Feb. 17, 2004

Box Score

JAMAICA, N.Y. - After a back-and-fourth battle that saw 13 lead changes and five ties, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish out battled the Red Storm down the stretch, picking up a 69-56 win at Alumni Hall this evening. The Red Storm fall to 9-14 overall and 3-9 in the conference.

After trailing at the half, Notre Dame bounced back as Megan Duffy and Le'Tania Severe combined for 14 free throws in the last three minutes of the game to seal the win for Notre Dame, who broke open a 45-all tie with 8:32 remaining to build their largest lead, a 13-point advantage, with 15 seconds left.

In the first half, Notre Dame led by one point at the first media timeout, before Shemika Stevens (New York, N.Y.) and Angie Clark (Copiague, N.Y.) combined for five-straight points to put the Red Storm up 13-9 less than one minute later. The Fighting Irish came back with a five-point swing of their own, and, after a Kim MacMillan (Toms River, N.J.) jumper, added four more points for an 18-15 Notre Dame advantage with 12:20 remaining in the first half.

Clark, Stevens and Mercedes Dukes (Bronx, N.Y.) chipped in a basket each during a 6-0 run by St. John's over the next 2:30 minutes. Notre Dame came back to take a 24-21 lead on a three-pointer from Joyce, but Clark scored to put St. John's back on top and MacMillan's three on the next play extended the Red Storm lead.

With the game tied at 26 with 5:25 remaining, St. John's pulled ahead with an 8-2 run, which was capped by back-to-back threes from Reka Szavuly (Miskolc, Hungary) and MacMillan. Notre Dame hit two free throws on the next play and Joyce followed with another Irish three, cutting the score to 34-33 with 40 seconds left, before Danielle Chambers (Brooklyn, N.Y.) hit a lay-up with 11 seconds to play in the first, putting St. John's up 36-33 at the break.

Notre Dame quickly bounced back in the early minutes of the second half, taking a slim 39-38 lead. Clark and Stevens hit jumpers on the next to St. John's possessions to keep the Red Storm up by three with 12:40 remaining. Notre Dame hit a basket on their next possession and, after double fouls were called on Chambers and Crystal Erwin, scored four more unanswered points for a 45-42 lead.

The Red Storm did not back down, as another three by MacMillan knotted the game at 45 with 8:32 to play. Notre Dame's Duffy completed a three-point play, before Nora Gyuris (Pecs, Hungary) fed Chambers in the center of the paint for a lay-up on the next play. Jacqueline Batteast hit a lay-up for the Irish on the next play, kicking off a 7-0 run, which Clark squashed with a jumper from the block to cut the lead to 55-49 with 3:23 remaining.

Notre Dame would not connect on another field goal, but behind Duffy and Severe, went 14-for-16 from the free throw line to build the lead to the final 13-point spread.

Clark, who notched her ninth double-double of the season, shot 8-of-14 from the field and led St. John's with 16 points and 10 rebounds, while adding three blocks and three steals on the defensive end. MacMillan added 14 points, including four three-pointers, and Stevens added 12 points and six assists, to round out the Red Storm in double figures. Duffy led all scorers with 17 points, finishing 11-of-13 from the free throw line for Notre Dame. Jeneka Joyce added 15 and Severe added 10 points and 10 boards.