PHILADELPHIA, PA - Head Coach Tom Lochner and the La Salle University women's basketball team defeated the Drexel Dragons 67-50 in their home opener today, Sunday, November 28, 2004. La Salle junior Shaune McLaughlin (Somers Point, NJ/Mainland Regional) led a defensively charged Explorer team who out-scored the Dragons 46-24 in the second half.
The Dragons came out strong an took an early 9-2 lead in the first period, but La Salle bounced back and went on a 17-8 run in the middle of the first half to take a 19-17 lead with five minutes to go until the break. Sophomore Crista Ricketts (Douglasville, PA/Daniel Boone) scored with 4:29 to go in the first half and the Explorers went the remainder of the period scoreless going into the locker room down 26-21.
La Salle committed 11 first half turnovers, compared to just five by the Dragons and went 0-5 from behind the three point arc. Ricketts led La Salle at the break with nine points and three rebounds while junior Lamera Ferguson (Syracuse, NY/Nottingham) was perfect from both the field and the charity stripe for six first half points.
Drexel came out of the locker room and took its biggest lead of the game draining a three pointer on the first possession of the second half, going up 29-21. La Salle then went on a 14-5 run and took its first lead in just under 11 minutes of play going up 35-34 with 13:31 remaining in the game.
The two teams battled back and forth with four different lead changes in the next four minutes of play until La Salle took a one point lead with just under nine minutes remaining and held on for the victory. The Explorers out scored Drexel 46-24 in the second half, eight of which came from McLaughlin. She finished the game with eight points, six rebounds, four steals and four assists. Of her total stats all eight points, all four steals, three rebounds and two steals came in the second period.
The Explorers recorded just two turnovers in the second half, while the Dragons committed nine as they struggled pushing the ball up the court through La Salle's second half full court press. Both teams finished the game with eight steals, six came in the second half for the Explorers, while just two came in the second half for Drexel.
Ricketts led the Explorers in points with 21 on 9-15 from the floor, she has scored in double figures in 15 of the Explorers last 16 games. Sophomore Davineia Payne (Bear, DE/Caravel Academy) was an impressive 8-12 from the field, she finished the game with 16 points. Both Ricketts and Payne, along with McLaughlin led the team in boards with six.
At the half time break only three Explorers had posted points, but La Salle finished the game registering eight different scorers in the scorebook. Senior Jill Marano (Crofton, MD/Arundel) recorded all nine of her points in the second half, while Ricketts had 12 second half points and Payne tallied 10 in the second period.
Senior Meghan Wilkinson (Downingtown, PA/Downingtown) along with freshmen Carlene Hightower (Philadelphia, PA/Archbishop Prendergast) and Alyse Hoover (Lebanon, PA/Cedar Crest) combined for seven points. Wilkinson pulled down five boards while Hightower grabbed two.
The Explorers improve to 2-2 on the season and will host Boston University this Saturday, December 4th at 1:00 p.m. in Tom Gola Arena.
