WINTHROP, Mass. - There will be a rematch for this year's Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Women's Basketball Championship game this Saturday as #2 Saint Joseph's (Maine) will take on #4 University of Saint Joseph (Conn.). The two-seeded Monks had a 39 point second half to defeat a tough third-seeded Albertus Magnus, 67-60 while the four-seeded Blue Jays upset top-seeded Johnson & Wales despite a fourth-quarter comeback from the Wildcats. SJC and USJ will meet once again in a rematch of last year's title game where the Monks beat the Blue Jays 85-72 to earn the conference's bid to the 2024 NCAA Division III Tournament. USJ defeated Saint Joseph's (Maine) earlier on in the regular season, 70-64. The Blue Jays will look to claim their first GNAC championship since 1998. Saturday's match-up is set for a 1:00 PM tip-off.

Recap Courtesy of Saint Joseph's (Maine) Athletic Communications

STANDISH, Maine – #2 Saint Joseph's College (21-6) defeated #3 Albertus Magnus Falcons (17-10) 67-60 in the GNAC women's basketball Semifinal game Thursday night at home. 

PLAYOFF IMPLICATIONS:
St. Joseph's (ME) rallied with a strong second half to defeat Albertus Magnus 67-60 in tonight's conference semifinal. The victory propels the Monks into Saturday's championship game, where they'll host USJ on their home court.

HOW IT HAPPENED:
The Saint Joseph's College of Maine women's basketball team fought back from an early deficit to defeat Albertus Magnus 67-60 in Thursday's conference semifinal, earning a spot in the championship game.

After trailing 18-12 in the first quarter, the Monks found their rhythm in the third, outscoring the Falcons 20-12 to seize control of the game. Grace Ramsdell led the charge with a strong double-double, scoring 17 points and grabbing 11 rebounds, while Abby Dube added 10 points on 4-of-10 shooting.

Logan Brown also stepped up, hitting 3-of-7 from beyond the arc to finish with 12 points. The Monks' bench was a key factor, outscoring Albertus Magnus's reserves 25-0.

For the Falcons, Diamond White had a game-high 21 points on 8-of-15 shooting, and Caitlyn Scott and Jakara Murray-Leach each grabbed 9 rebounds. Despite White's strong performance, Albertus Magnus struggled with their outside shooting, making only 25% of their three-pointers.

The turning point came in the third quarter when Saint Joseph's caught fire, shooting 53.8% from the field and 50% from three-point range. The Monks also dominated the boards, outrebounding the Falcons 43-32, including 18 offensive rebounds that resulted in 16 second-chance points.

Saint Joseph's bounced back after a slow start, shooting just 21.1% in the opening quarter, to eventually build an 11-point lead and secure the win.

LEADERS – SAINT JOSEPH'S:

• Grace Ramsdell (Wells, ME) led the Monks with a double-double scoring 17 points with 11 rebounds; she also had two assists 
• Angelica Hurley (Groveland, MA) notched 13 points, four rebounds, two assists, and two steals
• Logan Brown (Brunswick, ME) tallied 12 points, two assists, and a steal
• Abby Dube (Groveland, MA) added 10 points, four rebounds, four assists, and one steal
• Madison Lebel (Hermon, ME) recorded nine rebounds in the victory

LEADERS –ALBERTUS MAGNUS COLLEGE:

• Diamond White recorded a game high of 21 points with two assists and two steals
• Caitlyn Scott notched 15 points, nine rebounds, four assists, and one steal
• Jakara Murray-Leach added 13 points, nine rebounds, and one assist

