The Stony Brook women’s basketball team’s three-game winning streak was snapped as it produced its lowest scoring total in over 12 years.
On Sunday afternoon, the Seawolves (3-2) took on the undefeated St. John’s Red Storm (6-0) in Queens, N.Y. After a 17-point effort in the first quarter, Stony Brook did not break double-digits for the final three periods, leading to a 58-34 defeat.
The Seawolves’ offensive performance on Sunday was the program’s worst since Feb. 11, 2012, when the team registered 31 points in a loss at Boston University.
However, Stony Brook’s performance from the opening tip was not an indicator of things to come. In the opening frame, it jumped out to a 17-9 lead thanks to contributions from guards Janay Brantley, Chloe Oliver and Zaida Gonzalez alongside forward Shamarla King, who combined for 12 of those points.
Conversely, the Red Storm started off rocky, as five minutes into the contest they scored just four points.
Nevertheless, St. John’s offense started clicking at the start of the second quarter, with a mid-range jumper from guard Skye Owens kickstarting a 10-0 run for her team. With 6:37 left in the period, St. John’s forward Kylie Lavelle worked her way through several Seawolves’ defenders for a layup to tie the game at 17 points apiece.
After each side came up empty on their next possessions, guard Breauna Ware attempted to swing the momentum back in Stony Brook’s favor with a layup but her attempt rattled out. St. John’s guard Lashae Dwyer grabbed the rebound and went coast-to-coast for a layup to give the Red Storm their first advantage of the contest.
From that point, St. John’s assumed control and headed to the halftime break with a 29-25 lead.
Things went off the rail for the Seawolves in the second half. The Red Storm kicked off the third frame with consecutive layups from forward Phoenix Gedeon to make it 33-25; they added on even further with an 8-2 run that was capped off by a jumper from guard Ariana Vanderhoop.
On the other end, the Seawolves’ first bucket of the quarter did not come until nearly four minutes had passed. To make matters worse, St. John’s closed the period as hot as how it started it, as it ripped off six unanswered points to close the frame.
Stony Brook’s poor offensive showing continued into the fourth quarter. After Gonzalez converted one of two attempts at the free throw line to open the period’s scoring, the Seawolves only scored two more points — courtesy of Gonzalez again — for the remainder of the frame.
The Red Storm only added to their lead in the final 10 minutes with 11 points in the quarter.
Head coach Joy McCorvey did not speak to the media after the game.
Stony Brook posted a .269/.083/.833 shooting line compared to St. John’s .429/.095/.667 slashline.
Gonzalez was the Seawolves’ leading scorer with nine points but struggled shooting the ball, as she went four-for-18 from the field.
On the other hand, Dwyer and guard Ber’Nyah Mayo led the Red Storm in scoring with 10 points apiece.
Stony Brook will be back in action on Wednesday against the Harvard Crimson at Stony Brook Arena. The Crimson are 7-1 on the year after a 72-62 win against Illinois State. Opening tip-off is scheduled for noon.
