With an overall record of 15 – 5, the Seton Hall women’s basketball has had quite the season so far. They are ranked third in the Big East with a record of 7 – 2, winning eight of their last 10 games.
One month after beating Butler, 69-49, the Pirates repeated that dominant performance on Wednesday, Jan. 29 when they defeated the Butler Bulldogs, 71-48 at the Walsh Gymnasium.
With senior forward I’yanna Lops recording two blocks early in the first quarter, it was apparent that the Bulldogs would struggle to score against Seton Hall’s solid defense. According to the Big East’s cumulative statistics for the season, the Pirates have the fourth-best defense in the conference, while forcing 20.6 turnovers per game. Seton Hall’s impressive defense quickly translated to offense, scoring six points from Butler’s seven turnovers to take a 12-6 lead by the end of the first quarter.
This momentum would continue in the second quarter, as the Bulldogs recorded nine more turnovers, bringing their total to 16 by halftime. This would translate to 21 points for the Pirates, who benefitted from easy transition baskets to build a 19-point lead to end the first half, with a score of 30-11. Notably, the last time the Pirates held an opponent under 15 points in the first half was in 2023 against St. Peters, where they led 36-14 at the break.
Returning from injury in the last game against St. Johns, sophomore guard Savannah Catalon led all scorers with eight points in the first half, while Eads followed with six of her own. The two combined for nine steals in the half, with five for Catalon and four for Eads.
The Bulldogs came with more energy to start the second half, scoring 18 in the third quarter—a huge improvement compared to their 11 total points in the first half. Most of the scoring for Butler came from freshman forward Jocelyn Land, who scored 11 points in the third quarter alone.
Despite Butler’s improved play, it was difficult for the Bulldogs to make a comeback with the lead Seton Hall built in the first half; they ended the quarter by making eight of their last nine shots, with the Pirates taking a 54-30 lead.
The Pirates showed no signs of letting up as they headed into the fourth. Early in the quarter, Catalon recorded her sixth steal, tying her career high. She led the Pirates in scoring with a game-high 15 points in only her second game since coming back from an injury. Eads matched Catalon’s steal count, while also leading the team in six assists and seven rebounds —the latter being a rather impressive stat considering the guard’s 5-foot-7 stature.
With a final score of 71-48, Seton Hall earned their 15th win on the season and improved to 7 – 2 in conference play.
Despite a better second half, Butler simply could not cut the deficit. Coming off her 11-point third quarter, Land led all scorers for the Bulldogs with 14. Fellow freshman Lily Zeinstra managed to grab 11 rebounds, a huge improvement from her 2.7 per game.
The Pirates had three scorers in double figures in this game, with the backcourt of Catalon and Eads combining for 29 points (15 and 14, respectively), and senior forward Faith Masonius scoring 12. The Hall also scored 34 points in the paint, while shooting 43.8% from the field (28 – 64).
Seton Hall’s dominant defensive performance was the defining storyline of this game. Butler had 28 turnovers compared to Seton Hall’s 12, as the Bulldogs struggled to maintain possession against the Pirates’ relentless defense. The Pirates also recorded 19 steals in the game—a season-high just shy of the single-game team record of 24 set in 1993.
After a road win and loss, The Pirates are currently 16 – 6 overall and 8 – 3 in conference play. They look to take on Xavier on Saturday, Feb. 8 at 2 p.m. in the Walsh Gymnasium.
Zachary Mawby is the head editor for The Setonian’s Sports section. He can be reached at zachary.mawby@student.shu.edu.
