University of St. Thomas Athletics
14-11,6-6Summit League
North Dakota
8-16,3-8Summit League
Depth leads Tommies to 77-54 victory over Fighting Hawks
2/12/2025 10:02:00 PM | Women's Basketball
ST. PAUL, MINN. – Don't look now, but the University of St. Thomas women's basketball team may be the hottest in the Summit Leagye. The Tommies won their third straight and sixth of their last eight in Schoenecker Arena Wednesday evening, earning a commanding 77-54 victory over the University of North Dakota. Despite a slow start, St. Thomas played perhaps its most well rounded basketball game of 2024-25, improving to 15-10 overall and 7-5 in Summit League play. Jade Hill (Minneapolis, Minn. / South) and Jo Langbehn (Elk River, Minn. / Elk River) led the team in scoring and rebounds in Wednesday's victory, while the Tommie bench made big contributions as well.
RECAP:
It was Beach Night in Schoenecker Arena, but St. Thomas and North Dakota's offenses were both cold to open Wednesday's game. In fact, early on only Nevaeh Ferrara Horne could really score for either team, as she scored the first seven points for the Fighting Hawks to open play. The Tommies offense, once it got going, was a bit more balanced, as Alyssa Sand (Albany, Minn./ Albany), Amber Scalia (Stillwater, Minn. / Stillwater) and Jordyn Lamker (Maple Grove, Minn. / Maple Grove) all scored for St. Thomas in the first five minutes of play. However, despite the Tommies well balanced efforts, they trailed 7-5 at the media timeout.
However, Ferrara Horne's seven points were the only points St. Thomas' defense allowed in the first quarter. In fact, the Tommies completely shut down the Fighting Hawks offense and held the visitors scoreless for the final 5:18 of the first. That allowed St. Thomas to end the quarter on an 8-0 run, jumping ahead 15-7 after the first 10 minutes of play and extended their lead to 25-10 three minutes into the second quarter.
North Dakota put something together in the closing minutes of the second, but it wasn't enough to catch the Tommies, as they led 37-21 at halftime. However, foul trouble allowed the Fighting Hawks to creep back into the game, as they whittled the St. Thomas lead to 48-38 with 1:50 remaining in the third quarter. In the closing two minutes, North Dakota managed to cut the lead to seven, but a clutch three by Phoebe Frentzel (Pewaukee, Wis. / Arrowhead) boosted the Tommie lead to 53-45 entering the fourth.
The fourth quarter was anything but close. After surrendering 24 points in the third quarter, St. Thomas' defense held the Fighting Hawks to just nine in the fourth, as North Dakota only managed eight shots total against the Tommies stingy defense. Offensively, St. Thomas scored 24 points on 9-12 shooting, including a clutch fourth quarter from its senior class. Hill scored 12 of her team-leading 20 points in the final 10 minutes of play, while layups and defensive rebounds from Jo Langbehn (Elk River, Minn. / Elk River) and Frentzel truly secured the Tommies victory. Even the bench got in on the scoring, as baskets from Savanah Gardner (Apple Valley, Minn. / Eastview) and Mikayla Werner (Hortonville, Wis. / Hortonville) clinched the 77-54 victory for St. Thomas.
TOP TOMMIES
- Jade Hill's (Minneapolis, Minn. / South) monster fourth quarter helped her close Wednesday's game with a team-leading 20 points. The senior was also credited with five assists, her 22nd consecutive multi-assist performance this season.
- Jo Langbehn (Elk River, Minn. / Elk River) returned to the double-digit point club for the first time in three games, scoring 19 points on 8-12 shooting, including a 3-4 clip from the charity stripe. Langbehn also led the team with six rebounds and two steals Wednesday evening.
- Phoebe Frentzel (Pewaukee, Wis. / Arrowhead) once again provided a spark off the bench, scoring 11 points on 4-9 shooting, including a 3-4 clip from three-point range. Jordyn Lamker (Maple Grove, Minn. / Maple Grove) also contributed nine points to the Tommies scoring efforts, going 2-3 from beyond the arc.
UP NEXT
St. Thomas will enjoy a weekend off before returning to conference play on Thursday, February 20. The Tommies will make their much anticipated trip to Missouri, as they take on Kansas City for the second time in 2024-25. Tipoff is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. in Kansas City, Missouri.
