Brooklyn, NY (Feb. 19, 2019) – Four players scored in double figures as the Purchase College women's basketball team upended the host St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn), 80-76, in the opening round of the Skyline Conference Tournament at the Hill Center Tuesday evening. With the win, the No. 5 Panthers knock off the No. 4 Bears and advance to the league semifinal game at Mount Saint Mary College on Thursday.
 
Senior guard Amber Jones (Bronx, NY) led the scoring effort for the visitors with 22 points, five rebounds, four assists and three steals. Senior guard Amber Yarter (Albany, NY) was not far behind with 20 points and seven boards, while freshman forward Shadai Plowden (Yonkers, NY) and senior center Nyasia Harris (South Fallsburg, NY) also put up double-digits with 13 and 10 points, respectively.

Harris broke open the scoring to start the game with put-back layup on Purchase's first possession. SJC's Kelly O'Donnell drove in a layup to even the score, but the Panthers fired right back with a 3-pointer from Jones to take a 5-2 lead.

O'Donnell would add another two points for the home team before Purchase rattled off seven unanswered points to take a 12-4 lead.

SJC went on an 11-6 run in the final minutes of the quarter to come within three points of Purchase (18-15).

The Bears continued to heat up in the second quarter, taking their first lead of the game (23-21) on a 3-pointer from Victoria Porcasi. O'Donnell connected on the next two SJC possessions, stretching the Bears' advantage to 28-23. St. Joe's closed the opening 20 minutes with a 33-29 edge over the Panthers.
 
The home team continued to connect after the break, firing in eight unanswered points to open the third quarter.
 
Junior forward Arta Krasniqi (Bronx, NY) snapped the Panthers' silence with a jumper at 6:59. The play seemed to be the spark Purchase needed, as the Panthers outshot the Bears 16-2 over the next six minutes to close the stanza out in front, 47-43.
 
St. Joe's kept close at the start of the final quarter but, by midway through, Purchase began pushing its lead at a steady rate—building it to as many as 10 points with just under two minutes remaining. The Bears made a comeback attempt with back-to-back 3's in the final minute, but Purchase found nothing but net after several trips to the charity stripe. Jones and Krasniqi combined for a perfect 100% shooting (4-of-4) from the line to secure the 80-76 victory.