SAN ANTONIO – After a rough first quarter, the St. Mary's Women's Basketball team out-scored Texas A&M-Kingsville by six, but it wasn't enough to overcome the 19-0 run the Javelinas started with, and they fell 60-45 on Saturday afternoon.
The Rattlers (1-5, 1-5 Lone Star Conference) out-rebounded the Javelinas (4-4, 4-4 Lone Star) 36-to-32 thanks in part to a season-high tying 11 from senior
Audrey Wandji (Houston). Sophomore
Natalia Ryng (Gdynia, Poland) and senior
Hannah Wilson (Fredericksburg, Texas) grabbed eight and seven, respectively.
Wilson also led all scorers with a season-high 18 points and she was the only Rattler to hit double figures in that category. Senior
Mya Culiver (Rockwall, Texas) tallied a career-best seven assists and Ryng had her first blocked shot of the season.
After shooting just 11.1 percent in the first quarter, the Blue & Gold bounced back to shoot 38.6 percent over the next three periods, including 57.1 percent in the third stanza.
The Javelinas were led by Mia Cherry with 11 points, while Janessa Payne chipped in 10 as the teams split the regular season series.
The differing styles between the two teams were on display as St. Mary's scored 28 of its 45 points in the paint, while Texas A&M-Kingsville scored 33 of its 60 from beyond the arc.
St. Mary's remains at home to host Angelo State on Friday, Jan. 22 and Saturday, Jan. 23. The games are scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. and 3 p.m., respectively.
INDIVIDUAL PLAYER & TEAM NOTES
- Senior Mya Culiver notched a career-best seven assists on the afternoon. Twice before in her career she's tallied six.
- Senior Audrey Wandji tied her season-high with 11 rebounds, missing her career mark by just one. She grabbed the 11 boards in under 18 minutes as she struggled with foul trouble throughout.
- Senior Hannah Wilson scored a season-high 18 points, bettering her previous best of 14 at Texas A&M-Commerce (Jan. 3).
- Sophomore Briley Perkins (Houston) extended her streak of games with at least one three-pointer to 12, as she was 1-for-3 from beyond the arc.
- St. Mary's scored 28 points in the paint and 12 second chance points on the afternoon.
