Galloway, NJ – Stockton University (20-4, 14-3 NJAC) allowed just nine points in the third quarter and pulled away from Kean University (15-9, 10-7 NJAC) for a 77-63 victory on Saturday afternoon. The win, the third straight for Stockton and 18th in their last 19 games, gave the Ospreys their second straight season with 20 wins.
Taylor Christina (Franklinville/Delsea) led five Ospreys in double figures with 18 points. Stockton held Kean to just 34.7 % (25-72) shooting for the game, including 1-11 (9.1%) from behind the arc.
Stockton began the contest on a strong note, outscoring the Cougars 16-10 after one period. The Ospreys jumped out to the advantage on the strength of five markers by Christina and four by Sasha Williams (Cherry Hill/CH West) in the first stanza.
The Ospreys slowly increased the margin to 24-12 with 6:42 remaining in the half before watching the visitors cut into the lead. An 18-6 finish by the Cougars sent the teams in the break tied at 30-30. Christina and Lea Mendolla(Nutley/Mt. St. Dominic) topped Stockton with eight points each during the first half.
Stockton came out of the locker room on fire and clamped down on defense, holding Kean to just nine markers in the third stanza. The Cougars took a slight lead at 36-33 with 7:21 left in the quarter before Stockton rattled off 16 unanswered points to take a 49-36 lead. Christina scored seven points to lead the way during the spurt, and the Ospreys finished the quarter up 53-39 heading into the final period.
The fourth quarter became academic as Stockton led by as many as 21 points at 73-52 after a jumper by Mendolla with 3:07 to play. The Ospreys cruised from there to post the 77-63 victory.
In addition to Christina's team-high 18 markers, Williams added 17 points and game-highs of 17 rebounds and eight blocked shots. Mendolla chipped in with 16 points and five rebounds while Najha Treadwell(Cinnaminson/Cinnaminson) and April Peterson (Lafayette/High Point) contributed 14 and 10 points respectively. Stockton held a 53-36 advantage on the glass for the game.
Marajiah Bacon, the leading scorer in NCAA Division III, led all players with 25 points and three steals for Kean.Jaquetta Owens and Eden Obou added 13 and 11 points respectively for the Cougars.
Stockton will finish up the regular season with a road game at Montclair State on Wednesday night at 6 p.m. The Ospreys can earn the No. 1 seed for the NJAC tournament with a win.