SJU Athletics Photos

KINGSTON, RI(1/06/01) ­ A nearly flawless first half of basketball by St. Joseph's (8-5, 2-0 A-10) sparked the Hawks to a 55-34 win over Rhode Island (7-6, 0-1 A-10) at Keaney Gymnasium. The Crimson and Gray spread the floor and shared the wealth as six players tallied a field goal before the break. A 19-2 surge to close the half put the game out of reach for the Rams. SJU led at intermission 40-15. The dynamic duo of Angela Zampella and Susan Moran provided the Hawks with a potent 1-2 punch. Moran netted 8 of her game-high 15 points in the first half. Zampella, meanwhile finished the contest with 4 points, 8 rebounds and 9 assists. URI managed to hang with the Hawks in the game's early going trailing by just 6 points, 13-7, with 12:21 remaining before halftime. The Crimson and Gray then slowly began to pull away. Doing the bulk of the damage for the Cityliners was their foreign contingent of Moran (Tullamore, Ireland), Irina Krasnoshiok (Chisinau, Moldova) and Amra Mehmedic (Zenica, Bosnia). Mehmedic netted 8 first half points and Krasnoshiok added 6 to go along with Moran's contribution. Jane Meade also tallied 6 first half points for SJU. With the Hawks leading by 25 at the break, the second period progressed with little continuity. The two team combined to shoot just 12-45 from the floor. URI, in fact, outscored SJU in the second half 19-15. SJU is now 5-1 with its current starting unit (Moran, Zampella, Krasnoshiok, Mehmedic and Meade) intact. The young Hawks have also begun to implement Stephanie Gaitley's defensive system effectively, holding their fourth straight opponent to 54 points or less. The surging Hawks conclude a three-game road trip on Tuesday evening in Washington, D.C., when the Cityliners pay a visit to long-time nemesis George Washington. On Friday, SJU returns to Hawk Hill for a noon-time matinee against Duquesne on "Fieldtrip to the Fieldhouse Day."