QUEENS, N.Y. - The Thomas Jefferson University women's basketball team tipped off the 2021-22 season on Saturday with a 64-52 victory over Queens (N.Y.) in the East Region Challenge.
 
GAMEPLAY
The Knights opened with the first four points of the game but the Rams responded with 13 in a row for a 13-4 lead. Haley Meinel led the rally with 11 of the 13 points. Queens dropped in a layup to end the first quarter and the score was 13-6.
 
The teams went back and forth throughout the second period. A pair of free throws by Martha Apple gave Jefferson its largest lead of the half at 11 (30-19) with 1:36 remaining. The Knights finished the frame with six straight points to trail 30-25 at halftime.
 
Queens tallied the first four points of the third to close to within one (30-29). With the score 32-30, the Rams increased the margin to eight (38-30) with a 6-0 stretch. A three-pointer by Meinel at the 2:32 mark gave Jefferson an 11-point advantage (47-36). The Rams held a 52-43 lead going into the fourth.
 
Jefferson began the final stanza with an 11-1 run for its largest lead of the contest at 19 (63-44). Three different players scored in the rally to ice the contest.
 
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
- Haley Meinel: 26 points (career high) on 12-of-24 shooting, 5 assists, 5 steals, 2 rebounds, 1 block
- Sam Yencha: 8 points, 9 rebounds, 4 steals, 2 assists
- Cassie Murphy: 8 points, 3 rebounds
- Allie Warren: 8 points, 5 rebounds, 3 steals, 1 block, 1 assist
- Sabria Lytes: 7 points, 4 rebounds, 1 steal
- Morgan Robinson: 3 points, 5 assists, 6 rebounds
 
JEFFERSON AS A TEAM
FG: 24-of-61 (39.3%)
3PT: 1-of-9 (11.1%)
FT: 15-of-23 (65.2%)
 
NOTES
- It was Jefferson's first game since the 2019-20 CACC Championship Game on March 8, 2020 - a span of 616 days. The Rams did not compete during the 2020-21 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Head Coach Tom Shirley picked up his 798^th career victory as he closes in on win #800.
 
UP NEXT
The Rams finish their opening weekend against Molloy on Sunday, November 14 at 12 p.m.