Seton Hall women’s basketball celebrated senior day before hosting St. John’s (SJU) on Sunday afternoon, and, fittingly, it was a senior who had a chance to send the game into overtime with just 1.3 seconds left.
Down by 3, senior guard / forward Jordana Codio brushed off a down-screen, curling into the corner closest to SHU’s bench. She received the pass from the sideline out of bounds, squared up to the basket and fired with an SJU defender closing out too late as the buzzer sounded.
But Codio’s shot came up short, hitting the nearside of the rim, as the Pirates (18-9, 12-6 BIG EAST) came up short themselves, falling to the Red Storm (21-9, 11-8 BIG EAST), 59-56, with an actual winter storm looming outside Walsh Gymnasium. The win completed SJU's first season sweep of SHU since 2019-20 and snapped The Hall’s three-game win streak dramatically.
Codio’s shot, however, was one of several opportunities SHU had down the stretch to tie or even win the game. A pair of missed free throws by SJU’s Wagner gave the Pirates possession with just 8.7 seconds left, trailing 58-56.
The ball was then put in the hands of Savannah Catalon, the Pirates’ leading scorer this season, at the top of the key. The junior guard drove left to the lane, went with a right-handed finish under the contest of her defender, which rolled off the rim.
With Catalon down on the hardwood and SJU collecting the defensive rebound, SHU head coach Anthony Bozzella was outraged that no foul was called, with the officials hearing it from him and the rest of the Pirates’ coaching staff.
Even then, SHU had an opportunity to take the lead in possession prior. With 33 seconds left this time, The Hall botched the play they drew up out of another sideline out of bounds, with freshman guard Ari Woodard trying to make something out of nothing instead, in just her third career start.
Woodard drove, but ran out of room on the baseline, with her shot hitting the underside of the backboard, and SJU collecting the defensive rebound. Fellow freshman guard Zahara Bishop fouled Wagner away from the ball in the backcourt with 15.2 left, which was upgraded to a flagrant one foul upon review.
But what ultimately cost the Pirates the game was a phantom call on Catalon during the Red Storm’s possession the play before. The Hall put together one of their best defensive possessions of the game, forcing Wagner to pull up for a contested shot from mid-range with nothing else going for SJU and the shot clock running low.
Closing out on the shot was Catalon, who may have made marginal contact, if any, on Wagner’s elbow or forearm, the refs bailing out SJU with a trip to the line and just 34.1 seconds left. Wagner made both free throws this time, giving The Red Storm a 57-56 lead.
It’s a shame that crunch time didn’t turn out how SHU wanted, because the comeback the Pirates put together in the second half was inspiring to watch. Driving right then pivoting to her left, a left-handed baby hook by Codio capped off a 4-0 run that gave SHU the lead with just 1:04 left, The Hall up 56-55.
Woodard went coast-to-coast for an uncontested right-handed layup the play before bringing the game within one point before Codio took the lead.
Earlier in the fourth quarter, a 6-0 run, capped by a deep Catalon 3-pointer, gave SHU a 50-47 lead with 6:03 left in the game.
Having yet to record a field goal after five attempts in the game, Bishop drove left and finished with her right hand underneath the arm of her defender for a sneaky and-one that gave SHU their first lead since the second quarter, SHU leading 44-42 at 7:47 in the fourth.
Outscoring SJU 15-10 in the third, SHU turned a nine-point deficit early in the quarter into just one point after a series of runs, starting with 7-0, then two 4-0 runs.
SHU went into the locker room trailing by six, 32-26, after an ice-cold second quarter, where they scored just seven points and made just two of 16 attempts, while also going 0-for-3 from deep. Codio, who finished the game on just 6-for-18 (33.3%) shooting, went 0-for-6 in the second quarter alone, 2-for-10 (20%) in the first half overall.
Although senior night, it was The Hall’s freshman who led them in the first quarter. Woodard scored half of her 10 total points in the first, with her one assist to fellow freshman Natalia Hall-Rosa for a corner 3-pointer that tied the game at 14 with 2:54 until the second.
Codio was one of three senior players to be honored with their jersey in a glass frame before the game, the others being graduate forward Mariana Valenzuela and senior forward Messiah Hunter. The Pirates’ senior team managers were also honored, along with SHU’s senior spirit squad members, at the end of the first.
Before the game, Bozzella stressed to the commentators that the Pirates “have to win the rebound battle.” But SHU failed to do so, with SJU outrebounding them 43-34 in total rebounds, the Pirates at least winning 11-9 on the offensive glass.
The Hall will have a chance to redeem themselves on Feb. 26 when they return to Walsh Gymnasium to host yet another team in the upper half of the conference standings, this time the Villanova Wildcats (21-6, 14-4 BIG EAST), who sit one place ahead of SHU.
Zachary Mawby is the head editor of The Setonian’s Sports section. He can be reached at zachary.mawby@student.shu.edu.
