STANDISH, Maine - The Norwich University women's basketball team could not overcome a strong offensive first half by Saint Joseph's College of Maine, falling to the Monks, 81-49, in the penultimate Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) game of the regular season at the Harold Alfond Center on Tuesday evening.

Norwich's trio of seniors paced the effort, as Maren McGinn (Georgia, Vt.) went 4-5 from the floor to finish with a team-high 13 points, while Haley Brewster (Virginia Beach, Va.) tallied 11 points on a 5-9 clip.  Erika Thomas (Burlington, N.C.) was next on the scoresheet with six points.

The Monks struck first off the opening tip and never looked back, rushing out to a quick 9-0 lead.  Norwich whittled the lead down to four, 11-7, on a Sage MacAuley (Barre, Vt.) putback, but a 13-2 run by Saint Joseph's gave the hosts a dominant 15-point lead after the initial 10 minutes.

The Cadets remained within 13 a few sequences into the second quarter after Lily Briggs (Fair Haven, Vt.) found Brewster for a layup, but the Monks continued their offensive rout, doubling their lead to 26 before halftime.

Saint Joseph's outscored Norwich by six, 17-11, and a strong fourth-quarter effort by the Cadets allowed the visitors to tie the Monk output, 20-20, in the closing 10 minutes.  Despite bringing the Saint Joseph's lead below 30 at one point in the fourth quarter, Norwich was unable to come any closer, as the Monks built a lead that grew to as large as 35 points en route to the 32-point victory.

Norwich maintained an 18-18 deadlock with the Monks in points in the paint, while drilling shots at a 40.9% mark from the floor and a 41.7% clip from beyond the arc.  The Cadets finished a near-perfect 8-9 from the foul line.

With the loss, the Cadets have been eliminated from contention for a berth in the 2025 GNAC Tournament, scheduled to begin next week.  Norwich will close the 2024-25 season on Saturday, Feb. 22, returning home to host Mitchell College for Senior Day at 1:00 p.m.  Prior to tip-off, the Cadets will honor Brewster, McGinn, and Thomas for their contributions to the women's basketball program over the last four years.