February 12, 2011

STANDISH, ME – Saint Joseph's College (14-8, 6-3 GNAC) toppled Lasell College (1-22, 0-10 GNAC), 71-21, at the Harold Alfond Center on Saturday afternoon. Alyssa Grigware '13 (Biddeford, ME) came off the bench to score a game-and-career-high 14 points in the SJC triumph.

The winning margin is the largest this season and the most since St. Joe's defeated St. Joseph (VT), 95-40, on December 5th, 2008. Lasell's 21 points is the fewest scored by a Saint Joseph's opponent since the Monks manhandled Maine-Fort Kent, 82-18, on December 3rd, 2000.

Abby Young'14 (North Yarmouth, ME) was 5-9 from the floor, including a 3-6 effort from three-point distance, and netted 13 and Allie Parent '12 (Camden, ME) tallied 10 points, five caroms, four assists and three steals for the Monks.

Ashley Geel '12 (St. George, ME) registered nine points, six rebounds and five blocked shots while Lindsay Moore '14 (Somersworth, NH) and Theresa Hendrix '14 (Scarborough, ME/Cheverus) both grabbed seven boards in the victory. Freshman point guard Mackenzie Dufour (Augusta, ME) dealt five assists and added a pair of steals.

Prior to tip-off a ceremony was held in honor of the Monks' lone senior – guard Casey Drake (Lebanon, NH). Drake, who recorded six assists, four points and three rebounds in the win, has played in 92 games at Saint Joseph's with 459 points, 251 assists and 142 rebounds to date.

Saint Joseph's also hosted its annual Pink Zone event today in an effort to help raise funds for breast cancer research. All gate proceeds and funds collected from pink tee-shirt sales will be donated to the Maine Cancer Foundation. Players from both teams adorned pink warm-up shirts and other pink apparel and the officials used pink whistles during the contest.

The Lasers were led offensively by Joanna Bishop'12 (South Burlington, VT), who tallied eight points and a game-high 10 rebounds in the loss. Kayla Vincelette '14 (Westport, MA) added seven points for Lasell.

The Lasers' only lead came on the first play of the game, as Vincelettedropped in a layup to kick off the game-scoring at the 19:31 mark. Nine minutes later, the Monks held a 13-point lead, 21-6, and never looked back.

Saint Joseph's carried a commanding 38-9 cushion into intermission after shooting 51.5% from the floor in the opening stanza. Lasell posted a paltry 10.7% rate from the field and made just three field goals in the first half.

Young led all first-period scorers with 10 points, while Bishop netted four to lead the Lasers.

The second half featured more of the same, as the Monks led by at least 27 points for the entire latter stanza and pushed the advantage to 50 points in the closing seconds.

Overall, Saint Joseph's shot 46.8% (29-62) from the floor, 37.5% (6-16) from beyond the arc, and 63.6% (7-11) from the charity stripe. Lasell shot 17.3% (9-52) from the field and 75% (3-4) from the line while missing all nine attempts from downtown in a losing effort.

The Monks out-rebounded the Lasers by a 44-35 margin and registered 24 assists on 29 field goals on the afternoon. St. Joe's also forced 22 Lasell turnovers and grabbed 13 steals and held a whopping 40-2 advantage in bench points.

With the win, Saint Joseph's improves to 6-1 in the history of the series with Lasell College. The Monks have defeated the Lasers in five consecutive meetings dating back to the 2005-06 campaign.

Saint Joseph's will host Emerson College on Tuesday night at 7:00 PM, while Lasell is set to play Johnson & Wales at home Tuesday at 6:00 PM.

Postgame interview with Head Coach Mike McDevitt '83:

Senior Casey Drake with family, coaches, and SJC President Dr. Joseph Lee