Blue Demons Pull Away From Saint Xavier

CHICAGO – After playing to a 49-49 tie at halftime, the DePaul women's basketball team outscored Saint Xavier by 41 points in the second half for a 111-70 win in exhibition play on Tuesday night. Allie Quigley led five players in double-figures with a game-high 24 points.

The first period played even as the Blue Demons built a 10-point lead midway through the half only to see Saint Xavier tie the game with just over three minutes left. Erin Hannemann's three-pointer with 3:06 on the clock knotted the score at 42-42. The Cougars took a four-point lead on another three from Jackie Heine before a jumper by Erin Cattell and two free throws by Caprice Smith sent the two team to the locker rooms tied at 49-49.

A 28-4 run over a nine-minute span in the second half saw the DePaul lead balloon to 82-58. After a Saint Xavier three-pointer, Quigley started the game-deciding run with two free throws. The run saw six points each from Quigley, Missy Mitidiero and Natasha Williams while Smith added five points and Taylor Pikes hit a three-pointer. Williams finished the run with a three-point play to put the Blue Demons up by 24 points with 9:09 left in the game.

DePaul's lead surpassed the 30-point mark on a Smith three-pointer with 5:09 left and reached 40 points at 106-66 on a short jumper by Elise Morrison with 2:31 on the clock.

Quigley added seven rebounds, five assists and four steals while Mitidiero went 4-for-6 from behind the arc to finish with 14 points and seven assists. Deirdre Naughton added 13 points, four assists and three steals and Smith totaled 12 points and three boards. Williams rounded out the double-figure scoring with 11 points and five rebounds. Overall, DePaul outrebounded Saint Xavier by a 52-34 margin.

The Blue Demons conclude the exhibition schedule on Friday evening when they host Michigan Tech. The start time is set for 5:30 p.m. at McGrath Arena with the DePaul men's team taking on Trinity Christian at 7:30 p.m.

The 2007-08 regular season opens on Saturday, Nov. 10 at Southern Illinois before the Blue Demons host Florida International and Florida State in the DePaul Invitational.

Game Notes: DePaul knocked off Saint Xavier for the second time in the last three seasons in exhibition play... prior to the 2005-06 season, the Blue Demons posted a 110-65 victory over the Cougars.

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