MAHWAH --- (www.YORKATHLETICS.com) 
York College women's basketball opened its home slate Monday evening with a non-conference matchup against the St. Joseph's University (Brooklyn) Bears (2-0). The Cardinals put together their best quarter of play in the third stanza but were unable to overcome an early deficit in an 80-54 setback from York College Gymnasium.

How It Happened
Amaniya Aiken wasted no time getting York on the board, knocking down a jumper just four seconds into the contest. Buckets from Imani Gibson and Beautifull Earth followed to give the Cardinals an early 6–1 advantage at the 8:34 mark. St. Joseph's quickly erased the deficit with a 14–0 run, fueled by Kristen Donovan's nine-point surge, to move ahead 15–6 with 6:18 remaining. Layups by Chamiya Foy and Aiken trimmed the margin to four (15–11), but the Bears responded with an 11–2 spurt to push their lead to 26–12 with just over two minutes left in the period. Holding a 30–14 cushion after one, St. Joseph's carried its momentum into the second stanza with a 16–0 burst to break the game open. York finally halted the run with back-to-back paint scores from Ceana Adams and Aiken to make it 46–18 with 3:48 to go in the half.

Holding a 27-point edge at intermission, St. Joseph's pushed the mark to as many as 34 (74-40) with 8:24 showing on the fourth-quarter clock. The Cardinals battled throughout the quarter, trimming the deficit to as low as 24 (78-54) after two free throws from Adams. In fact, York won the second half 32-31, exhibiting their competitive spirit.

Leading the Cardinals
Aiken led York with 16 points, adding six rebounds, four assists, three steals, and a block to her all-around performance. Adams and Gibson each contributed eight points, while Earth followed with seven points, 10 rebounds, and six steals. Gibson also pulled down eight rebounds and recorded two steals. Yanirzy Murillo chipped in with three steals, and Foy added two of her own.

For St. Joseph's
Mercedes Perez scored 19 of her game-high 24 points in the first half.  Donovan poured in 15 of 18 points in the opening 20 minutes and impressed defensively with a game-best six swipes. Nikki Grech hauled in a team-leading 10 boards. Judith Vila Marti passed out a team-high four dimes and added five steals to her stat line.

Inside The Box Score
York shot 37.9 percent (22-of-58) from the floor, made two three pointers, and shot 40 percent (8-of-20) from the charity stripe. The Bears made 32.1 percent (25-of-78) of their field goals, drained 11 triples, and shot 82.6 percent (19-of-23) from the free-throw line. During live action, the Cardinals held a slight edge in rebounds (51-47) and assists (14-13), and St. Joseph's had the upper hand in steals (29-17) and blocks (3-1). In keying the victory, the Bears forced 44 turnovers, resulting in a 41-18 margin in points off turnovers and a 23-10 advantage in fast break scoring. 

Up Next 
The Cardinals (0-2) head to Brooklyn on Wednesday (Nov. 12) for a non-conference meeting against the Pratt Institute Cannoneers (0-1) starting at 7 p.m. inside Pratt ARC. 

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