Sacred Heart University Department of Athletics
3-6,0-0NEC
Holy Cross
5-3,0-0Patriot
Strong Start Not Enough as Women's Basketball Falls to Holy Cross, 65-52
12/14/2019 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
FAIRFIELD, Conn. – A strong opening quarter from the Sacred Heart women's basketball team wasn't enough as the Pioneers dropped a non-conference game at home to Holy Cross, 65-52, on Saturday afternoon. The loss is the first for SHU at home this season and moves the Pioneers to 3-6 overall while Holy Cross finishes their four-game road swing with a win to improve to 5-3 in 2019-20.
Despite leading 17-12 after the first quarter, SHU was outscored 53-35 through the remainder of play including a 23-11 margin in the third quarter as the Crusaders were able to score the road win in what was just the second all-time meeting between the two teams and the first-ever at the Div. I level.
Jayla put up a season-high 15 points to lead the Pioneers in scoring, going 9-for-10 at the free throw line, while adding six rebounds in 28 minutes. Jessica Woods tallied her third double-double of the season with 11 points and 12 rebounds to go along with three blocks in 34 minutes. For Woods, this is her team-leading sixth double-digit output of the season while her three blocks ties a season-high.
1st Quarter (17-12 SHU)
- A very encouraging start to play saw the Pioneers score the first six points of the game while hitting on four of their first five field goal attempts to force an early Holy Cross timeout with an 8-3 lead just 2:33 into play
- The SHU lead grew to as many as seven as Adrianne Hagood hit a triple at the wing to push the Pioneers' advantage up to 15-8
- Davis finished the quarter off with a driving layup in the closing minute as the Pioneers shot just a tick under 50 percent in the stanza (8-for-17, 47.1 percent)
- Turnovers played a large role in the five-point lead as SHU forced eight Crusader turnovers in the opening quarter, while committing just three on the offensive end, to hold a 7-2 edge in points-off-turnovers
Murphy ➡️➡️➡️ Woods pic.twitter.com/8BvBjYZV0N
— Sacred Heart WBB (@SacredHeartWBB) December 14, 2019
2nd Quarter (31-30 SHU)
- Holy Cross bounced back, outscoring SHU 18-14 in the second quarter, to trail by just one at the halftime break
- Free throw plagued the Pioneers in the quarter as SHU went to the line 11 times compared to just five for Holy Cross, but were able to hit on just four of their 11 attempts (36.4 percent)
- A quick 7-0 Holy Cross burst to start the period gave the Crusaders their first lead of the game at 19-17 but the teams traded buckets throughout the majority of the quarter as neither side led by more than three
- With SHU trailing 30-27, Savannah Marshall provided a huge spark off the bench as she splashed in her first collegiate points on a three-pointer at the top of the key and she followed with a free throw in the final minute that pushed SHU out front before the halftime buzzer
�� Pitt Center ⬆️⬆️⬆️⬆️
— Sacred Heart WBB (@SacredHeartWBB) December 14, 2019
Savannah's first career points and the loudest the Pitt Center has been all season�� pic.twitter.com/E2vxuPnqQo
3rd Quarter (53-42 HC)
- The outcome was largely decided in the third quarter where Holy Cross outscored SHU 23-11, shooting 8-for-13 (61.5 percent) from the floor while holding the Pioneers to just a 3-for-17 (17.6 percent) showing
- Hagood hit a jumper just outside the paint two minutes into the frame that cut the margin back down to two but the Crusaders rode a 16-7 run to a 53-42 advantage at the end of the third quarter
- The nation's leader in three-point shooting coming into this game (Holy Cross 47.7 3FG%) hit on 3-of-5 from long range while the Crusaders' leading scorer Lauren Manis scored 12 of her game-high 23 points in the third quarter alone
Woods double-double ��
— Sacred Heart WBB (@SacredHeartWBB) December 14, 2019
This gives her 11 pts and 11 reb ... 3⃣ double-doubles now on the season for the junior pic.twitter.com/SRfEarKs8N
4th Quarter (65-52 HC)
- Both teams struggled from the floor as the two sides combined to shoot 8-for-23 from the floor and 0-for-5 from three
- Holy Cross scored the first six points of the quarter to take their largest lead of the game at 59-42 (+17) but SHU didn't go away quietly as the Pioneers responded with a 6-0 run of their own to cut the margin back down to 11 with 5:37 left
- Even with the brief surge, turnovers loomed large down the stretch as three costly turnovers for SHU led to six Holy Cross points and sealed the win for the Crusaders
Down but not out �� pic.twitter.com/yMZTggiAUo
— Sacred Heart WBB (@SacredHeartWBB) December 14, 2019
NOTES
- Davis, now in her junior season, led the team in scoring for the second time this season and just the third time in her career
- This is the third double-digit scoring output of Davis' 2019-20 season and the seventh such game of her career
- Woods, who ripped off a five-game streak with 10+ points to start the season (a SHU record for a Pioneer in her first games with the program), reached double figures for the first time in four games as she scored 11 to go along with 12 rebounds and three blocks
- Woods has at least two blocks in six-of-nine games this season
- Playing with foul trouble in the first half, Hagood finished with just nine points to go along with four rebounds and two assists in 31 minutes
- Hagood came in averaging 17.6 points per game (third in the NEC)
- Abigail Kangudie made her return to the SHU lineup and finished with two points and three rebounds in 27 minutes as she was making her first appearance of the season
- Sonia Smith provided some good minutes off the bench, finishing with seven points, two rebounds, two assists, four steals and one block in 27 minutes
- Smith set a new season-high in both steals (four) and minutes played (27)
NEXT GAME
SHU stays in-state for their next contest as the Pioneers head north on I-95 for a matchup against Yale on Thursday, Dec. 19 at 12 PM. This is the first time SHU is playing Yale since the 2013-14 season and the Pioneers have fared well in the all-time series, owning a 13-4 mark against the Bulldogs.
