Thursday, February 1 • Texas A&M International • 5:30 p.m.
#RV Texas A&M International (17-4, 9-4)
Head Coach: Nate Vogel (71-54)
at St. Mary's (3-15, 3-9)
Head Coach: Valerie Huizar (52-56)
Arena: Bill Greehey
Saturday, February 3 • Texas A&M Kingsville (Youth Day) • 1 p.m.
Texas A&M Kingsville (8-12, 4-9)
Head Coach: Michael Madrid (55-62)
at St. Mary's (3-15, 3-9)
Head Coach: Valerie Huizar (52-56)
Arena: Bill Greehey
Opening Tip
• As the calendar flips to February, the St. Mary's Women's Basketball team returns home to start the second half of Lone Star Conference play, hosting Texas A&M International and Texas A&M Kingsville.
• The Dustdevils are in sixth place in the Lone Star standings headed into the final month of competition. TAMIU defeated the Rattlers 71-54 in the first meeting this season and have now won five straight in the series. StMU still holds a commanding 24-11 lead in the all-time meetings and they are 13-4 at home.
• Freshman Vani Sancho led the Rattlers in the first meeting against TAMIU with 13 points - including scoring all eight of the team's points in the second quarter. Taylor Haggan had seven rebounds and Teanna Huggins six assists in a sloppy game that featured 58 combined turnovers.
• Texas A&M Kingsville makes its second trip to Bill Greehey Arena after the Javelinas won the St. Mary's Thanksgiving Classic. TAMUK edged the Rattlers 64-56 in the first meeting to win its fourth-straight in the series and extend the all-time lead to 31-28.
• Stina Svilberg notched the first double-double of her career at TAMUK in the first meeting with 10 points and 10 rebounds. Taylor Haggan tied for game-high honors, scoring 11. The difference in the game happened at the free throw line, as the Rattlers didn't attempt one in the second half and finished 3-for-5 in the game, while the Javelinas were 15-for-18 as StMU was whistled for twice as many fouls as TAMUK.
• For the first time since Dec. 8, 2018, the Rattlers had two players hit the 20-point scoring milestone in the same game when both Taylor Haggan and Ariah Powell tallied 21 at Angelo State on Thursday. That contest was also against Angelo State as Kaitlin Walla scored 23 and Soteria Banks scored 20 in a 70-64 win.
• Stina Svilberg led the Rattlers in scoring for the first time when she scored 12 at UT Permian Basin. Svilberg has scored 12 in each of the last three. Since moving to the starting lineup eight games ago, Svilberg has averaged 8.75 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.38 assists per game. Prior to starting, she was averaging only 1.80 points, 3.0 rebounds and 0.4 assists.
• Senior Ariah Powell has hit at least one three-pointer in the last nine games and has hit two in six of those nine. The nine game streak ties the longest of the season on the team.
• Taylor Haggan ranks second in the Lone Star Conference in freshman scoring and is one point off the led by St. Ed's Janiah Perkins. Perkins has 261 points (14.50/gm), while Haggan has 260 (14.44/gm).
• Several Rattlers are closing in on career milestones or recently achieved one:
Reyelle Frazier: 17 rebounds from 100
Taylor Haggan: 40 points from 300
Teanna Huggins: 23 points from 400
Michaela Kucera: 8 rebounds shy of 100; 15 points shy of 100
Ariah Powell: 32 points shy of 400; 50th 3-ptr vs UTPB (50)
Ramsey Robledo: 4 3-ptrs shy of 25
Natalia Ryng: 45 points shy of 400
• Taylor Haggan has scored 20 or more points six times this season, which is the second-most 20-point games by a freshman in the school's Division II history. Erin Griffin did so seven times in 2000-01, while Soteria Banks accomplished the feat five times in 2017-18.
• St. Mary's has already faced seven teams this season who are currently ranked or receiving votes, or who were at the time of the game. There are three more ranked foes on the calendar in February during the second round of East Division play.
• The four freshmen on the team are responsible for 45.1 percent (476 points) of the team's scoring this season, while the six in the senior class are scoring another 40.9 percent (432 points).
• Freshman Taylor Haggan currently ranks 10th in the Lone Star Conference in scoring, averaging 14.4 points per game. She is also 10th in rebounds, averaging 7.0 a contest and eighth in field goal percentage, shooting 48.0%.
• Senior Teanna Huggins ranks ninth in the Lone Star Conference averaging 3.4 assists per game. Six times this year she's recorded five or more assists in a game, including tying her season-high with seven on Thursday at Angelo State.
• The win at Eastern New Mexico on Dec. 2 marked the 50th in the career of head coach Valerie Huizar. It is her fourth season as a head coach, and second at St. Mary's.
• The Rattlers beat a Division I foe in an exhibition game for the second-straight year, winning 70-64 at UTRGV on Nov 4. A season ago, the Gold and Blue won a thrilling 66-65 decision at Sam Houston State on a last second three-pointer.
• Freshman forward Taylor Haggan has already put herself among the elite at St. Mary's. She became the first-ever freshman to record double-doubles in her first two collegiate games.
• The Rattlers are now 7-46 since joining the Division II ranks against nationally-ranked foes. The last win against a team in the top-25 came on Nov. 23, 2018 against #1 Central Missouri in double overtime, 101-97.
• All seven returners on the team were named to the Lone Star Conference Commissioner's Honor Roll for the spring semester, carrying a minimum GPA of 3.30 for the semester. Michaela Kucera, Alexis Robinson and Natalia Ryng also earned D2 ADA Academic Achievement Awards for having a 3.5 minimum cumulative GPA.
