Feb. 24, 2008

Final Stats

ST. BONAVENTURE, N.Y. - Junior Erica Schiefen's lay up rattled around every part of the rim before falling through the net with six seconds remaining to clinch a 64-63 comeback victory for the St. Bonaventure women's basketball team over Saint Louis Sunday afternoon on Bob Lanier Court at the Reilly Center.

With the win, the Bonnies matched the program's all-time mark of 18 wins in a season after setting the school's Division I single-season record of 17 following last week's upset of nationally ranked George Washington. The 1984-85 edition of the Bonnies are the only other team in school history with 18 victories in the win column.

The Brown and White now sit at 18-9 (6-6) in 2007-08 after winning their third straight conference clash following three consecutive losses in league play. St. Bonaventure's six Atlantic 10 wins are tied for the programs third most since joining the league in 1986-87. Only seven other teams in school history have reached or surpassed the six-win conference mark.

Following the loss, Saint Louis dropped to 10-17 (5-7) after its seventh defeat in the last 10 contests. The Billikens have also fallen in 13 of 16 games on the road.

Sophomore Dana Mitchell led all scorers with 21 points to extend her double digit scoring streak to 28 games dating back to last season. The Fairless Hills, Pa. product also moved into 17th place on the all-time Bona scoring list with 897 career points in just her second season. Fellow classmate Andrea Doneth was the only other Bonnie in double figures with 11 points for her third straight double figure scoring performance off the bench. Doneth also added seven assists on the afternoon.

A pair of Bonnies finished just below the 10-point mark as junior Tiara Johnson and Schiefen each registered nine points apiece. The two also combined for 11 rebounds.

Despite being out-rebounded 35-28 and allowing 11 caroms on the offensive end, the Bonnies forced Saint Louis into 22 turnovers that the Brown and White turned into 20 points.

St. Bonaventure started the second stanza with a 7-2 spurt to gain their largest lead of the afternoon at 46-37 just over four minutes into the final session. Mitchell accounted for four of the Bona points, while Schiefen knocked down her first three-pointer of the contest in between Mitchell's buckets to stretch the lead to nine points.

After four consecutive points from freshman Cara Gustafson, the Bonnies matched their biggest lead of nine for a second time at 52-43 with 12:59 showing on the scoreboard. The first-year guard from Omaha, Neb. canned a short baseline jumper before finishing on a nifty runner in the lane to put the Bonnies back in front.

Trailing by nine points with just over 12 minutes remaining, Saint Louis exploded on an 18-0 offensive outburst to turn the Billiken's deficit into a nine point lead at 61-52. St. Bonaventure suffered through an eight minute scoring dry spell during the span to allow Saint Louis to take their first lead since midway through the first half.

Senior Hayley Leake provided a huge spark off the Saint Louis bench with seven points during the stretch, including the club's first five tallies of the run. The Billikens scored in a variety of ways during the game-changing span with a pair conventional three-point plays as well as multiple easy lay ups around the basket.

However, the Brown and White refused to quit and tallied 12 of the games final 14 points to turn around a late nine point deficit into a 64-63 victory. After a jumper from sophomore Katie Paganelli extended the Billiken lead to nine points at the 5:22 mark, the Bonnies finally found the bottom on the net thanks to two Johnson free throws. Mitchell dominated with eight points in the final 3:19, including her club's first field goal in a 9:42 span. She started her scoring surge with a pair of transition lay ups followed by two tough hanging jumpers to cut the Saint Louis lead to one at 63-62 with less than a minute remaining.

With the Bonnies still trailing by a single point, they forced sophomore Amanda Kemezys into a turnover before calling a timeout with 16 seconds remaining. After breaking the huddle, junior Katelyn Murray found Schiefen all alone under the hoop as the junior's rim-rattling lay in proved to be the game-winning points. Sophomore Theresa Lisch's desperation jumper as time expired only found iron before the final buzzer.

Thanks to a 15-6 run to close the half, the Bonnies raced into the break with a 39-33 halftime advantage. The Brown and White's 39 points at intermission matched the club's second highest first half offensive output of the season after establishing the mark in their upset of nationally ranked George Washington with 44 tallies.

Despite connecting on a blistering 59.1 percent in the opening 20 minutes of play, including four first half three-pointers from Lisch (14 points and 12 rebounds), Saint Louis found themselves six points behind the Bonnies. Fifteen turnovers in the first frame plagued the Billikens as they led to 13 points for the Brown and White. The Bonnies also received great contribution from their bench as 16 tallies came from outside the starting five.

Following a back-and-forth start to this afternoon's contest, Saint Louis gained its largest lead of the first six minutes with a 15-11 advantage at the 14:13 mark. Lisch tallied the first three of five straight Billiken points with her third three-pointer of the first half. Fellow classmate Paganelli quickly tacked on an additional basket after corralling a loose ball in the backcourt and racing down the floor for an easy lay up to clinch a four-point edge.

The Bonnies rapidly responded with an 11-4 run to take a 22-19 lead with 10:04 remaining in the first frame. Johnson played a large role in the Brown and White stretch with seven of the team's 11 points, including a traditional three-point play after converting in lane with contact. The junior college transfer later notched four straight Bona points to finish the spurt with another lay in at the basket and a pair of free throws at the stripe.

Just as the Bonnies regained the lead, Saint Louis retaliated with the game's next seven points to match its largest lead of the half at 26-22. Lisch continued her sizzling conversion rate from downtown with her fourth trifecta of the half coupled in between a pair of baskets from Kemezys and senior Jackie Gilbert.

A trio of traditional three-point plays in the final 5:01 of the first session started a 15-4 Bona run down the stretch to take a six-point lead into intermission at 39-33. Mitchell produced the first of three straight three-point possessions as junior Ashley Edwards and Doneth also added conventional and-one's to regain the lead at 32-29 with a little over four minutes left.

Following a Paganelli jumper, Schiefen converted four straight free throws prior to an easy two from Doneth to give the Bonnies their biggest lead of the half at 39-31. Kemezys finished the half with a jumper to slice the Brown and White advantage to six after 20 minutes of play.

The Brown and White will return to action for their final road regular season contest of the year when they travel to Massachusetts on Wednesday, Feb. 27 at 7:00 p.m.