PHILADELPHIA – The University of Pennsylvania women's basketball team hosted Saint Joseph's at The Palestra on Tuesday night for another Big 5 matchup, falling behind in the fourth quarter to drop an 83-70 decision.
 
Quaker Notemeal
*Junior captain Kayla Padilla led all scorers with 31 points on 10-for-20 from the floor with five three-pointers. It's the second game this season of 30-plus points with the other in California against Memphis, knocking in 36 points off a program-record nine three-pointers.
 
*Eight out of the 10 Quakers that put in minutes scored points, although the team shot 39.7 percent from the floor.
 
*The largest run of the game was 11 by Penn through the first quarter, dropping in 5-for-8 from beyond the arc.
 
*The loss snaps a three-game win streak against the Hawks.
 
How It Happened
A slow scoring start for the Quakers had them trailing by five early, but senior Nikola Kovacikova splashed in a three at the 7:26 mark to break the silence. With five minutes left in the first, Penn used an 11-5 run to close out the period to erase an eight-point deficit to take a 19-19 tie into the break. The Quakers even took over the lead by five in the stretch when senior captain Mia Lakstigala drilled her second three of the quarter following a three by Padilla and a layup by sophomore Michaela Stanfield.

1Q 3:38 | SJU 11, Penn 8

First quarter moving quickly, already at the first media timeout... Two threes and a layup off a Hawks' turnover marks the 8pts for the Quakers.#FightOnPenn pic.twitter.com/am5SmPqP1M

— Penn WBB (@PennWBB) December 8, 2021

 
A tale of two quarters described the second and third quarter, as SJU outscored Penn in the second, 25-13, but the Quakers responded after the half with a 21-10 third. Trailing at the half by 12, Penn used the full third quarter to chip away at the deficit to get all the way back to within one at the buzzer when Padilla dropped in her third three-pointer of the quarter.

End 3Q | SJU 54, Penn 53

A 13-4 run to close out the third and the Quakers only trail by one! Oh, and Padilla capped off that run with a three-point buzzer beater!#FightOnPenn pic.twitter.com/pVj85eKlEQ

— Penn WBB (@PennWBB) December 8, 2021

 
The one-point spread was as close as the Quakers would get the rest of the way, hitting that mark one more time with 9:12 remaining off a Padilla layup. A 29-point fourth for the Hawks was enough for SJU to hold off a comeback by the Quakers to take the Big 5 victory.
 
Up Next
The Quakers hit the road for a five-game road trip over the next several weeks, starting with Stony Brook on Friday at 6:30 p.m. They'll wrap up the 2021 slate on December 30 at Morgan State.