Varsity Basketball vs. Saint Frances Game Recap

Varsity Basketball vs. Saint Frances Game Recap 

The Mount Saint Joseph 2014-2015 Varsity basketball team has faced quite a few doubts this preseason. Many have referenced the youth and inexperience of this team as, "only three players are returning from last years squad." The young Gaels proved to be ready for their first test of the season, the 2nd ranked St. Frances Panthers, as they handily won 62-45 on Friday, December 5, 2014.

The Smith Center had a a college like atmosphere that night. The Gaels played in front of a sold-out crowd, and a rowdy student section. The Gaels proved why they will be contenders for the BCL and MIAA championships again this year.

The Student Section organized a "Costume Theme" for the game where they also participated in a Twitter contest hosted by the school. The participant needed to Tweet a picture of their costume using the hashtag #MSJvsFSA to win free Stromboli for a month. The picture with the most Retweets won the prize. Congrats to Mount Saint Joseph student Tyler Lassen with 59 Retweets on his costume Tweet!  

Mount Saint Joseph jumped out to a slow start, but that only made for a much anticipated "Silent Night" demonstration. The student section, decorated with many exotic costumes, remained seated in complete silence until the Gaels scored their 10th point, when then complete craziness took place. The Gaels led 13-10 after the 1st quarter.

Mount Saint Joseph came out with intensity in the second quarter, as they scored 5 points in 40 seconds, and forced a St. Frances time out. The 1st half ended with an exclamation mark, as sophomore Darryl Morsell '17 slammed home a pass from junior Randy Miller '16. The Gaels led at the break 28-21. 

The team controlled the second half not relinquishing their double digit lead but only once. The defensive effort by the Gaels seemed to disrupt St. Frances' offensive, while the home team seemed to thrive off of transition buckets. Lone freshman Jalen Smith '18 recorded 6 blocks during his first varsity start. 

Junior Randy Miller '16 led all scorers with 15, while fellow junior Doc Barnes '16 contributed 14 points and 8 boards, and sophomore point guard Justice Kendall '16 finished with 12. St. Frances was led by senior forward Josh Ayeni '15, who scored a quiet 13 points.

The 7-1 Gaels will travel to Gilman for their game at 6pm, but will return home next Friday (12/19) to face the Loyola Dons, tip-off will be at 7:00 pm.

A special thanks to our Athletics Department, Security, and Staff for making this game such a fun and exciting event at Mount Saint Joseph! 

GO GAELS! 

Please follow @MSJStudents on Twitter for all Student Section news and live game feed.
For more Mount action follow the main school Twitter account @MSJGaels.