RIVERDALE, N.Y. — The St. Joseph's University, New York (Brooklyn) women's basketball team secured a hard-fought 54–49 Skyline Conference victory over the University of Mount Saint Vincent on Friday afternoon, pulling out the matinee win to snap a four-game losing streak.

The Bears opened the afternoon on a 12-0 run with Mercedes Perez (San Antonio, Texas) leading the charge with seven points in the stretch. The Dolphins closed the deficit to seven at the end of the first quarter, 14-7. The hosts responded in the second quarter, further chipping at the Bears' lead. SJBK were able to hold on to the advantage, taking a 27–22 lead into the break.

UMSV made its strongest push out of halftime, trimming the deficit to one possession before taking their first lead with 2:47 in the third quarter. Each time, St. Joseph's responded, with Perez scoring on consecutive possessions and Aaniya Telford (Brooklyn, N.Y.) converting inside to keep the Bears ahead 42–36 entering the fourth.

The final period featured several late swings. Mount Saint Vincent briefly grabbed the lead with under three minutes remaining, but Kristen Donovan (Maspeth, N.Y.) came up with a steal on the ensuing possession, leading to a Perez basket, and the Bears followed with a key defensive stop. Perez then went a perfect 4-for-4 from the free-throw line in the 1:04 while Jasmine Chan-Clayton (Melbourne, Australia) also drained her free throws to seal the win.

Perez led all scorers with a career-best 36 points, shooting 11-for-20 from the field with six three-pointers and a perfect 8-for-8 afternoon at the line. Donovan added seven points, eight assists, and seven steals, while Telford contributed six points and six rebounds. Nikki Grech (Northville, Mich.) anchored the glass with nine rebounds and Emma Centrella (Varese, Italy) hauled in eight as the Bears closed out the road victory.

The Bears return to The Hill Center on Tuesday, January 13 at 6 pm against Yeshiva University.