Recap Courtesy of University of Saint Joseph (Conn.) Athletic Communications

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – The fourth-seeded University of Saint Joseph (USJ) women's basketball team advanced to the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Championship Game for the second consecutive season, upsetting top-seeded Johnson & Wales University (JWU) in the GNAC Semifinals, 89-73, Thursday night inside the Wildcat Center in Providence, R.I. With the result, the Blue Jays improved to 18-9 overall, while the Wildcats ended their 2024-25 season 23-3 overall.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Wildcats grabbed an early lead, holding a 9-0 edge at the 6:33 mark of the first quarter.
• USJ responded with a 4-0 stretch, as graduate students Taylor Verboven (Columbia, Conn.) and Jordan Ouellette (Bristol, Conn.) each knocked down jumpers, cutting the gap to 9-4, and forced a JWU timeout at the 4:13 mark.
• The Blue Jays continued to battle back, as Verboven completed an old-fashioned three-point play, tying the game at 9-9 with three minutes left in the opening period.
• USJ kept its foot on the gas and took a 17-11 lead after an 8-2 run was capped off by a tough layup from Verboven with 47 seconds remaining on the first-quarter clock.
• However, the Wildcats closed the quarter strong with a 5-0 spurt, cutting the gap to one, 17-16, entering the second quarter.
• After JWU regained the lead to start the second, USJ fired back with a big 10-2 run, fueled by triples from senior guards Maya Slisz (New Britain, Conn.) and Jelly Frigo (West Hartford, Conn.), to establish a 27-20 USJ lead at the 7:07 mark.
• JWU closed the gap to four, but Ouellette would sink an easy layup to establish a five-point gap, 31-26, at the 4:32 mark before halftime.
• The layup would spark a 6-0 run, capped off by a deep mid-range jumper from Verboven, increasing USJ's advantage to 35-26 with 3:27 left in the first half.
• Saint Joseph extended its lead to double-digits, 41-31, with 1:46 to go before the break, after Frigo sparked a 5-0 stretch with a three-pointer.
• However, the Wildcats once again ended the period strong, using a 5-2 stretch to close out the half, and cut their deficit to 43-36 heading into the locker rooms.
• USJ came out firing to start the third quarter with a 6-2 run, featuring buckets from Ouellette and Verboven, to extend the gap to 11, 49-38, at the 6:48 mark.
• The Blue Jays maintained a double-digit lead, as another 6-2 stretch, capped off by a turnaround jumper by Ouellette, increased the advantage to 53-40 and forced a JWU timeout at the 4:36 mark in the third.
• The two teams would go on to trade buckets, as USJ called a timeout with 2:07 on the clock, leading 58-49.
• USJ then closed the quarter strongly with a 6-0 run, capped off by a tough driving layup from Slisz, to take a 66-51 edge heading into the final quarter.
• JWU opened the fourth on a frenzy with back-to-back triples, forcing USJ to call a timeout at the 9:07 mark, leading 66-57.
• The Wildcats extended their spurt to an 11-0 run, closing the deficit to just four, 66-62, and forced another USJ timeout with 8:25 remaining in regulation.
• JWU stormed all the way back to retake the lead, 67-66, at the 7:46 mark.
• USJ fired back though with a clutch 8-0 run, featuring four points from Slisz, to catapult back in front, 74-67, with 3:24 left to play.
• The Blue Jays continued to shut down the Wildcats the remainder of the way, ultimately closing the game on a 15-4 run, featuring seven points from Ouellette, to secure the upset victory, 89-73.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE 

• Verboven and Slisz both scored a team-high 26 points.
• Ouellette joined them in double figures, scoring 17 points.
• Ouellette recorded a double-double, hauling in a team-high 13 rebounds.
• Slisz dished out a team-high six assists and swiped four steals.
• USJ outshot JWU, 53.3% (34-of-65) to 36.5% (27-of-74).
• The Blue Jays outrebounded the Wildcats, 42-41.

UP NEXT

The Blue Jays advance to the GNAC Championship for the second consecutive season and will take on second-seeded Saint Joseph's College of Maine on Saturday, March 1. Tipoff between the Blue Jays and Monks inside the Harold Alfond Center in Standish, Maine is set for 1:00 p.m.

ABOUT THE GREAT NORTHEAST ATHLETIC CONFERENCE

The Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) is an NCAA Division III association made up of 16 member institutions and over 4000 student-athletes across the New England region. Founded in 1995, the GNAC annually sponsors and administers 20 championships, while balancing academic integrity, athletic opportunity and community involvement in an effort to enhance the student-athlete experience.

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