 from the free-throw line. Christina Gauvin (Dudley, Mass.) finished with 10 points.

SAINT JOSEPH LEADERS

Stephanie DeJesus (Meriden, Conn.) paced the Blue Jays with 21 points on an 8-for-16 shooting effort from the floor with five three-pointers. Kayla Guest (Newington, Conn.) recorded a double-double of 17 points and 10 rebounds, while Rajeen Mayo (Middletown, Conn.) added 15 points and Carlee Putnam (Niantic, Conn.) added 13.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The Blue Jays led by nine after the first quarter and did not look back, using a seven-point scoring differential in the second frame to build a double-digit halftime lead, 40-24. USJ led by as many as 17 points in the first half.  

The AMCATS used a spirited third quarter and a 23-17 scoring advantage to chip into the Saint Joseph lead. Anna Maria opened the second half with a four-point run on back-to-back layups by Gauvin and Taitt, but DeJesus negated the run with a three-pointer on the other end of the floor.

Following that basket, the AMCATS were able to hold USJ scoreless for the next three minutes, while scoring six points of their own on layups by Taitt and Lindsay Bond (Webster, Mass.), followed by a pair of free-throws by Bond, to cut the Blue Jays' lead to nine points, 43-34.

It would mark the closest Anna Maria would come, as Saint Joseph would match Anna Maria in fourth-quarter scoring at 18-all for the 75-65 finish.

FINAL COMPARISONS

Anna Maria outscored USJ 36-20 in the point and 19-16 off turnovers, while the Blue Jays held a 13-9 advantage in second-chance points.

The AMCATS shot 24-61 from the floor (39.3 percent) and 12-16 from the free-throw line. USJ hit one-less field goal to finish 23-56 (41.1 percent) but bested Anna Maria at the charity stripe with a 21-29 effort.

WHAT'S NEXT

Anna Maria travels to Suffolk on Thursday, Jan. 28^th for a 7:00 p.m. league contest. USJ hosts Norwich on Wednesday at 7:00 p.m.