University of St. Thomas Athletics
Photo by: Kylie Macziewski
Tommies square off with Roos, Coyotes in key Summit League games
2/18/2025 3:10:00 PM | Women's Basketball
ST. PAUL, MINN. – It's down to crunch time for the University of St. Thomas women's basketball team. With two weeks remaining in the regular season, the Tommies have four games to solidify their top-4 place in the Summit League standings. St. Thomas will play in two crucial games this weekend, facing Kansas City and South Dakota this upcoming Thursday and Saturday.
The Tommies will open the week on the road, as they travel to Missouri to square off with the Roos for the second time in 2024-25 before returning home to host the Coyotes on Saturday. Saturday's game will serve as Senior Day, as head coach Ruth Sinn honors the first signing class in the Division I era. St. Thomas' six seniors, Jade Hill (Minneapolis, Minn. / South), Gabby Johnson (Freedom, Wis. / Freedom), Jordyn Lamker (Maple Grove, Minn. / Maple Grove), Phoebe Frentzel (Pewaukee, Wis. / Arrowhead), Sammy Opichka (Green Bay, Wis. / Notre Dame Academy) and Jo Langbehn (Elk River, Minn. / Elk River), will be honored in a pregame ceremony, and the Fairly Odd Dogs will perform at halftime.
Both games this week will tipoff at 1:00 p.m., and tickets are still available for Saturday's game in Schoenecker Arena at www.tommiesports.com/tickets. Fans who cannot watch the games in person can watch live on The Summit League Network and follow along via live stats.
LAST TIME OUT: St. Thomas is on a roll. The Tommies won their third straight Summit League contest on Wednesday, earning a commanding 77-54 victory over the North Dakota Fighting Hawks. The secret sauce to St. Thomas' success? Depth. Yes, Jade Hill and Jo Langbehn scored 15+ points in the victory, but Phoebe Frentzel and Jordyn Lamker made major contributions off the bench, propelling the Tommie reserves to a 27 point performance. That proved to be a difference maker in St. Thomas' victory. That and a stingy defense. After North Dakota whittled the lead to 53-45 in the third quarters, the Tommie defense held the Fighting Hawks to just nine fourth quarter points, allowing the home team to truly run away with the victory.
THE OPPOSITION: What a difference one month makes. The Kansas City Roos were the best story in the Summit League to open the conference slate, earning wins over St. Thomas, North Dakota State and South Dakota to open with a 6-3 record. However, since the Roos victory against the Tommies was forfeited, Kansas City has struggled, dropping three of its last four including three straight against Omaha, the Coyotes and Oral Roberts.
WHY YA GOTTA BE SO COMPLICATED: What exactly happened the last time the Tommies and Roos squared off in Summit League play? Technically, and according to the score, Kansas City won, dealing St. Thomas a 76-69 loss on its home court. However, due to a Summit League and NCAA rule violation, the Tommies won the contest by forfeit after the fact, kickstarting an impressive run for St. Thomas over the past month. In other words (and those of Avril Lavigne), it's complicated. However, if the Tommies want to leave Missouri with their fourth straight "W", they will have to contain Emani Bennett, Alayna Contreras and Tamia Ugass, something they did not do back in January. The trio scored 70 of Kansas City's 76 points in the kinda, sorta not really victory, accounting for 92% of the Roos offense.
FIND US OFFENSIVE?: Since January 20, the St. Thomas offense has been on fire. Don't believe us? The Tommies have scored 70+ points in seven consecutive games, averaging 76.7 in that stretch, and four different student-athletes have led the team in scoring. Amber Scalia was the top scorer in four of those contests, while Jade Hill, Jo Langbehn and Sammy Opichka were the top point getters in the other three contests. What caused this offensive turnaround? Improved shooting and shot selection. During this seven game run, the Tommies have converted 196-399 shots for a .491 field goal percentage, which includes a .432 clip from three point range.
