Box Score
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – An active defense, as well as a career-high 22 points from sophomore Julie Haledjian (Montvale, N.J./Pascack Hills), keyed a 65-59 victory for the William Paterson women's basketball team (8-3) at host Springfield (4-6) Jan. 4 in the consolation game of the Holiday Inn-Naismith Classic. The Pioneers created more than a third of their offense off turnovers, turning 22 Springfield miscues into 23 points.
The host Pride opened up a 20-8 lead during the game's first seven minutes, but the Pioneers answered with a 17-5 run (25-25, 4:38), and William Paterson entered the locker room with a 32-31 advantage following a Haledjian three-pointer. WP began the second stanza with a 10-2 burst (42-33, 12:30), and held off a late Springfield rally by shooting 4-for-4 from the line during the game's final 37 seconds.
Haledjian poured in 14 of her game-high 22 points in the second half, and added five assists to earn all-tournament team honors. Junior
Asia Johnson (Wildwood, N.J./Wildwood) again had a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds, sophomore
Elisa Brown (Norwalk, Conn./Norwalk) added 17 tallies, five rebounds, four assists and three steals, and sophomore
Erin Cook (Princeton, N.J./Princeton) chipped in with six points and 13 rebounds. The Pioneers played their second straight game without leading scorer
Michelle Pellichero (Milltown, N.J./Bishop Ahr), who was unavailable due to illness.
William Paterson will return home to take on the College of Staten Island Wednesday, Jan. 9, at 6:00 p.m.
