BAYAMON, Puerto Rico – The Union College women's basketball team started off its time at the Puerto Rico Clasico by grinding out a 65-60 victory over Johnson & Wales University on Wednesday morning at Ruben Rodriguez Coliseum.
 
All nine players that entered the game had at least one point for Union (6-2), led by senior Jelena Perovic with a team-leading 16 points to go with 11 rebounds for her fourth double-double of the year. Classmate Kate Peek chipped in 14 points, fellow senior Grace Ceseretti had nine points and six boards, and sophomore Olivia Cunningham recorded eight points and a game-high 16 rebounds as well in the win.
 
The Garnet Chargers shot 52.9 percent (9 of 17) in the opening 10 minutes on the way to an 18-13 lead after one frame. Perovic and Cunningham both had six points to start off strong for Union, including one bucket each during an 8-0 run that opened up the game's first double-digit advantage at 14-4 after a bucket from first-year Ryley Tate-Padian with 3:51 on the clock.
 
Union did its job defensively in the first two periods, limiting Johnson & Wales to 25.6 percent (10 of 39) shooting, including a 2-of-19 mark from long range. However, after a strong start, the Garnet Chargers hit only 5-of-15 shots and had five turnovers in the second stanza to allow the Wildcats back into the game. First-year Ryanne Gulbin made her collegiate debut and had five points as Union used an 11-5 run to take its largest lead of the half at 29-18 with 5:41 to go, but JWU closed on an 11-4 stretch of its own to get back within four (33-2) at the half.
 
Cunningham and Perovic both led Union with eight points at the break, while Union also did an excellent job on the Wildcats' leading scorer, Grace Jaffray, who came in averaging over 27 points per game but was limited to 2-of-14 shooting in the opening 20 minutes.
 
The Garnet Chargers' hot shooting returned in the third period, hitting 9-of-16 shots (56.3 percent) from the field. The team built its lead back up to 10 after a pair of Perovic baskets made the score 48-38 and, despite a late charge from the Wildcats, Peek hit a step-back three in the final seconds to put Union up 53-46 after three periods.
 
The up-and-down play continued in the fourth frame, as Union shot just 3-of-18 from the field but did enough on both ends of the court to secure the win. Ceseretti started the period with a jumper and Union kept JWU off the board for over four minutes before an 8-3 run got the Wildcats back within four points with under four minutes to go. A big offensive board and putback by Perovic with 2:12 on the clock made it a six-point game, and the Garnet Chargers went 5-of-6 from the line the rest of the way to seal the victory.
 
Union finished the day shooting 39.4 percent (26 of 66) from the field, but limited Johnson & Wales to 30.4 percent (24 of 79) shooting at the other end, including a 4-of-34 mark (11.8 percent) from long range.
 
Union will play its second and final game in Puerto Rico tomorrow, when the Garnet Chargers take on Susquehanna University beginning at 1:15 p.m. ET (2:15 p.m. AST).