BLOOMFIELD, N.J. - The Thomas Jefferson University women's basketball team (14-5, 7-3 CACC) rallied from an 18-point deficit in the fourth quarter to shock host Bloomfield, 71-68, in conference action on Sunday.
 
GAMEPLAY
The Rams held a 9-6 lead with 7:29 left in the opening period. The Bears netted eight straight points to take a 14-9 advantage. Haley Meinel made a layup and Sam Yencha followed with a three-pointer for Jefferson to even the score. Bloomfield had an 18-16 edge at the end of the quarter.
 
The teams battled back and forth throughout the second frame. The Rams trailed by one (24-23) with 2:33 on the clock but the Bears scored six in a row to up the margin to seven (30-23). Meinel made a pair of shots at the line to get Jefferson within five (30-25) at halftime.
 
Bloomfield came out firing in the second half, registering 10 of the first 11 points to increase its advantage to 14 (40-26). It was an 11-point game (45-34) when the Bears went on a run again, this time recording 10 consecutive points for their largest lead of the contest (55-34) with 1:36 to go in the third quarter. The Rams narrowed the gap to 17 (57-40) entering the fourth.
 
In the fourth, Bloomfield was ahead by 18 (59-41) with 9:18 on the clock. Maeve McCann hit a three-pointer for Jefferson and the Bears answered with a layup, making the score 61-44 with 7:45 to play. The Rams then got back in the game, scoring 11 in a row to cut the deficit to six (61-55) with 5:57 left. McCann tallied six points and Morgan Robinson scored five.
 
Bloomfield stopped the run with a layup to make it an eight-point margin (63-55) with 5:46 remaining. Jefferson still had the momentum though, and the Rams used it to string together eight more points to tie the score at 63 with 3:12 to go. Both teams scored two points and it was even at 65 with 1:17 left.
 
The Bears were called for an offensive foul then put Meinel at the line for two shots with 51 seconds to play. Meinel sank both free throws to give Jefferson the lead. Bloomfield turned it over on its next possession. The Rams missed a three-point attempt but McCann grabbed the rebound and was fouled. She drilled both shots to give Jefferson a four-point cushion (69-65). The Bears answered with a three with five seconds to go. McCann went to the line and made both baskets to put the Rams up three (71-68). Bloomfield still had a chance with three seconds left but Meinel blocked the potential tying shot to complete the Jefferson comeback.
 
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
- Maeve McCann: 23 points (career high) on 7-of-13 shooting (4-6 3PT), 3 rebounds
- Haley Meinel: 16 points, 4 steals, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block
- Morgan Robinson: 13 points, 7 assists, 4 rebounds, 4 steals
- Cassie Murphy: 8 points, 6 rebounds, 1 steal
- Sam Yencha: 6 points, 7 rebounds, 2 blocks, 1 assist
 
JEFFERSON AS A TEAM
FG: 24-of-63 (38.1%)
3PT: 6-of-18 (33.3%)
FT: 17-of-24 (70.8%)
 
NOTES
- The Rams outscored Bloomfield, 31-11, in the fourth quarter.
- Jefferson was outrebounded 47-32, its largest deficit of the season.
- Haley Meinel recorded her 600^th career point and 100^th career assist.
 
UP NEXT
The Rams play a non-conference game at Caldwell on Wednesday, February 2 at 5:30 p.m.