Dec. 17, 2004
Queens, NY – Andrea Peterson and Tara Walker each hit a free throw with under 10 seconds remaining in the game to seal a 69-65 win over Georgia Tech (5-2) Friday night at Carneseca Court on the campus of St. John’s. With the win, the Red Storm improved to a perfect 9-0 on the season.
Chioma Nnamaka tied a career-high with 19 points while leading the Yellow Jackets in scoring on the evening while Stephanie Higgs added 12. Nnamaka also led the squad with four steals in 33 minutes of play, while Higgs dished out a team-high five assists in the contest. Jessica Williams continued her strong play under the basket, pulling down 10 rebounds while scoring nine points and Kasha Terry contributed six points, eight rebounds and three blocks in the game.
“I am very proud of our team,” said Tech head coach MaChelle Joseph. “We battled out there and it was a great basketball game today. We played hard, we caused problems for St. John’s, but they got the win in the end. You have to give credit to them.”
With the score tied at 65-65 after a three-pointer by Greeba Barlow with 1:04 remaining in the game, Georgia Tech missed a three-pointer and the Red Storm went ahead on a jumper by Walker with 28 seconds on the clock to go up 67-65. The Jackets missed another shot with 15 seconds on the clock and, after retrieving the offensive rebound, turned the ball over and were forced to foul. St. John’s Andrea Peterson hit the first of two free throws but missed the second, but Angela Clark pulled down the offensive rebound and went to the line following a foul with eight seconds remaining. The Red Storm forward missed both shots, but Walker pulled down the rebound and hit the second of her two free throws to give the Red Storm the victory in the game.
Georgia Tech shot 44.1 percent from the field while St. John’s converted on 40.7 percent of its shots. While the teams were tied 36-36 in the free-throw category, the Jackets turned the ball over two more times than the Red Storm, with Tech’s 13 turnovers leading to 14 points for the home team.
“You have to give credit to St. John’s,” said Joseph. “We played them two years ago at home and tonight we can really see that their program has come full circle. They are a great program that played hard tonight.”
The Red Storm took a 29-28 lead into the locker room at the half after Kia Wright stole a pass from Stephanie Higgs with 12 seconds on the clock and passed ahead to Chelsey Thompson for the fast-break layup, which gave the Red Storm the lead for just the second time in the game. Nnamaka led all scorers in the frame with 11 points while converting on 75 percent of her shots from the field, while Higgs added six in 15 minutes off the bench.
Georgia Tech will return home to host the Samford Bulldogs Tuesday for their last contest prior to the Christmas holiday. The game is scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. and will be broadcast on WREK-Radio, 91.1 FM in Atlanta, and online at www.wrek.org. Livestats for the game will be available at www.ramblinwreck.com.
