Women's Basketball Atlantic 10 Conference

VCU Punches Ticket to #A10WBB Semifinals, Takes Down St. Bonaventure

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RICHMOND, Va. - VCU used a combination of depth, defense, and the benefit of St. Bonaventure foul trouble to earn their first trip ever to the semifinals of the Atlantic 10 Women's Basketball Championship, eliminating the fourth-seeded Bonnies 59-50 Friday afternoon.

Junior guard Ashley Pegram sparked the Rams off the bench, leading with eleven points and nine rebounds as VCU (23-8) had nine players in the scoring column. Isis Thorpe scored five of her nine points in the final nine seconds of the first half, including a three-point prayer answered after a steal at the buzzer for a 29-15 halftime advantage.

"What's so exciting about the Atlantic 10 is you get to compete against some of the best teams in the country," said VCU head coach Beth O'Boyle. "We thought our depth would be a factor and we tried to push the tempo and keep defensive intensity for forty minutes. We're excited to play another day."

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With five points today, Adaeze Alaeze crossed the 1,000 point mark for VCU.

First Team All-Conference forward Katie Healy committed back-to-back personal fouls, forced to the bench with 6:54 left in the second quarter. In her absence, the Rams doubled their lead. Healy, a senior, finished with seven points.

The Bonnies struggled from the floor overall, shooting 29.5 percent, including 5-for-29 from beyond the arc. Miranda Drummond led St. Bonaventure (23-7) with 13 points, while Emily Michael added twelve points and Mariah Ruff ten.

"It was a disappointing first half for us. We fought really hard in the second half, but just couldn't get over the hump," explained St. Bonaventure head coach Jim Crowley. "VCU distrupts you, and a lot of the reason we struggled in the first half goes to VCU. Some people do not realize just how good of a job Beth (O'Boyle) has done."

The Rams advance to face the top seed, defending tournament champion George Washington, in the first semfinal on Saturday at 11am at the Richmond Coliseum. VCU defeated the Colonials 79-68 in Washington, DC in their lone regular season contest on February 20th.