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Offensive outburst leads St. Joe's women past Penn

12/07/2021, 11:15pm EST
By Joey Piatt

Joey Piatt (@joey_piatt)
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When Cindy Griffin heard the significance of the stats read aloud — which included a season-high scoring output in the first half, two career-high point totals for a pair of freshmen starters, and an end to a three-game losing streak to Penn — she smiled under her mask and let out a laugh. 

“Well, there’s some pretty good stats there,” Griffin said. 

Griffin, who is in her 21st year at the helm for Saint Joseph’s, is leading a Hawks squad that has struggled to find itself in the win column early this year. After routing Maryland Eastern Shore in its season opener on Nov. 9, Saint Joseph’s lost its next six contests. The team was mired in a losing streak, and the Hawks had struggled to score enough to be competitive.

Katie Jekot dribbles a basketball

Katie Jekot (above) was one of four Hawks to score double digits. (Photo: Mark Jordan/CoBL)

In that stretch, there were games that showed promise, like the team’s 67-point showing in a loss to Ball State. But there were others, like their 39-point showing against Big 5 rival Villanova, that the Hawks found themselves searching for answers on offense. 

On Saturday, the team won a tight contest with Yale, and it built some much needed confidence: confidence that would come into play in the team’s Tuesday night win over Penn. 

“We have been really kind of coming into our own as of late,” Griffin said. “We had a big win against Yale the other day, and I think that really helped our confidence coming into this game [against Penn].”

The win over Yale, and the 52 points the Hawks scored, did not, however, completely answer the offensive question marks that the team faced. As a result, Saint Joseph’s arrived at the Palestra on Tuesday for a matchup that seemed titled in Penn’s favor at first glance. 

The Quakers entered Tuesday night’s contest averaging 64.4 points per game, nearly 10 points greater than the Hawks’ 55 points per game. Penn also featured three different players averaging double-figures on the season, and Griffin’s squad boasted none. Another looming threat was the return of Penn’s complete lineup — one that would not be hampered by the suspensions that loomed so large in the Quakers’ two previous Big 5 contests this year. 

But something was different on Tuesday for the Hawks. Shots started falling, and from tip-off until the final buzzer, they didn’t stop. Saint Joseph’s used a 44-point first half to propel itself to an 83-point offensive outburst that flipped the script on the team’s early struggles.

Early in the game, the Hawks offense was headlined by point guard Katie Jekot, who scored 16 of her 20 points in the first half. Much of the Enola, Pa., native’s output came on the back of her three-point shooting. The graduate student entered halftime 4-of-5 from beyond the arc, and her five three-pointers on the night were the most she’s scored in a game in her lengthy Saint Joseph’s career. Jekot used that offensive success to play with confidence on the defensive end as well, where she recorded two steals. 

“Just hitting those threes, it helps on the defensive end too,” Jekot said. “It gets me going, and then [I] just look for steals going up the court. My teammates really found me in places when they needed to, so that was really helpful.”

Laila Fair dribbles a basketball

Laila Fair (above) recorded the first double-double of her collegiate career. (Photo: Mark Jordan/CoBL)

“What we do goes through [Jekot],” Griffin said. “The more she touches the ball in decision making situations, the better we are.”

Jekot is no stranger to being a difference maker for the Hawks. The two-time Philadelphia Big 5 second team honoree is in her fourth season as an every game starter with Griffin’s squad. She comes from a Big 5 basketball family — her older sister, Kelly, is a former Villanova Wildcat, and her younger sister, Julie, plays for Big 5 rival La Salle — and the meaning of winning a game like this in the Palestra is not lost on her. 

“I mean, the Big 5 has been a big part of my family,” Jekot said. “Just getting this win, I think this is the first time we’ve beaten Penn since I’ve been at St. Joe’s...it’s just really huge for us.”

Jekot wasn’t the only Hawk that had a night to remember in the team’s 83-70 win. Freshman forward Laila Fair scored a career-high 20 points and grabbed 11 rebounds, an effort that helped her record the first double-double of her young career. The Middlesex, N.J., native has worked hard this season to be ready to control the paint in matchups against gritty, tough teams like Penn. 

“Outside of practice, I’ve been working with coaches on just finishing around the rim, post moves, getting the basket, anything to help me score.” Fair said. “So, that’s also been helping.”

Jekot’s and Fair’s efforts were also complemented by those of Kaliah Henderson and Talya Brugler. Henderson, who entered Tuesday as the team’s leading scorer, scored 16 points on the back of 6-of-6 foul shooting, and Brugler scored a career-high 18 points. 

Griffin’s Saint Joseph’s squad will look to build on this effort on Saturday, when it travels to McGonigle Hall to face Temple.

Kayla Padilla dribbles a basketball

Kayla Padilla (above) led all scorers with 31 points. (Photo: Mark Jordan/CoBL)

Although Tuesday night went a long way toward answering the Hawks’ questions on offense, it served as another frustrating night in the gym for coach Mike McLaughlin’s Quakers. The loss was Penn’s fifth straight, and it dropped the team to 0-3 in Big 5 play, removing any chance of the team capturing the Big 5 crown. 

It was a similar story for McLaughlin’s team, with inconsistency on both ends of the floor serving as themes in the team’s young season. Outside of junior guard Kayla Padilla, who scored 31 against the Hawks, the team has been unable to find consistent sources of scoring.

“We’re struggling to find that consistent second scorer,” McLaughlin said. “[Padilla] has the ability to score all different ways...but who is going to be that consistent second and third scorer for us.”

In the six games she’s played this year, Padilla has carried the Penn offense. The Bishop Montgomery High (Calif.) product has four outings of 20 or more points and is shooting .455 from beyond the arc this season. 

But behind her is a conglomeration of players, and in some games, the team’s second-leading scorer on a given night has failed to eclipse double-digits. That was the case on Tuesday night, when Penn’s second-highest scorer, senior Mia Lakstigala, scored nine points. Lakstigala, along with sophomore forward Jordan Obi, who was held to just six points, have mostly served as the Quakers’ second and third scoring options so far this season. 

While the inconsistent playmaking on offense has given McLaughlin plenty to think about as he gets ready to travel with Penn to play Stony Brook on Friday, it hasn’t changed much for Padilla, who plans to continue to trust the process and do what she does best. 

“I’m just cherishing the moment and relishing in the time that I have on the court,” Padilla said. “And [I’m] learning from mistakes and moving forward.”


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