March 2, 2004

Box Score

Blacksburg, Va. - In the final game of the 2003-04 regular season, the Red Storm fell to Virginia Tech, 69-38. St. John's falls to 10-17 overall and 4-12 in the BIG EAST, while the Hokies improve to 21-6 and 10-6 in the conference.

After a turnover plagued first half that saw a combined 32 giveaways, the Virginia Tech Hokies pulled out to a 27-16 halftime lead and exploded in the second half, shooting 62.5% from the field.

The Hokies pulled ahead early, outscoring St. John's 5-0 over the first five minutes. Shemika Stevens (New York, N.Y.) hit one of two free throws for the Red Storm's first point, but St. John's failed to connect on a field goal until Danielle Chambers' (Brooklyn, N.Y.) hit a lay-up to cut the lead to 8-3 with 12:42 remaining in the first.

With Virginia Tech up 11-5, Erin Gibson hit a lay-up that kicked off a 6-0 run and left the Hokies up 17-5 before Chambers and Nora Gyuris (Pecs, Hungary) scored back-to-back for St. John's to end the streak and cut the lead to eight. The Hokies continued to pressure and built their largest lead of the half, a 14-point advantage with 3:04 remaining, before Stevens ended a two-minute scoreless streak with the Red Storm's first three-pointer of the game.

Virginia Tech continued to attack early in the second half, scoring six-straight points over the first three minutes, before Kim MacMillan (Toms River, N.J.) scored the Red Storm's first basket of the half and her first points of the game with 16:56 remaining in the game. Virginia Tech held the Red Storm scoreless for the next four minutes, while knocking in nine-straight points for a 42-18 advantage with 13:55 to play. Crystal Andrews (West Bloomfield, Mich.) hit a lay-up for St. John's on the next play to end the streak.

VT's fast break offense kept the pressure up, as the Hokies pulled out to a 55-27 lead. Stevens, who led the Red Storm in the second half with six points, hit a jumper with 6:51 remaining, making the score 55-29, before Virginia Tech's Kirby Copeland hit two free throws to kick off a 7-0 run. The run was eventually snapped when Secrett Stubblefield (Fairfax, Va.) sank a long range three with 3:41 remaining, making the score 64-32. St. John's outscored VT 6-5 in the final minutes, but Virginia Tech held on for the 69-38 win.

Stevens led St. John's with 10 points in the loss, and Chambers finished with eight points and six boards off the bench. The Red Storm committed 35 turnovers in the loss and shot 34.8% on the night. Kirby Copeland led Virginia Tech with 12 points.

The Red Storm will make their first appearance in three years at the 2004 BIG EAST Tournament this weekend. First round action begins on Saturday, March 6 in Hartford, Conn.