HAMDEN — Quinnipiac women’s basketball handily beat Harvard 76-53 Sunday afternoon, dominating most of the game behind senior guard Jackie Grisdale’s 33-point performance.
The Poland, Ohio, native set a new career high and a Quinnipiac single-game record for most made three-pointers.“You forget, but you never forgive,” head coach Tricia Fabbri said. “We took a trip down there last year for our second game, and we took a whooping. So it’s a little more personal having them come back to our place. Wire to wire, we were clearly the best team. Just really excited and thankful for a great coaching staff and a great team.”
The Bobcats started slow, scoring only eight points and heading into the second quarter in a 13-8 deficit. However, they quickly shook off the rust and played a more complete game the rest of the way.
The second quarter saw the pendulum swing, with Quinnipiac coming out hot and defending well against the Crimson, allowing Harvard to score just seven points and shoot 23% from the field.
The story of the game, however, was Grisdale’s performance, which was even more impressive considering she played all but one minute of the game. This was Grisdale’s first home game since Dec. 10 after missing the remainder of last season with a lower-body injury.
“I was almost crying after the game out of happiness, it means so much to me to be back out here playing again, and with these girls by my side,” Grisdale said. “There’s nowhere else I’d rather be. That game, that was unbelievable. I’m just so happy for all of us to get that win.”
The chemistry of sophomore center Anna Foley and Grisdale was apparent on the court, with Foley assisting on many of Grisdale’s threes, going 87.5% from beyond the arc.
“Anna sees the court like nobody else,” Grisdale said. “She’s a quarterback in the high post, and that’s really what we’re going to try to capitalize on this year, in practice and in games. I’m just happy playing with her, not against her.”
The second half was all Quinnipiac. The Bobcats shot well, created opportunities the Crimson couldn’t handle and grabbed rebounds successfully, largely due to junior forward Ella O’Donnell and graduate student forward Caranda Perea.
“I thought this was a really nice coming-out party for Caranda Perea because it’s been coming for the last couple of weeks,” Fabbri said. “You’ve been seeing her get more comfortable. I was really pleased defensively, rebounding, and then offensively, still facilitating the offense through her. Her minutes were exceptional today, along with Ella O’Donnell.”
The status of senior forward Grace LaBarge will be something to watch, as she exited the game two minutes in after landing awkwardly off a rebound and returned to the bench with crutches.
The Bobcats will take on Princeton and look to improve their winning ways, with tip-off scheduled for 2 p.m. on Nov. 16.
