St. Thomas Aquinas (7-3, 3-2 ECC)  36-36—72

SPARKILL, N.Y. – Four players reached double figures in points to lead the St. Thomas Aquinas College women's basketball team to a 72-54 victory over Daemen College here today. STAC improved to 7-3 overall and 3-2 in the East Coast Conference (ECC) with the win, while Daemen falls to 3-8 overall and 1-5 in the league.

Freshmen Kristen Olsen (Staten Island, N.Y.) and Samantha Burden (Westbury, N.Y.) both netted 14 points to pace the Spartans. Olsen connected on 4-of-7 three-point field goal attempts, while Burden went 5-of-8 from the field and also recorded five assists. Sophomore Alexis Breheny (Hopatcong, N.Y.) helped the STAC cause with 12 points, while senior Briana Cook (Paterson, N.J.) finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds.

Sophomore Raeann Stilwell (Cheektowaga, N.Y./St. Mary's of Lancaster) netted a team-high 15 points for Daemen, while freshman Natalie Galus (Hamburg, N.Y./Frontier) recorded her third double-double of the year and finished with 11 points and 11 rebounds. Galus, who entered the game leading the league in blocked shots, added four blocks and has now recorded 32 rejections on the year. Senior Lindsay Stoddard (Limestone, N.Y./Allegany-Limestone) added seven points and six assists for the Wildcats.

Daemen trailed by just five points (38-33) early in the second half, but a three-pointer by senior Sara Oliveira (Porto, Portugal) ignited the Spartans on a 7-0 run that gave the hosts a 13-point lead, 46-33, with 15:25 to play. The teams traded baskets for the next five minutes and the Spartans held a 54-41 lead when they used an 8-0 run to secure the win. Junior Ashley Motrechuk (Staten Island, N.Y.) and Olsen hit back-to-back three-pointers during the spurt, and a layup by Cook with 7:03 left capped it and gave STAC a 62-41 advantage. Daemen came no closer than 14 points the rest of the way.

Daemen held an 8-7 lead six minutes into the game, before the Spartans caught fire and opened up 12-point (22-10) advantage following a 15-2 run. STAC went 7-for-7 from the field during the run, which was capped by a three-pointer from Olsen with 10:53 left in the half.  STAC later took its largest lead of the half, 33-19, following a bucket by Breheny with 4:40 left before intermission, but the Wildcats closed the half with a 10-3 run that cut the deficit in half, 36-19.

STAC shot 50-percent (29-58) for the game and canned 6-of-14 three-point attempts. Daemen struggled from the floor all game and finished just 33-percent (24-72) from the field overall and 2-for-20 from behind the arc. Daemen collected 16 offensive rebounds and posted a 36-26 advantage in points in the paint. STAC finished with a 43-40 edge in  overall rebounding and also outscored the Wildcats in bench points, 20-10.

Daemen will remain in the New York City area and play at Mercy College Monday at 5:30 p.m.

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