Attempting to complete the season sweep against Saint Peter’s, the Quinnipiac women’s basketball team did just that as the Bobcats defeated the Peacocks 62-45 Thursday evening at M&T Bank Arena in Hamden.

From the opening tip, the Bobcats looked like they had the advantage size-wise inside as they pounded the ball inside early to both senior forward Mikala Morris and graduate student forward Mary Baskerville. Morris finished with 13 points, seven rebounds, four assists and four blocks while Baskerville added two steals and two blocks on the defensive end.

“We know that Saint Peter’s is usually very guard heavy rather than the post,” Morris said.”We were using our advantages with CT, Mary, me, Ella, Grace, we knew we were gonna have a clear advantage and that was our game plan tonight.” 

The Peacocks played a 2-3 zone for a majority of the first half and the Bobcats responded by passing around until they found an open teammate as eight of the 10 first-half buckets came off of an assist. Graduate student guard Rose Caverly led the passing attack in the first 20 minutes with three assists and finished the game with four points, four rebounds and two steals.

Senior forward Cur’Tiera Haywood also had another solid game for Quinnipiac as she finished with a team high 14 points, seven rebounds and four assists.

In the two teams previous matchup in December, the Bobcats came away with a 58-48 victory in Jersey City despite being outscored by 16 in the fourth quarter. In the second matchup, Quinnipiac was able to hold its large lead.

“We had a 30 point lead with five minutes to go and we kind of just became complacent,” Morris said, recollecting the game in Jersey City.

For the Peacocks, sophomore forward Jada Williams led the team with 13 points and six rebounds. The only other Saint Peter’s player in double figures was junior guard Rachel Kuhl, who finished with 10 points. Williams and freshman guard Tiara Bellamy each fouled out for the Peacocks and sophomore guard Imani Felix finished with four fouls.

“It got a little choppy,” Quinnipiac head coach Tricia Fabbri joked about the foul situation.

It hasn’t been a season to remember for the Peacocks and tonight is no exception as they fall to 0-17 on the campaign.

“What I have learned as a coach throughout my career is that you need to be prepared for your opponent,” Fabbri said. “If you’re not prepared for what you need to do and focus on you then you’re gonna get caught up in that and it’s gonna distract from what your successes and strengths are.”

The two teams traded baskets in the final period, but and-1 finishes from Haywood and sophomore guard Jackie Grisdale put the nail in the coffin for a Saint Peter’s comeback. Grisdale finished with 10 points, but struggled shooting 1-for-6 from three point land.

The Bobcats have a quick turnaround as next up is a matchup against Marist in Poughkeepsie on Saturday at 7 p.m. with Quinnipiac looking to make it back-to-back victories.