ODESSA, Texas – Despite holding Texas-Permian Basin to 29 rebounds and under 40 percent shooting, the St. Mary's Women's Basketball team couldn't get over the hump, dropping a 70-63 decision in Odessa on Saturday afternoon.
The Rattlers (0-8) starting forwards both scored in double digits as senior forward
Hannah Wilson (Fredericksburg, Texas) posted her fifth double-double of the year with a game-high 22 points and 15 rebounds, while freshman
Faith Phillips (San Marcos, Texas) added 11 points.
Wilson entered the game needing five blocks for 100 in her career, and she managed all of them in the first quarter and ended the game with five. It is a career-high in swats for the super senior, as she has tallied four on three other occasions.
Junior
Tonia Bilic (Zagreb, Croatia) continued to spark the team off the bench, grabbing a season-high eight rebounds, while both junior guard
Sydney Hardeman (Allen, Texas) and freshman guard Sarai Estupiñan (Cedar Park, Texas) tied for the team lead with three assists.
Both Holly Hemmeline and Alexus Wykoff scored 14 points to lead the Falcons, while Alexus Quaadman came off the bench to lead the way with eight rebounds.
The Falcons grabbed nine of the first 10 rebounds in the contest, but the Rattlers out-rebounded them 17-8 over the remainder of the half to enter the locker room with an 18-17 edge. In the second half, the Gold & Blue dominated on the boards, out-rebounding UTPB 26-12. It marks the fourth-straight game the Rattlers have won the battle of the boards.
Phillips scored the first four points of the game for the Rattlers, and after the Falcons took a 10-4 lead, the Rattlers answered with a 13-2 run and led 17-14 at the end of the first quarter. It is the first time all season, the Gold & Blue have had the advantage after the first 10 minutes. The Rattler defense held the Falcons without a field goal the final 4:38 of the stanza.
UTPB scored the first six points of the second quarter to regain the lead, 20-17, but a Perkins three-pointer tied the score for the third time. After the teams traded baskets, the Falcons used a 9-2 run to gain a six-point advantage, 31-25. The Rattlers called a timeout but the next three possessions also resulted in turnovers, allowing UTPB to stretch the lead to 10, 35-25. After a three-pointer by the Falcons, Wilson ended the half with back-to-back layups for the 38-29 tally.
The pace of play was much faster in the third quarter as the teams hit a combined five three-pointers in succession before the media break. StMU cut the deficit to three, 48-45 on a cutting layup by Phillips who received a terrific pass from Bilic. UTPB scored the next four to extend the lead back to seven, 52-45. Wilson scored the next four to again pull the Rattlers within three, 52-49. UTPB made three of four at the free throw line, while StMU was one of two over the final 1:14 for the 55-50 tally.
The scoring slowed back down for the fourth quarter and the clubs combined for only 10 points in the first five minutes, 61-54. StMU scored four of the next six over the next two-and-a-half minutes to trim the edge to five, 63-58. Back-to-back layups kept the deficit at five for the Rattlers. After one UTPB free throw, Wilson sank a pair to bring StMU within four, 66-62. The Falcons made both free throws and a layup off the steal sealed the deal for the Falcons, 70-62. Hardeman made one free throw after an intentional foul by UTPB for the 70-63 final.
St. Mary's remains on the road for a non-league tilt against Angelo State on Monday. Game time is set for 11 a.m., the earliest start time for the Rattlers in a decade. The RamBelles won their first game of the season with a 72-59 decision over St. Edward's on Saturday afternoon.
INDIVIDUAL PLAYER & TEAM NOTES
- Senior forward Hannah Wilson blocked the 100th shot of her career, tallying a career-high five blocks – all in the first quarter. Wilson becomes the fourth player in St. Mary's history with 100 or more swats, and the first since All-American Morgan Pullins (2011-2015).
- St. Mary's has now out-rebounded each of the last four opponents as they won the battle of the boards 44-29 over UTPB. The Rattlers now have a +4.8 rebounding margin to rank fourth in the Lone Star Conference.
- Wilson's 15 rebounds in the game also give her 950 for her career. She needs 15 more to tie Pullins for second on the St. Mary's charts and 50 to become only the second player in school history with 1,000 (1,020, Kiara Etheridge, 2013-2017).
- The Rattlers shot 84.2 percent from the free throw line in the game (16-for-19), the highest percentage of the season.
- Senior forward Christina Baker (Mansfield, Texas) made her return to action on Saturday. It's the first time she's played since the 2019-20 season finale against Texas A&M Commerce in the Lone Star Championship.