SENIOR SPECIAL: This week will be special for St. Thomas' seniors, the first signing class of the DI era. In four years, these six seniors have led the Tommies to new heights, helping set multiple DI era and program records. The class includes Jade Hill, Gabby Johnson, Jordyn Lamker, Phoebe Frentzel, Sammy Opichka and Jo Langbehn, who will be honored and recognized in a short ceremony prior to Saturday's game vs. South Dakota. Entering the weekend, these six seniors have scored 3937 points in four seasons and tallied 1620 rebounds, 844 assists, 453 steals and 163 blocks in 114 combined games played.
FIRST FOR EVERYTHING: This senior class has accomplished a lot of "firsts" in either the DI era or program history. Last weekend, senior forward Jo Langbehn accomplished one of those firsts, becoming the first player to score 1000 points and be credited with 500 rebounds in the DI era. Langbehn is the first and only player to accomplish that feat since 2021 and enters the weekend series against the Roos and Coyotes with 1233 points and 506 rebounds to her name. She ranks 10th all time in career points and top-20 in career rebounds in St. Thomas history.
QUEEN OF THE APPLES: Jade Hill has made her mark on Tommie history in several ways. She is the youngest player in the DI era to score 1000 points, accomplishing the feat in just 78 games with the Purple last season. She currently ranks fourth all-time in career points and could become the first player since 2002 to score 1500 points this upcoming week. Hill also holds the program record, not just the DI era record, in career assists, surpassing the mark in early January. Hill has been credited with 453 helpers in her career with St. Thomas and is the only player in program history to record 1400 points, 450 assists and 170 steals in program history.
THE SAMMY EFFECT: While Jade Hill, Jo Langbehn and Amber Scalia have made headlines often this season, the Tommies unsung hero may be none other than Sammy Opichka. Since returning to the starting line up on January 16, Opichka has helped St. Thomas to a 6-3 record and zero double-digit losses. That's right. With Opichka in the lineup, the Tommies have yet to lose a game by more than 10 points, falling to the Summit League's top-3 teams by one or two possessions max. What makes Opichka so good? She is arguably one of the top defensive players in the Summit League, averaging over 1.0 blocks and steals per game. In fact, the senior is the only player in the Summit League to rank top-15 in the conference in both statistics, as Opichka enters the weekend ranked third in blocks (1.0) and 11th in steals (1.3) per game vs. Summit League opponents.
SPARK PLUG AWARDS: The seniors have provided a much needed spark from the bench in St. Thomas' last three victories. Both Phoebe Frentzel and Jordyn Lamker have played big roles in the Tommies last three victories, scoring a combined 48 points and accounting for 80% of the bench's offensive productivity in that stretch. In the Tommies win over North Dakota last week, Frentzel ranked third on the team in plus/minus, closing the game at +16 while Lamker was +6. Gabby Johnson also made an impact off the bench in St. Thomas' 77-54 win, recording an assist and a steal in the victory.
MAYBE THIS TIME...: Things will be different? Question mark? The Tommies are looking to snap a four game losing skid against South Dakota on Saturday and honor the seniors with a win over the Coyotes at home. St. Thomas has beaten all but two teams in Schoenecker Arena in four years as a Division I team: South Dakota and South Dakota State. With only two home games remaining on the schedule, the Tommies last chance to beat the Coyotes before moving to Lee and Penny Anderson Arena will take place on Saturday. All time, St. Thomas is 1-7 against South Dakota, with the team's lone win coming in Vermillion on January 28, 2023. Earlier this season, the Coyotes delt the Tommies a 77-60 loss, though St. Thomas was without Opichka that game.
SAND OF TIME: First year Alyssa Sand made her starting line up debut in Vermillion earlier this season becoming just the fifth true freshman to start for head coach Ruth Sinn in the Division I era. Of those five, Sand is the only one to score double-digit points in her starting lineup debut, tallying 15 points and nine rebounds against the Coyotes in mid-January. The only other Tommies to even start as true freshmen: Jade Hill (5 points, 1 rebound, 5 assists), Faith Feuerbach (3/1/0), Sammy Opichka (2/2/3) and Jo Langbehn (9/4/0). Not even Amber Scalia started as a true freshman for Sinn, making her first collegiate start as a sophomore last season. Since Sand joined the starting line up, St. Thomas is 5-4 overall and 3-0 in Schoenecker Arena.
