CHICOPEE, Mass. – Saint Joseph's College (8-1, 3-0 GNAC) toppled Elms College (5-3, 2-3 GNAC), 80-44, in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) women's basketball contest on Saturday afternoon.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

The Blazers held a 4-0 lead after the first 90 seconds of play, but the Monks scored 16 unanswered points over the following four minutes and headed into the second stanza with a 22-9 advantage. Senior guard Cassandra Stapelfeld (Brookline, N.H.) netted the first eight points for the Monks with a pair of three-pointers and a layup.

Elms cut the SJC Lead down to nine points (25-16) after sophomore guard Rahmia Johnston (Trumbull, Conn.) hit a three at the 8:08 mark of the second frame, but St. Joe's posted a 13-2 run which was capped with a Grace Philippon (Glenburn, Maine) layup with 1:55 before the break.

The Monks held a 38-20 cushion at intermission and maintained no less than a 16-point advantage for the remainder of the afternoon. Saint Joseph's gained a game-high 38-point (78-40) lead when freshman MacKenzie Currie (Merrimac, Mass.) connected for a three-pointer with 2:16 left.

STATS OF THE GAME:

The Monks scored 35 points off 25 Blazer turnovers and committed just 12 turnovers in the victory…St. Joe's shot 51.7% (30-58) from the field while Elms posted a 34.1% (15-44) shooting performance.

LEADERS – SAINT JOSEPH'S:

• Philippon tallied 13 points, six assists, and two rebounds
• Sophomore Hailey Anderson (Beverly, Mass.) came off the bench to score 13 points
• Stapelfeld netted 12 points with three assists
• Senior guard Kaleigh Walsh (Windham, N.H.) added 10 points and two steals
• Sophomore Hannah Talon (Windham, Maine) chipped in with nine points, eight rebounds, four steals, and three assists
• Sophomore Angelica Hurley (Groverland, Mass.) contributed with eight points, five assists, four rebounds, three steals, and a pair of blocked shots

LEADERS - ELMS:

• Freshman guard Aiyanalee Lopez (Leominster, Mass.) posted a double-double with 11 points and 16 rebounds
• Johnston scored 11 points with two steals
• Sophomore forward Sadie Hunt (Sandwich, Mass.) scored eight points

HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:

With the win, Saint Joseph's improves to 3-0 all-time versus Elms College. The Blazers are in their first year as a member of the Great Northeast Athletic Conference.

NEXT!

The Monks are off until Thursday, December 30th when they play at Pomona-Pitzer during their trip to California. Tip-off is set for 6:00 PM.

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