LEWISTON, Maine – Bates College (4-2) shot 62.1% from the floor en route to defeating Saint Joseph's College (4-3), 86-63, in a non-conference women's basketball contest on Thursday evening.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

The Bobcats, who maintained the lead for the duration and held a 17-13 advantage after the first frame, essentially put the game out of reach with a 17-2 run early in the second quarter. After outscoring St. Joe's by a 25-11 tally in the second stanza, the hosts headed into intermission with a 42-24 cushion.

After shooting 53.1% (17-32) from the field in the opening 20 minutes, the Bobcats turned up the heat by posting an otherworldly 73.1% (19-26) performance in the third and fourth quarters combined. The Monks kept pace in the third quarter, but ultimately could not overcome the hosts' dominant second period as Bates went on to secure a game-high 31-point advantage with 7:19 left in the final frame.

NOTEWORTHY:

The Bobcats 62.1% overall shooting performance is the best field goal percentage ever recorded by a Saint Joseph's College opponent, surpassing the 58.3% effort recorded by University of Southern Maine on February 15th, 1989.

LEADERS – SAINT JOSEPH'S:

• Junior Nina Howe (York, Maine) netted 11 points with five assists
• Senior Jayne Howe (Pembroke, Mass.) also scored 11 points and added four boards and a pair of assists
• Junior Angelica Hurley (Groveland, Mass.) contributed 10 points, seven caroms, two assists, and a pair of steals
• Junior Hailey Anderson (Beverly, Mass.) and freshman Elisabeth Stapelfeld (Brookline, N.H.) scored seven points apiece

LEADERS – BATES:

• Meghan Graff was 12-for-19 from the field with 28 points, six rebounds, six steals, and four assists
• Alexandra Long added 11 points, five boards, four assists, two steals, and a pair of blocked shots
• Morgan Kennedy netted 11 points with a pair of rebounds
• Sophie Spolter came off the bench to score 10 points in 16 minutes

HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:

With the loss, Saint Joseph's falls to 18-13 all-time versus Bates College.

NEXT!

Saint Joseph's kicks off Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) play on Saturday with a home game versus Colby-Sawyer College. Tip-off is slated for 1:00 PM.

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