Firebirds Succumb to No. 23 St. Thomas Aquinas, 70-55
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
St. Thomas Aquinas (14-2, 6-0 ECC) | 21 | 14 | 19 | 16 | 70 |
|
Dist. Columbia (2-14, 0-7 ECC) | 14 | 14 | 15 | 12 | 55 |
WASHINGTON, DC – The University of the District of Columbia women's basketball team was defeated by No. 23 St. Thomas Aquinas College in East Coast Conference action at the UDC Sports Complex Saturday afternoon.
The Firebirds fell to 2-14 overall and 0-6 in league play with the loss, while the Spartans improved to 14-2 overall and 6-0 in the ECC with the victory.
UDC made things interesting early on, as junior guard Mia-Alexis Lloyd and sophomore guard Tyra Coombs knocked down back-to-back three-pointers to give UDC an 11-8 lead midway through the first quarter. STAC's Alex Bertolino then tied the score from deep, setting off a 10-0 Spartan surge which put the visitors in front 21-14 at the end of the first period.
STAC's lead grew to as many as 11 in the 2nd quarter, but the Firebirds remained in striking distance thanks to six points by Lloyd, and the half closed with STAC ahead by only seven, 35-28.
UDC opened on a 5-0 burst to start the 3rd quarter as Coombs buried another three-pointer and freshman guard Daeja Quick hit a pair of free-throws to bring UDC within two, 35-33. At that point, however, Julia Winnick and Adiya Henderson combined to score the next seven points for the Spartans as part of a decisive, 15-2 run, and the visitors would never look back. UDC would close the gap to as little as eight, but could get no closer than that the rest of the way.
Henderson led all scorers with 21 points and hauled in a team-best six rebounds, and guard Jenna Erickson added 18 points (14 in the 2nd half) and two steals for the Spartans, who bounced back from a 72-60 loss this past Wednesday night at Assumption.
Lloyd paced the Firebirds with 16 points and four assists, Coombs added 10 points and a game-high seven rebounds, and Quick pitched in nine points and two steals.
STAC out-shot UDC, 55-percent to 41-percent from the field and forced 26 Firebird turnovers which it turned into 25 points. Rebounding was even at 26 apiece, but the Spartans out-scored UDC 46-16 in the paint and 10-7 in 2nd chance points.
Next up, UDC will visit No. 9 Virginia Union University on Monday, January 15th at 4 p.m.