The Tommies will open the week on the road, as they travel to Missouri to square off with the Roos for the second time in 2024-25 before returning home to host the Coyotes on Saturday. Saturday's game will serve as Senior Day, as head coach Ruth Sinn honors the first signing class in the Division I era. St. Thomas' six seniors, Jade Hill (Minneapolis, Minn. / South), Gabby Johnson (Freedom, Wis. / Freedom), Jordyn Lamker (Maple Grove, Minn. / Maple Grove), Phoebe Frentzel (Pewaukee, Wis. / Arrowhead), Sammy Opichka (Green Bay, Wis. / Notre Dame Academy) and Jo Langbehn (Elk River, Minn. / Elk River), will be honored in a pregame ceremony, and the Fairly Odd Dogs will perform at halftime.
Both games this week will tipoff at 1:00 p.m., and tickets are still available for Saturday's game in Schoenecker Arena at www.tommiesports.com/tickets. Fans who cannot watch the games in person can watch live on The Summit League Network and follow along via live stats.
LAST TIME OUT: St. Thomas is on a roll. The Tommies won their third straight Summit League contest on Wednesday, earning a commanding 77-54 victory over the North Dakota Fighting Hawks. The secret sauce to St. Thomas' success? Depth. Yes, Jade Hill and Jo Langbehn scored 15+ points in the victory, but Phoebe Frentzel and Jordyn Lamker made major contributions off the bench, propelling the Tommie reserves to a 27 point performance. That proved to be a difference maker in St. Thomas' victory. That and a stingy defense. After North Dakota whittled the lead to 53-45 in the third quarters, the Tommie defense held the Fighting Hawks to just nine fourth quarter points, allowing the home team to truly run away with the victory.
THE OPPOSITION: What a difference one month makes. The Kansas City Roos were the best story in the Summit League to open the conference slate, earning wins over St. Thomas, North Dakota State and South Dakota to open with a 6-3 record. However, since the Roos victory against the Tommies was forfeited, Kansas City has struggled, dropping three of its last four including three straight against Omaha, the Coyotes and Oral Roberts.
WHY YA GOTTA BE SO COMPLICATED: What exactly happened the last time the Tommies and Roos squared off in Summit League play? Technically, and according to the score, Kansas City won, dealing St. Thomas a 76-69 loss on its home court. However, due to a Summit League and NCAA rule violation, the Tommies won the contest by forfeit after the fact, kickstarting an impressive run for St. Thomas over the past month. In other words (and those of Avril Lavigne), it's complicated. However, if the Tommies want to leave Missouri with their fourth straight "W", they will have to contain Emani Bennett, Alayna Contreras and Tamia Ugass, something they did not do back in January. The trio scored 70 of Kansas City's 76 points in the kinda, sorta not really victory, accounting for 92% of the Roos offense.
FIND US OFFENSIVE?: Since January 20, the St. Thomas offense has been on fire. Don't believe us? The Tommies have scored 70+ points in seven consecutive games, averaging 76.7 in that stretch, and four different student-athletes have led the team in scoring. Amber Scalia was the top scorer in four of those contests, while Jade Hill, Jo Langbehn and Sammy Opichka were the top point getters in the other three contests. What caused this offensive turnaround? Improved shooting and shot selection. During this seven game run, the Tommies have converted 196-399 shots for a .491 field goal percentage, which includes a .432 clip from three point range.
SENIOR SPECIAL: This week will be special for St. Thomas' seniors, the first signing class of the DI era. In four years, these six seniors have led the Tommies to new heights, helping set multiple DI era and program records. The class includes Jade Hill, Gabby Johnson, Jordyn Lamker, Phoebe Frentzel, Sammy Opichka and Jo Langbehn, who will be honored and recognized in a short ceremony prior to Saturday's game vs. South Dakota. Entering the weekend, these six seniors have scored 3937 points in four seasons and tallied 1620 rebounds, 844 assists, 453 steals and 163 blocks in 114 combined games played.
