By Laura Amato
The St. John’s women’s basketball team added a brand-new ripple to its on-court storm, signing rising senior Curteeona Brelove last Thursday.
Brelove joins the Red Storm after a strong senior campaign at Virginia Commonwealth University. The 6-foot-2 forward has one year of college eligibility remaining, but will be required to complete one full academic year of residency, per NCAA transfer regulations.
“Curteeona will bring us an experienced front court player who has versatility from all areas on the floor,” St. John’s coach Joe Tartamella said in a release. “We are very happy to have her as part of our program.”
Brelove saw plenty of time on the court at VCU last season, appearing in 29 of the Rams’ 31 games, including 13 in the starting lineup. She averaged 8.3 points and 6.6 rebounds in 22 minutes per game and has improved her numbers across the board over the last three seasons.
As she closes in on her final year of college hoops, Brelove was looking for a brand-new challenge – one St. John’s met perfectly.
“I decided to come to St. John’s because of the team’s style of play and how down to Earth everyone was,” she said. “I love how they run the floor and how everyone is so versatile. I focused on how the post players can step outside and knock down shots, as well as make back-to-the-basket moves.”
A solid scoring threat in the post, Brelove will look to add her talents to the Red Storm roster as the team hopes to build off yet another playoff appearance last year. St. John’s advanced to the WNIT Round of 16, but fell to eventual champion Michigan.
Now, the squad is looking to come back strong next season and Brelove is excited to be a part of that.
“The team and coaches were very straightforward and they made me feel like I was already part of the family, and that spoke volumes to me,” Brelove said.
End of the line
One of the best seasons in Red Storm softball history came to a heartbreaking end Saturday as St. John’s dropped an 8-3 decision to DePaul in the Big East championship game.
The Red Storm bats came alive in the final, racking up nine hits, but the squad struggled to turn runners into runs down the stretch.
St. John’s jumped out to a 2-1 lead after the fourth inning, but couldn’t protect the lead, giving up three runs in the next frame.
The squad did its best to claw back, making it a one-run game in the sixth on Christina Melendez’s RBI double, but St. John’s could not get over the final hump.
DePaul broke away in the top of the seventh inning, pushing across four runs on a pair of two-run hits. St. John’s did have one final chance in the bottom of the inning, loading the bases with no outs, but the Red Storm couldn’t get anything on the board.
Gretchen Bowie, Grace Kramer and Kaitlin Mattera each earned spots on the Big East Conference All-Tournament teams.
It was a disappointing loss, but the Red Storm’s success this spring could not be overshadowed. St. John’s finished the year with single-season program records in Big East wins (17), runs scored (277), RBIs (251) and matched the 1990 squad for most victories with 32.
