Kuczynski Reaches 1,000 Points; Rams Hold Off Late Surge by Firebirds
PHILADELPHIA – A three pointer in the third quarter pushed
Emma Kuczynski to 1,000 career points as the Thomas Jefferson University women's basketball team (21-6) used their strong first half to derail the late comeback and defeat the University of the District of Columbia (9-15) 69-57 in Monday evening non-conference action.
WHAT HAPPENED
- Rams first two quarters saw them shoot over 40 percent on the court, going 16-of-36. Jefferson scored 40 points in that first 20-minute span while District of Columbia had 23 at the break
- Kuczynski hit her three pointer at the 9:43 mark in the third to open the a 7-0 run and make it a 21 -point game. The Firebirds started to slowly come back, outscoring the Rams 20-18 in the third, trailing 58-43 to Jefferson
- District of Columbia 12-4 run that made it a 62-55 Ram lead with 5:16 to go. Defenses would begin to show up as the next points would not be attained until under a minute to the game. Jefferson used their lead and the Firebirds fouls to go 7-8 at the charity stripe to end the game as 69-57 winners
- Four Rams got into double figures, with Cassie Murphy getting a double double on the day as she scored 17 points and grabbed 10 rebounds. Kuczynski and Sam Yencha put up 11 points apiece, with Emily Spratt rounding the scoring attack with 10.
- Gabby Recinto led the team with 12 rebounds and 3 blocks while Tori Nigro had 4 steals on the day. Nigro joined Murphy in leading with assists as they both had 4.
TEAM STATS
FG: 25-of-67 (37.3%)
3PT: 3-of-11 (27.3%)
FT: 16-of-20 (80.0%)
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
Cassie Murphy: 17 points on 6-of-16 shooting, 5-5 FT, 10 rebounds, 4 assists
Emma Kuczynski: 11 points on 4-of-13 shooting (3-8 3PT), 2 rebounds, 2 assists
Sam Yencha: 11 points on 5-of-7 shooting, 2 rebounds
Emily Spratt: 10 points on 4-of-8 shooting, 2-2 FT, 5 rebounds
1,000 POINT SCORER
With her three pointer in the third, Kuczynski has become the 40th Ram in school history to reach 1,000 career points scored at Jefferson. She joins fellow teammates Murphy and Yencha in that club. This is the fifth time a Ram has scored 1,000 points in the past three seasons, with
Haley Meinel achieving that feat during the 2022-23 season while
Morgan Robinson earned hers alongside Yencha and Murphy last season. Kuczynski is using her best season to reach that goal, scoring 369 of those points this season, shooting 44.4% on the floor and 36.8% from beyond the arc.
UP NEXT
Rams will battle their toughest test in the season finale as the Rams go up against Holy Family University, who currently is ranked #20 in the D2CSC National Poll. This game will determine the number one seed in the CACC South Division. The game is on Saturday, March 1 at 2 p.m. Jefferson will honor their seniors before the game on Senior Day.
