Feb. 10, 2010

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ST. LOUIS - Katie Paganelli scored a game-high 19 points, and Janisha Gearlds turned in season-high scoring and rebounding totals Wednesday night to lead Saint Louis to a 62-51 Atlantic 10 Conference victory over La Salle at Chaifetz Arena.

Paganelli was 4-of-7 from 3-point range, giving her 159 career treys and putting her just six away from taking over second place on SLU's all-time list. She was 7-of-8 from the foul line and added five rebounds, four assists and two steals. Gearlds registered season highs of 11 points and nine rebounds and tacked on six assists and two steals while committing just one turnover.

"Pooh (Gearlds) played her finest game in a Billiken uniform tonight," head coach Shimmy Gray-Miller said. "She was the leader of our team. If she can continue that level of play, we definitely will have a strong finish to the season."

Amanda Kemezys contributed 12 points and seven rebounds, and Lauren Woods added 10 points and five rebounds for the Billikens (8-16, 2-7 A-10), who snapped a five-game losing streak. La Salle (5-19, 0-9 A-10), which dropped its ninth straight decision, got 11 points and six rebounds from Antonia Gale and 10 points and five assists from Jamie Walsh.

Saint Louis earned a 46-26 advantage on the boards and tied its season high with 22 offensive rebounds, including a game-high five by Kathryn Hester, who collected eight total rebounds. The Bills also enjoyed a big edge at the free-throw line, connecting on 18-of-23 (.783) to La Salle's 8-of-13.

"It's a great feeling to come out on top and end a long drought," Gray-Miller said. "Our players showed a lot of resolve, toughness and determination, especially when La Salle made a run at us down the stretch. We had strong leadership from our captains (Kemezys, Paganelli, Woods), and we did an impressive job of maintaining our composure and staying strong.

"You have to be tough in the Atlantic 10," Gray-Miller added. "Tonight, we showed how tough a team we can be."

A Walsh 3-pointer gave La Salle its only lead, 9-8, with 12:44 to play in the first half. SLU regained the lead for good with a Gearlds' fast-break jumper to begin a string of six consecutive scoring possessions. Paganelli's 3-pointer was followed by a Kemezys layup and conventional 3-point play. Another Paganelli trifecta gave the Bills their first double-digit lead, 21-11, at the 9:14 mark. Two Paganelli free throws and a jumper by Ayriell Robinson completed a 17-2 spurt that put the Billikens on top 25-11 with 6:17 left.

La Salle narrowed the SLU lead to 27-16 moments later. But a pair of 3-pointers by Ashley Hanlen gave Saint Louis its largest cushion of the first half, 33-16, before the Billikens settled for a 33-19 edge at the break. The 33 points are the most scored by SLU in the first half of an A-10 game this season.

After expanding the lead to 45-27 with 15:00 remaining, the Bills went cold. Six La Salle players contributed to a 19-6 run that sliced the Saint Louis margin to five, 51-46, at the 4:29 mark. But the Explorers missed a 3-pointer that would have made it a one-possession game, and Kemezys scored the next four points on two free throws and a short jumper for a 55-46 advantage with 2:40 remaining.

Tara Lapetina responded with a 3-pointer that kept the La Salle hopes alive. Gearlds missed a 3-point try on the Bills' next possession, but Paganelli grabbed the offensive rebound, was fouled and sank two free throws that made it 57-49 with 1:39 to play. From there, the Saint Louis defense turned up the heat to secure the win.

The Billikens travel to Philadelphia to face Saint Joseph's Saturday, Feb. 13. Tip time is 1 p.m. (CT).