Box Score Halejian and Gobrecht Honored As Bulldogs Drop Season-Opener.
Video of Pregame Ceremony
NEW HAVEN, Conn. – The Yale University women's basketball team turned in a very impressive outing in its season-opening game against Big East opponent St. John's, eventually falling to the Red Storm by a 61-50 final.
On a day where two Bulldogs were honored in a pregame ceremony for their outstanding basketball accomplishments at Yale, the Red Storm played the role of spoiler by fending off an inspired second half effort by the Elis.
The Bulldogs came out strong against the Red Storm in the first half, utilizing three-pointers by sophomores Meghan McIntyre (Santa Rosa Valley, Calif.) and Katie Werner (Phoenix, Ariz.) to gain an early four-point advantage.
The two teams exchanged buckets for the first 12 minutes of play before St. John's pushed ahead with a 10-0 run over a five-minute stretch on the backs of junior guards Danaejah Grant and Aliyyah Handford. The duo would combine for 48 of the Red Storm's 61 total points, while taking 67-percent of the team's total shots.
In a contest where the end score was not indicative of the game's intensity, the Bulldogs (0-1) effectively trimmed a 10-point halftime deficit down to just three at the 11:09 mark of the second half. Two free throws by junior Nyasha Sarju (Seattle, Wash.) and a fast break layup by Sarah Halejian (Wyckoff, N.J.) resulted in a St. John's timeout.
With eight minutes remaining, Halejian knocked down a shot from long range to cut the lead to two. A free throw by Werner only a few seconds later would pull the Bulldogs within one point, but was as close as Yale would get.
The Red Storm finished the game on an 18-8 run, eventually pulling away from a determined Yale squad that saw eight players play 14 minutes or more, including three freshmen.
Grant led all scorers with 30 points on 14-of-26 shooting in 38 minutes of play. Halejian, a two-time All-Ivy First Team member, led the Bulldogs with 15, picking up where she left off in 2013-14 when she averaged a team-best 15.5 per game.
The Bulldogs were out-rebounded, 47-31, but showed spurts of rebounding tenacity throughout the contest, including three consecutive offensive boards on one possession in the second half, two of which were grabbed by freshman Tamara Simpson (North Babylon, N.Y.).
Junior Meredith Boardman (Oak Park, Ill.) and Werner tied for a team-best six rebounds, while McIntyre grabbed five of her own.
St. John's is the only Big East opponent on the Bulldogs' schedule this season and is also one of four teams that Yale will face that qualified for the 2013-14 NCAA Tournament. The Red Storm were picked to finish second in the Big East Preseason Poll.
Prior to the first-ever meeting of the two programs, senior captain Sarah Halejian was honored for becoming the 19th player in the 42-year history of Yale women's basketball to join the 1,000 point club, which she achieved on February 28 against Princeton.
Class of 1954, Joel E. Smilow head coach Chris Gobrecht was also honored for becoming only the second coach in Yale history to break the 100-win plateau as a Bulldog.
The next game for the Bulldogs will be on Tuesday night when they host Holy Cross at 7 p.m. in the Lee Amphitheater.
Filed by Steve Lewis, Yale Sports Publicity
