St. Joseph surges past Aquinas Academy to get over semifinal hump

By: Josh Rizzo
Monday, February 26, 2024 | 10:21 PM

Purchase Photo Options

Purchase Photo Options

Purchase Photo Options

Purchase Photo Options

Purchase Photo Options

Previous Next

Measuring the St. Joseph offense Monday night was easily accomplished by looking at the Gia Richter scale.

The Spartans’ 5-foot-4 junior guard was limited late in the first half by foul trouble.

When Richter returned after halftime, her contributions shook the foundation of St. Joseph’s 65-56 win over Aquinas Academy during a WPIAL Class A semifinal at Fox Chapel. Richter scored eight points — two 3-pointers and a layup on a pass from Anna Kreinbrook — during a 9-2 run to open the second half. She finished with 18 points.

After two consecutive seasons of losing in the semifinals, St. Joseph finally kicked down the door and made the championship game. The Spartans will meet top-seeded Union at 11 a.m. Saturday at Pitt’s Petersen Events Center.

“Even though I did foul a lot, my main focus was offense and keeping my hands away on defense,” Richter said. “Offense is important for a semifinal game like this because we lost the past two years. It was important for me as a point guard to keep everyone in line and make sure everyone knows what to do.”

Aquinas Academy had won its previous 10 games against St. Joseph.

Senior Julie Spinelli led the Spartans with 32 points.

“It’s literally the best feeling in the whole world,” Spinelli said. “That’s something we’ve worked for our entire career here at St. Joe’s. It’s so exciting to be able to do it.”

St. Joseph’s run to open the second half was a 19-5 stretch that put the Spartans ahead 45-30 with 2 minutes, 32 seconds left in the third quarter.

Aquinas Academy’s offense dried up from the perimeter after the first quarter. The Crusaders made three 3-pointers in the first but only one triple in the second and third combined.

Aquinas Academy was limited to seven points in the third quarter.

“The third quarter, when they went on their run, we were doing things we don’t normally do,” Crusaders coach Chris Lebakken said. “We weren’t slowing down our offense. We were rushing things.”

St. Joseph (21-3) had several bursts throughout the game that threatened to blow it open. A block, steal and layup from Spinelli gave the Spartans a 9-3 lead midway through the first quarter. Aquinas Academy (16-7) closed the first quarter with a wild flurry.

The Crusaders went on a 10-0 run and took their only lead, 13-12, following two free throws from Tess Duer.

St. Joseph went ahead for good with a 5-0 burst to open the second quarter. Richter made a layup, and Spinelli banked in a 3-pointer following an offensive rebound.

Duer led Aquinas Academy with 16 points. Ellie Junker had 15.

“This group has been building for this moment for two years,” Spartans coach Geoff Dutelle said. “I told them when they upset Rochester a few years ago, it was fun, but that was just the beginning. This year, they’ve flipped the script and are favorites along with Union and Aquinas. Losing is a part of winning, and they lost those games a couple years ago and they know what it takes to break through.”

Tags: Aquinas Academy, St. Joseph