St. Joe’s women rolls to a 102-30 victory over Goldey-Beacom College in home opener

The St. Joseph’s women’s basketball team ended its previous season with the most wins in program history and started its 2024-25 season no different, with a 102-30 win over Goldey-Beacom College of Wilmington to secure its sixth consecutive win in home openers.

Leading from the tip, St. Joe’s went on a 15-point run in the first quarter, and never relented. The margin of victory set a school record that had been set in a 115-44 victory over Gwynedd Mercy in February 1977.

Showing why they were one of the top scoring defenses in the country last season, St. Joe’s held the Lightning to just five points in the second quarter.

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Hawks coach Cindy Griffin said her team’s goal is to hold an opponent to no more than 15 points per quarter. The Hawks held the Lightning to 13 points in the entire second half. They also forced 32 turnovers from Goldey-Beacom, which listed the game as an exhibition on its schedule. The Lightning is in the NCAA Division II Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference.

“Defensively, we were on,” Griffin said. “Communication was really high. I thought our slides were really, really good. We rebounded the ball, which gave us more opportunities down the other end. So yeah, defensively, we were terrific today.”

Returning four of their starting five from last year, Hawks seniors Talya Brugler and Mackenzie Smith and junior Laura Ziegler each scored in double figures. Smith paced St, Joe’s with 22 points, including 4-of-5 from beyond the arc within the first five minutes of the third quarter. Ziegler nabbed her first double-double of the season and the 22nd of her career within the first half, finishing with 19 points and 13 rebounds. Brugler also finished with a double-double, matching Ziegler’s 13 rebounds and scoring 13 points. Sophomore Aleah Snead added 14.

“We wanted everybody to come and contribute,” Ziegler said. “We had 10 players playing, and when you look at stats right now, everybody came into score.”

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Sophomore Gabby Casey and fifth-year grad Emma Boslet rounded out the starting five. Senior Julia Nyström did not play, but fans got their first look at each of the three new freshmen, including Rhian Stokes and Meja Jägerskog who scored 10 points each for the Hawks.

“You really didn’t see a whole lot of drop-off with our second group,” Griffin said. “That’s going to be really important going forward with our depth, and so very proud of the way our bench played as well today.”

Smith added that an early win like this not only puts the team on the right track, but instills confidence in the young Hawks players for games to come.

“We have a really deep group, and I mean, you guys saw today, the love that we have for each other, it’s unmatchable,” Smith said. “I think that gives them confidence too, and they’ll definitely use it down the line and know that we have their back no matter what.”

After finishing the season with 15 road wins last year, the Hawks will head to Syracuse for their first road game of the season Sunday (2 p.m., ACC Network).