University of St. Thomas Athletics
Saturday, November 19
St. Paul, Minn.
7:00 p.m. Central
vs
Presbyterian
Photo by: Wesley Dean
St. Thomas Women’s Basketball to host Presbyterian Saturday, Nov. 19
11/17/2022 2:27:00 PM | Women's Basketball
The Last Time Out
Sophomore Sammy Opichka powered to a career-high 20 points and eight rebounds Tuesday night during St. Thomas Women's Basketball's 71-56 loss at Illinois State. Opichka finished a perfect 6-of-6 from the field with two 3-pointers and 6-of-6 from the free throw line as the Tommies fall to 1-2 overall.
After sophomore Jade Hill scored the opening basket unassisted, the Redbirds went on an 8-2 run for a four-point lead. Senior Maggie Negaard hit the first of her three 3-pointers to start a 16-2 run, fueled by 11 points from Opichka.
The Tommies reached double-digit leads three times in the first half, the final of which on a layup from sophomore Jordyn Lamker to go ahead, 26-16. Negaard later hit her third 3-pointer for a 29-20 lead with 4:36 to play before halftime. The Redbirds came back with an 11-3 run to cut the Tommies' lead to one, 32-31.
The Redbirds hit a 3-pointer out of halftime to take their first lead since early in the first quarter. Lamker and Opichka scored back-to-back baskets to regain the lead but fell behind for good after an 11-2 ISU run. The Tommies went 1-of-4 shooting with four turnovers over four minutes to trail, 45-38.
The Redbirds outscored the Tommies in the final quarter, 24-13, while hitting over 50 percent from the field. St. Thomas ended the game shooting 41.2 percent from the field compared to 51.0 percent for Illinois State. The Tommies won the rebound margin, 31-26, but gave away 20 turnovers that led to 20 ISU points.
Opichka also led the team with eight rebounds, setting another career high. Hill finished with 12 points and six assists while Lamker totaled 10 points on 5-of-8 shooting.
Scouting Presbyterian
Presbyterian holds a 2-1 record heading into Saturday night's tilt against St. Thomas. The Blue Hose most recently took a 68-67 win over Western Carolina at home on Tuesday, Nov. 15 in Clinton, S.C. PC began its season with an 81-41 win over Carolina University Nov. 7 and a 67-60 loss to Furman on Nov. 11.
The Blue Hose battled back from a 10-point deficit with 2:40 to play and secured the win over Western Carolina on a layup from senior Bryanna Brady with seven seconds left.
Sophomore Mara Neira led the Blue Hose with 22 points on 10-of-18 shooting while also grabbing three rebounds, three assists and a pair of steals. Bryanna Brady followed with 13 points and four rebounds.
The Blue Hose shot 49.1 percent (28-of-57) from the floor as Western Carolina shot 45.1 percent (23-of-51) on Tuesday night. PC outrebounded Western Carolina 40-28. The Blue Hose won the battle in the paint with a 42-32 advantage and also outscored WCU 20-6 on second-chance points. Both teams tallied 14 assists.
Presbyterian is shooting 43.5 percent fromt the field and 29.0 percent from 3-point range this season. The Blue Hose are outrebounding their opponents 39.0-34.7 and average nearly 20 points off turnovers per game.
Series History
The Tommies and Blue Hose have met once all-time, an 82-62 loss for St. Thomas on Nov. 20, 2021 in Clinton, S.C.
PC took a 25-13 lead after the first quarter before the Tommies fought back to tie the game at halftime, 39-39. The Blue Hose scored at least 21 points in each of the final two quarters while the Tommies topped just 11 in each.
Sophomore Jade Hill led St. Thomas with 18 points on 6-of-12 shooting with two rebounds and two assists. Sophmore Jo Langbehn followed with 10 points off the bench on 5-of-7 shooting. Senior Jordyn Glynn scored seven points and led all returners with five rebounds.
Sammy 2-O
Sophomore Sammy Opichka went off for a career-high 20 points Tuesday night at Illinois State. She was a perfect 6-of-6 from the field, 2-of-2 from 3-point range and 6-of-6 from the free throw line. She also pulled down a career-high eight rebounds, including three offensive rebounds that were converted for six second-chance points.
Opichka's previous career high in scoring was nine points set Jan. 15, 2022 at home against North Dakota, where she also set a career high six rebounds. Tuesday was just the third time in 19 games Opichka has scored over five points.
This is the first instance of a Tommie recording at least 20 points and 8 rebounds in a game since Macy Hatlestad recorded 26 points and nine rebounds Feb. 3, 2021 against Bethel. It's also the first time a Tommie went at least 6-of-6 from the field since Langbehn went 6-of-6 against Oral Roberts on Feb. 5, 2022.
Where Are My Upperclassmen At?
Graduate student Autam Mendez, and seniors Jordyn Glynn and Maggie Negaard are the only three upperclassmen on the team.
Glynn is the only member of the team who was with the program during its NCAA DIII days. She played in 24 games with 17 starts last season to average 4.3 rebounds and 2.8 points per game. Glynn is averaging 4.3 rebounds per game, totaling at least four in every game.
Negaard played her first season with the Tommies in 2021-22 after transferring in from Drake. She made 24 starts in 27 games played and averaged 5.7 points and 4.0 rebounds per contest. This season, Negaard has led the Tommies in scoring once, totaling 15 points in the win over South Carolina State.
Mendez makes her Tommie debut this season after playing at San Jose State from 2020-22 and at North Iowa Area Community College from 2018-20. Mendez pulled down two rebounds in nine minutes against South Carolina State.
NCAA Division I Year One in Review
Head Coach Ruth Sinn leads the Tommies into year two of NCAA Division I play after a 7-21 campaign, including a 4-14 mark in the Summit League, last season.
The Tommies bring back nine returners, including three starters, and welcome in six newcomers. Seniors Jordyn Glynn and Maggie Negaard, along with sophomore Jade Hill, were each consistent starters a year ago.
The first Summit League victory for St. Thomas came at home against Denver on Dec. 22, 56-48. The Tommies concluded their first Division I season with a 61-56 road win at Omaha.
Coming in Hot
Two Tommies were selected to the Summit League All-Newcomer Team last season, including sophomore Jade Hill and graduate transfer Erin Norling.
Hill played the most minutes per game of any women's freshman player in DI hoops in 2021-22. Hill averaged 36.15 minutes over 28 games. (Only one freshman DI men's player, Trey Townsend of Oakland at 36.24, had a higher per-game average.) Hill also led the entire Summit League in minutes per game.
Hill leads the Tommies this season with 12.7 points and 4.0 assists per game. She's shooting 32.5 percent from the field (13-40), 40.0 percent from 3-point range (4-10) and .667 from the free throw line (8-12).
Hitting a Stride Early
The Tommies began the 2021-22 Summit League schedule 3-1 after putting together a three-game winning streak in league play. After a 61-55 loss to Omaha to begin conference play, the Tommies went on to beat Denver, 56-48, Western Illinois, 66-64 in double overtime, and North Dakota State, 73-62.
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