A strong defensive effort and a stellar afternoon from freshman Drameka Griggs led the JU women's basketball team to a 61-47 win over Stetson in Atlantic Sun Conference play Saturday.

Griggs scored a game-high 18 points, hitting two 3-pointers, including the back breaker with the shot clock winding down to stop a Stetson run that had cut the lead to four with just over three minutes left in the game.

JU (8-16, 7-9 A-Sun) held the Hatters (5-21, 5-12 A-Sun) to just 23.1 percent shooting from the floor, including 0-for-6 performance from behind the arc, and held a 59-42 edge on the rebounds.

"Our defense really stepped up for us," said JU head coach Jill Dunn. "We were able to control the boards, which allowed us to get some run outs and easy baskets."

Griggs hit 6-of-11 from the floor and was one of two Dolphins in double figures. Danielle Gray scored 10 while Desarae Johnson pulled down a game-high 15 rebounds.

With the game tied at 21 entering halftime, JU opened the second half on a 20-5 run, with Griggs capping the run with a an old fashioned 3-point play to put JU on top 41-26 with 11:26 left in the game.

The Hatters cut the deficit to four via a 13-2 run, but Griggs was too much, drilling a 30-footer as the shot clock expired to push the lead to seven, ending Stetson's chances.

Stetson had three players in double figures, led by Tierra Brown and Kerri Simpson, who each 13 points. Natasha Graboski scored 11 points and had a team-high eight rebounds.

The two teams struggled to score early and Stetson ended the half on an 8-2 run, capped by a Lyllique Roman driving layup with 10 seconds left to send the teams into the locker room tied at 21.

The Dolphins hit the road for their final road trip of the regular season as they face Kennesaw State on Thursday. Tipoff is set for 5 p.m.