Purchase, NY
(Jan. 21, 2016) – It was a slow start that haunted the Purchase College women's basketball team in a 91-77 loss to St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) on Saturday afternoon.
The Panthers only managed 25 percent shooting in the first quarter, despite a 5-0 run by the home team to start off the stanza. The Bears rallied to tie the game at five but a
Frances Minaya (SR/San Fernando, CA) jumper put the Panthers back ahead, 7-5.
St. Joe's answered back with back-to-back layups from Destiny Marino and Lauren Quesada, followed by a 10-2 run that ended the first quarter, 19-9, in favor of the visitors.
The Panthers finally got cooking in the second and third quarters, outscoring the Bears 46-38.
Purchase went on a 16-11 run and took a 48-47 lead over St. Joe's with just under four minutes left in the third quarter. As the minutes trickled down, the Bears gained back their lead but a Purchase 3-pointer by
Lisa Kentris (SO/Latham, NY) tied the game at 53 apiece with under two minutes left in the quarter.
St. Joe's pulled ahead, 57-55, at the end of the third quarter and never looked back. The Bears went on to outscore the Panthers 34-22 in the final stanza to claim the 91-77 victory.
For the game, St. Joe's produced 24 second chance points off of 26 rebounds to control the rebound column 59-32. Victoria Porcasi paced the Bears with 25 points, while Quesada recorded a double-double with 24 points and a game-high 19 rebounds.
Six different players scored for Purchase, including three in double-digit figures. Ortiz led all scorers with an impressive 30 points, while Minaya tallied 17 points and Kentris netted 12. Rookie forward
Isis Gonzalez (FR/New York, NY) added another eight points while totaling a team-best eight rebounds, three blocks and two steals in the effort.
The Panthers are now 2-12 overall and 1-8 in Skyline Conference play. The Bears improve to 4-10 overall and 2-6 in the league.
Up next, Purchase hosts Brooklyn College on Monday evening for a non-conference game starting at 6 p.m.
