University of St. Thomas Athletics
8-9,0-4Summit League
Oral Roberts
13-5,3-2Summit League
Hill breaks program record, Tommies come up short at Oral Roberts
1/16/2025 9:24:00 PM | Women's Basketball
TULSA, Okla. – There are some nights that simply don't go your way. That seems to be happening a lot for the University of St. Thomas women's basketball team. Despite a hard fought effort in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the Tommies were unable to come up with their first Summit League win against Oral Roberts, falling in the closing seconds by a final score of 71-68. However, St. Thomas still had something to celebrate down in Oklahoma. Thanks to yet another multi-assist performance, senior guard Jade Hill (Minneapolis, Minn. / South) broke the program record for career assists, becoming the all-time leader with 408. She is the first Tommie women's basketball player to set not just a Division I record, but break an all-time record in the process, with Teri Witcraft's record standing since the late 90s. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough to lead St. Tomas to victory, as the Tommie fell to 8-9 on the season and 0-4 in Summit League play.
RECAP:
It was, perhaps, one of the lowest scoring quarters for either team in the conference season, as St. Thomas and Oral Roberts scored a combined 19 points and committed eight turnovers before the three minute mark of the first. By the end of the quarter, the Tommies led the Golden Eagles 15-14, thanks to a last second three-pointer from senior guard Jade Hill (Minneapolis, Minn. / South). The most eye-popping stat on the scoresheet though, belonged to Jo Langbehn (Elk River, Minn. / Elk River). The senior tallied seven rebounds alone and scored six points for St. Thomas on 3-3 shooting, all in under eight minutes of play.
Two minutes into the second quarter, though, the Tommies found themselves without Langbehn, as she was called for her second foul and forced to spend significant time on the bench. With Langbehn relegated to the bench, other St. Thomas student-athletes stepped up, with nearly every Tommie on the court scoring at least one basket in the second quarter of play. The barrage allowed St. Thomas to keep pace with Oral Roberts, as the Golden Eagles only outscored the Tommies 17-14 in the second quarter and walked into the locker room at half with a slim 31-29 advantage.
St. Thomas did not get out to the best start in the third quarter. Despite an early layup from Scalia, it was Oral Roberts that held early momentum, using a 9-2 run to race out to a 40-31 lead midway through the third. The Tommies managed to keep it close early, as a three-pointer from Faith Feuerbach (Sycamore, Ill. / Sycamore) pulled St. Thomas within six at 40-34. However, Oral Roberts seemingly had all the momentum, as the Golden Eagles pushed their lead to 50-37 with 1:21 remaining in the quarter.
The resilience of the Tommies came through in the closing minutes of the third. A steal from Langbehn eventually led to a Oral Roberts foul, sending Hill to the free throw line. Two free throws later, St. Thomas cut the deficit to 50-42, and that was before Sammy Opihcka (Green Bay, Wis. / Notre Dame Academy) made her presence known. The senior, in her return to action after suffering an injury against Kansas City, scored the final basket of the quarter, pulling the Tommies within six at 50-44 with 10 minutes remaining in regulation.
St. Thomas opened the fourth quarter with a bang, as it was again Opichka coming up clutch. The senior hit a step back three, pulling St. Thomas within three at 50-47. Oral Roberts, though, seemingly regained control in Tulsa, scoring four unanswered points and extending its lead to 54-47. Again, St. Thomas countered, as Hill and Riley Wright (Marion, Iowa / Marion) combined to score seven points, whittling the deficit to 60-57. The Tommies then pulled within two as Langbehn scoring her first layup since the first quarter to pull St. Thomas within two at 61-59.
The final two minutes were some of the most thrilling basketball Tommie women's basketball fans have been treated to all season. Down 65-61 with 1:35 remaining in regulation, Scalia hit a clutch three from the left elbow, pulling St. Thomas within in one at 65-64. Opichka did the same not one minute later. Down 68-64 and seemingly out of the game, the senior came up big, giving the Tommies new life by efficiently slicing the Oral Roberts lead to 68-67 with 34 seconds remaining in regulation.
Those 34 seconds left most people in Mabee Arena gasping for breath. After a lengthy timeout, St. Thomas fouled Ruthie Udoumoh with 31 seconds left in regulation, ensuring at least one possession to tie to take a led. However, Udoumoh went 0-2 at the charity stripe and Scalia came up with a huge rebound under the basket. The junior raced up the court, eventually passing the ball off to Hill to start the Tommie offense. St. Thomas moved the ball around, and eventually, Alyssa Sand (Albany, Minn. / Albany) was fouled on a shot, sending the first year to the line. She made the first, missed the second, tying the game at 68-68 with nine seconds remaining on the clock.
Nine seconds, though, was apparently just enough for the Golden Eagles offense. After strong play by the Tommie defense whittled 8.4 seconds off the clock, Taleyah Jones was forced to send up a three from deep beyond the arc. The ball flew through the basket, giving Oral Roberts a 71-68 lead with .6 left in the game. As St. Thomas proved in 2023-24, though, .6 is plenty of time to take the shot, as head coach Ruth Sinn called timeout to advance the ball up the Tommie sideline. Hill, the hero in 2024, inbounded the ball to Opichka, who wasted no time sending the ball toward the hoop. It fell just short, clinching the 71-68 win over the Golden Eagles.
TOP TOMMIES
- Jade Hill (Minneapolis, Minn. / South) led the team with 15 points thanks to a 2-2 mark from beyond the arc and 7-7 shooting from the free throw line. She also closed the night with four assists and one steal.
- Sammy Opichka (Green Bay, Wis. / Notre Dame Academy) scored 12 points in her return to action, while Amber Scalia (Stillwater, Minn. / Stillwater) added 11 on 4-9 shooting in the loss.
- Jo Langbehn (Elk River, Minn. / Elk River) did not miss a shot Thursday evening, scoring eight points while pulling in a season-high 12 rebounds, including seven in the first quarter alone.
NOTEABLES
Hill continued to cement her place in the St. Thomas record books Thursday evening. Earlier in conference play, she became just the second Tommie in program history to record 400 career assists. Midway through the third quarter, Hill broke Teri Witcraft's program record in the statistic, breaking a 28 year old record and becoming the all-time leader in career assists with 408.
UP NEXT
St. Thomas will return to action on Saturday, January 18, as the team looks for its first Summit League at the University of Nebraska Omaha. Tipoff is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. at Baxter Arena in Omaha, Nebraska.
