MEDFORD, MA (November 12, 2023) -- No. 4 Tufts University put four players in double figures Sunday afternoon, as the Jumbos opened their 2023-24 home schedule with an emphatic 80-59 win over St. John Fisher College in Cousens Gymnasium in women's basketball non-conference action.
The Jumbos (1-1) shook off its first season-opening loss since 2011 Sunday, as they came out firing making 47.8 percent (32-67) while dominating inside. Tufts was a stellar 27-of-44 inside the three-point ark, scoring 44 points in the paint. The Jumbos also showcased their depth, as they finished with a 35-11 edge in bench points while also holding a 16-9 edge in points off turnovers.
The game was tied at seven midway through the opening period, but five straight points from St. John Fisher (0-1) made it 12-7 in favor of the visitors. Junior guard
Sofia Gonzalez responded with a triple, followed by back-to-back buckets from
Sophia Davis to power a 9-0 run that ended with Tufts up 16-12. SJFC regained the lead at 17-16, but the Jumbos tallied six points before the end of the first including two field goals from
Samantha Sousa to make it 22-17 after 10 minutes.
The momentum continued into the second quarter, as
Caitlyn O'Boyle put the Jumbos up by double digits at 28-18 on a bucket underneath. The Cardinals powered back to make it 31-28 on a jumper from Presleigh Brunner, but sophomore
Annie Aspesi's first career bucket started a six-point run to finish the half with Tufts leading 37-28.
The Jumbos continued to hold off St. John Fisher through the beginning of the third quarter, and a 10-0 run fueled by seven points from Davis gave the Jumbos their largest lead of the game to that point at 51-34. In the fourth quarter, the Jumbos grew their lead up to as much as 26 points on a pair of free throws by
Annie Ryan, as Tufts cruised to the home win over the 2023 NCAA Tournament squad in SJFC.
Ten players got into the scoring column on Sunday, as
Maggie Russell finished with 19 points on 8-of-13 shooting, adding seven boards, four assists and two steals. Gonzalez was 5-of-11 from the floor, hitting two triples on the way to 15 points, and Davis ended with 13 points off the bench for Tufts. Sousa was also in double digits on the day, as she tallied 11 points and five rebounds in the win.
First-year
Stella Galanes came off the bench to score her first collegiate point, tallying six on the day, while Ryan was 2-for-2 from both the floor and line for six points.
St. John Fisher was paced by the 15 points from Sidney Tomasso, and Joleen Lusk tallied 12 points and five rebounds as well in the loss. The Cardinals were 19-of-56 (33.9 percent) from the field on the day, while making only four of their 24 shots from behind the arc.
The Jumbos will head back on the road on Tuesday evening, heading to Bristol, RI to take on Roger Williams University at 6 p.m. in a tough road non-conference test.
--JUMBOS--