FIRST FOR EVERYTHING: This senior class has accomplished a lot of "firsts" in either the DI era or program history. Last weekend, senior forward Jo Langbehn accomplished one of those firsts, becoming the first player to score 1000 points and be credited with 500 rebounds in the DI era. Langbehn is the first and only player to accomplish that feat since 2021 and enters the weekend series against the Roos and Coyotes with 1233 points and 506 rebounds to her name. She ranks 10th all time in career points and top-20 in career rebounds in St. Thomas history.
QUEEN OF THE APPLES: Jade Hill has made her mark on Tommie history in several ways. She is the youngest player in the DI era to score 1000 points, accomplishing the feat in just 78 games with the Purple last season. She currently ranks fourth all-time in career points and could become the first player since 2002 to score 1500 points this upcoming week. Hill also holds the program record, not just the DI era record, in career assists, surpassing the mark in early January. Hill has been credited with 453 helpers in her career with St. Thomas and is the only player in program history to record 1400 points, 450 assists and 170 steals in program history.
THE SAMMY EFFECT: While Jade Hill, Jo Langbehn and Amber Scalia have made headlines often this season, the Tommies unsung hero may be none other than Sammy Opichka. Since returning to the starting line up on January 16, Opichka has helped St. Thomas to a 6-3 record and zero double-digit losses. That's right. With Opichka in the lineup, the Tommies have yet to lose a game by more than 10 points, falling to the Summit League's top-3 teams by one or two possessions max. What makes Opichka so good? She is arguably one of the top defensive players in the Summit League, averaging over 1.0 blocks and steals per game. In fact, the senior is the only player in the Summit League to rank top-15 in the conference in both statistics, as Opichka enters the weekend ranked third in blocks (1.0) and 11th in steals (1.3) per game vs. Summit League opponents.
SPARK PLUG AWARDS: The seniors have provided a much needed spark from the bench in St. Thomas' last three victories. Both Phoebe Frentzel and Jordyn Lamker have played big roles in the Tommies last three victories, scoring a combined 48 points and accounting for 80% of the bench's offensive productivity in that stretch. In the Tommies win over North Dakota last week, Frentzel ranked third on the team in plus/minus, closing the game at +16 while Lamker was +6. Gabby Johnson also made an impact off the bench in St. Thomas' 77-54 win, recording an assist and a steal in the victory.
MAYBE THIS TIME...: Things will be different? Question mark? The Tommies are looking to snap a four game losing skid against South Dakota on Saturday and honor the seniors with a win over the Coyotes at home. St. Thomas has beaten all but two teams in Schoenecker Arena in four years as a Division I team: South Dakota and South Dakota State. With only two home games remaining on the schedule, the Tommies last chance to beat the Coyotes before moving to Lee and Penny Anderson Arena will take place on Saturday. All time, St. Thomas is 1-7 against South Dakota, with the team's lone win coming in Vermillion on January 28, 2023. Earlier this season, the Coyotes delt the Tommies a 77-60 loss, though St. Thomas was without Opichka that game.
SAND OF TIME: First year Alyssa Sand made her starting line up debut in Vermillion earlier this season becoming just the fifth true freshman to start for head coach Ruth Sinn in the Division I era. Of those five, Sand is the only one to score double-digit points in her starting lineup debut, tallying 15 points and nine rebounds against the Coyotes in mid-January. The only other Tommies to even start as true freshmen: Jade Hill (5 points, 1 rebound, 5 assists), Faith Feuerbach (3/1/0), Sammy Opichka (2/2/3) and Jo Langbehn (9/4/0). Not even Amber Scalia started as a true freshman for Sinn, making her first collegiate start as a sophomore last season. Since Sand joined the starting line up, St. Thomas is 5-4 overall and 3-0 in Schoenecker Arena.
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