BOSTON, Mass. - The Emmanuel Women's Basketball Team extended its conference unbeaten streak to ten games with a 72-45 win over Johnson & Wales University on Tuesday night. With the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) win, the Saints improved to 16-6 overall and 10-0 in GNAC play. The loss dropped the Wildcats to 9-14 on the season and 5-6 in the league.
The Saints jumped out to a 10-6 lead in the early going, backed by six points over the first four-minutes of play from senior guard Meghan Kirwan (Melrose, Mass.). Emmanuel took an eight point lead after a low post move by Vanessa Bramante (Stoneham, Mass.). Despite committing 5 turnovers before the ten-minute mark, the Saints held a 17-9 edge and forced a Wildcat timeout with 10:55 on the clock.
Out of the timeout, Kirwan dialed in from downtown to give Emmanuel a double-figure lead at 20-9. After a turn-around in the key by Wildcat freshman Natalie DiCocco (Media, Pa.), Emmanuel's senior guard Breanna Ockimey (Philadelphia, Pa.) scored five straight points at the opposite end and the Saints stretched their lead to 27-13 with 8:03 left in the half.
Another three from Kirwan and a fast-break bucket from Fiona O'Dwyer (Stamford, Conn.) capped a 19-4 run by the Saints and forced another JWU timeout at the five-minute mark, with Emmanuel leading, 36-13. A hoop in the paint by sophomore forward Liz Daley (Sharon, Mass.), followed by a jumper from the wing by DiCocco, brought the spread to 40-17 with two minutes left to play in the half.
A JWU free throw by Jenna Juron (Burnt Hills, N.Y.) would be the only score over the final two minutes of the half and the Saints took a 40-18 lead into the locker room at halftime. Emmanuel `s defense forced JWU into just 22.2% shooting in the opening frame, as the Wildcats connected on just 8 first-half field goals.
The Saints were led by Kirwan's 14 first-half points. Ockimey and freshman forward Lena Negri (Arlington, Va.) chipped in with 7 points each in the opening twenty minutes for Emmanuel. The Saints owned the glass, out-rebounding the Wildcats, 31-19. Juron and DiCocco paced the visitors with 6 points apiece in the first stanza.
Emmanuel opened the second half with a 12-3 run after a pair of freebies from Kirwan at the fifteen-minute mark. After a fast-break hoop by JWU guard Ayla Walter (Mt. Pleasant, S.C.), Emmanuel's Bria Tiro (Saugus, Mass.) knocked down a baseline trey to put the Saints up by thirty at 55-25.
The Wildcats then went on an 8-2 run, capped by a layup by Kaitlin Kenney (Bradford, Conn.), and Emmanuel led, 57-33 with 11 minutes to go. A low post hoop from Negri put the Saints back up by thirty at 66-36 with 6:30 left to play. Emmanuel would hold on to its solid double-figure lead for the remainder of the contest and came away with the 72-45 win.
Kirwan led all scorers with 16 points, while dishing out 6 assists. Negri finished with 13 points on 4-7 shooting and Ockimey added 11 points. O'Dwyer chipped in with 8 points and a game-high 9 rebounds for the Saints. Emmanuel finished with a 54-38 rebounding margin. The Saints shot well from the line, hitting 78.6% (11-14) of their free throws.
JWU was led by Juron, who hot for 13 points and dished out 3 assists. DiCocco finished with 10 points and 7 rebounds for the Wildcats.
The Saints will play again this Saturday (2/11), when Emmanuel hosts Norwich University in the second half of a GNAC men's and women's double-header. The game is slated to begin at 3:00 PM. Prior to tip off, the Saints will honor the two seniors (Kirwan and Ockimey) on the Emmanuel squad.