University of St. Thomas Athletics
7-6,1-0Summit League
North Dakota
3-9,0-1Summit League
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Game Leaders
Players Mentioned
Tommies run away with 95-76 victory over North Dakota
12/29/2023 4:58:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Highest scoring Summit League game in program history for St. Thomas
ST. PAUL, MINN. – Not much went wrong for the University of St. Thomas Friday afternoon. The Tommies hosted the University of North Dakota in their first Summit League game of the 2023-24 season, though St. Thomas wasn't exactly the best of hosts. The Tommies outscored, outrebounded and out shot the Fighting Hawks Friday afternoon, earning a resounding 95-76 win to open Summit League play. Thanks to the victory, St. Thomas is now 7-6 overall and 1-0 in conference play.
RECAP:
Absolutely nothing went wrong for the Tommies in the first quarter of play, as they raced out to a 32-17 lead after a blistering hot shooting performance all around. St. Thomas went 9-13 from the floor in the first 10 minutes of play, including a 5-7 clip from three-point range, to take a 15 points lead the team would never relinquish. Angelina Hammond (Hopkins, Minn. / Hopkins) clicked off the Tommies scoring efforts with a three-pointer from the corner, and the team quickly followed. In fact, St. Thomas made four consecutive threes to open the game before even missing a shot, as Amber Scalia (Stillwater, Minn. / Stillwater), Jordyn Glynn (Grand Meadow, Minn. / Grand Meadow) and Phoebe Frentzel (Hartland, Wis. / Arrowhead) joined in the three-point scoring efforts, giving the Tommies a 12-7 advantage three minutes into the game.
North Dakota managed to whittle the St. Thomas lead to 12-11 in the first quarter, but that was the closest the Fighting Hawks would ever get to catching the Tommies. In fact, St. Thomas lead from start to finish extending its lead to 32-17 by the end of the first quarter. The Tommies wasted no time making it a 20 point game in the second quarter, as baskets by Scalia and Jo Langbehn (Elk River, Minn. / Elk River) made it 42-22 St. Thomas with over half the second quarter remaining.
Though the Tommies offense stole the show, the defense remained as stifling as ever, holding North Dakota to just 35 points in the first half and a sub .200 perimeter shooting percentage. In fact, the Fighting Hawks were 0-5 from three-point range in the second quarter alone and made just one three-pointer in the entire first half, allowing St. Thomas to walk into the locker room with a 57-33 advantage at the half.
With a 22 point advantage and clear control of the game, the Tommies easily could have coasted in the second half. Instead, St. Thomas put the pedal to the metal and kicked its offensive game up a notch in the third, extending its lead to 81-56 by the end of the quarter. It marked the first time in 2023-24 the Tommies scored 80+ points on a Division I opponent in just 30 minutes of play and was already the highest scoring Summit League game in program history by the end of the third quarter. The Fighting Hawks tried to make things interesting in the fourth, as they used a seven point run to whittle the St. Thomas lead to 88-72 with 2:45 remaining in regulation. The damage, though, was already done as free throws from Jade Hill (Minneapolis, Minn. / South) secured the 95-74 win for the Tommies.
TOP TOMMIES
- Amber Scalia (Stillwater, Minn. / Stillwater) scored 20+ points in a game for the fourth time this season, tallying 27 total on 6-9 shooting, including a 5-8 clip from beyond the arc. She additionally went 10-11 from the free throw line and added two rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block to her stat line.
- Jade Hill (Minneapolis, Minn. / South) added 20 points on 6-12 shooting and tallied a season-high seven assists in Friday's victory. She, and Angelina Hammond (Hopkins, Minn. / Hopkins) led the team with three steals apiece, while Hammond led the team with seven rebounds.
- Jo Langbehn (Elk River, Minn. / Elk River) continued to stay hot from the floor, scoring 10 points on 5-7 shooting Friday afternoon.
UP NEXT
It's a tight turn around for St. Thomas, as the team travels to Kansas City, Missouri for its second conference game of the 2023-24 season. The Tommies will look to ring in the New Year with a win over the University of Missouri-Kansas City on Sunday, December 31. Tip off is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. CT in Kansas City, Missouri.
