SJU Athletics Photos

PHILADELPHIA, PA (12/09/00) ­ Senior Angela Zampella, the most prolific free throw shooter in Hawk history, connected on seven of eight free throws during the final 1:36 of the game to help St. Joseph's (4-4) to a 63-59 win over Villanova (5-3). The contest was the second game of a Philadelphia Big Five doubleheader at Alumni Memorial Fieldhouse. Junior Susan Moran finished with 23 points and 9 rebounds for the winners. While it was Moran and Zampella who led the way statistically, it was a pair of freshmen, Amra Mehmedic and Elizabeth "Hootie" Mohan, that stepped up and connected on critical shots late in the game for the Crimson and Gray. Trailing 44-42, Mehmedic, the Bosnian import, drilled a three-pointer from the right side to put the Crimson and Gray in front. Then Mohan and Zampella teamed up on three key baskets, which gave the Hawks room to breathe down the stretch. Mohan canned a jumper to put SJU up 49-46 at the 5:23 mark and followed that with another bucket :30 seconds later that placed the Cityliners in front by five. After the Wildcats trimmed the lead back down to size, Mohan swished a three-pointer from the left side that gave the Hawks a six-point advantage, 56-50. Hawk Head coach Stephanie V. Gaitley was extremely pleased by the play of her freshmen after the game, "We told the kids before that game that the big difference would be different people stepping up and Elizabeth Mohan came off the bench and gave us a big spark offensively. She stepped up big time and I think it was a big confidence builder for her." Crucial to the Hawks success in the game was their smothering defense. SJU turned in its strongest effort of the season holding the Wildcats to just 59 total points. The Crimson and Gray were particularly effective at shutting down the Wildcats leading scorer, Trish Juhline. Juhline, the reigning Big Five player of the Week, was shutout in the game. "I thought our defense was excellent, assessed Gaitley. "I thought our kids followed the game plan exactly how we wanted to. We took their ‘go-to' players out of the game….I thought that the freshmen stepped up and gave us significant contributions and I was very, very proud of the team effort." The win was the Hawks' tenth straight in Big Five play. It also gave Gaitley an overall record of 55-7 in City Series play during her career, as a player at Villanova (12-0), an assistant coach at St. Joseph's (10-2) and as the Hawks' head coach (33-5). St. Joseph's will now take a 12-day hiatus for final exams, before returning to the floor on December 21 at nationally ranked Rutgers. The Lady Knights ousted SJU from the NCAA Tournament in the second round last season.