Providence College Athletics
Providence College
8-8, 2-3
St Johns
7-10, 1-5
Women's Basketball Upset By St. John's 67-62
1/22/2003 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Jan. 22, 2003
PROVIDENCE, R.I. - The Providence College women's basketball team was defeated by St. John's, 67-62, in BIG EAST Conference play on Saturday, January 22 in Providence, R.I. The loss snaps a three-game win streak for the Friars, while St. John's picks up its first win since December 31 and first BIG EAST win of the year. Prior to the match-up with Providence, the Red Storm had lost 24-straight conference games in a row.
The Red Storm rallied from a five-point halftime deficit, outscoring Providence 42-32 in the second half. The Friars also were outrebounded in the second half, 24-10, and 40-24 for the game. Shemika Stevens led St. John's with 19 points and 10 rebounds, marking the first double-double of her career. Danielle Rainey returned to the court for St. John's after missing two games due to an abdominal injury and scored 17 points. Reka Szavuly added a career-high 15 points.
The Friars were led by sophomore guard Michal Epstein (Rehovot, Israel). Epstein scored 14 points and added three rebounds, two assists and two steals. Senior center Kacee Wheeler (Bakersfield, Calif.) and sophomore point guard Keisha Blackwell (Baltimore, Md.) were the only other Friars to reach double figures, scoring 11 points each. Sophomore forward Quiana Copeland (Mattapan, Mass.) led Providence on the boards with six rebounds.
St. John's held its largest lead of (59-50) with 4:13 remaining in the game. The Friars fought back to tie the score, 60-60, with 1:05 left on the clock, but the Red Storm closed the game out on a 7-2 run in the final minute to earn the 67-62 win.
Providence led St. John's 30-25 at halftime. There were six lead changes and four ties in the half before Providence went on a 6-0 run to gain its largest lead of the first half (30-23) with 28 seconds remaining on the clock. St. Johns' Shemika Stevens was able to cut the deficit to five points (30-25) on a short jumper with one-second on the clock. In the half, the Friars shot 51.9 percent from the field on 14-of-27 shooting. The Red Storm shot 36.0 percent from the field as they connected on just nine-of-25 attempts from the floor.
Providence College (8-8, 2-3 BIG EAST) will take on Seton Hall in BIG EAST Conference action on Saturday, January 25 at 2:00 p.m. The game is scheduled to be played Walsh Gymnasium on the campus of Seton Hall University in South Orange, N.J.
