11th Thanksgiving Classic on Tap for Women's Basketball

This Week in Rattlers Basketball
Friday, November 28 • 6 p.m.
#RV Washburn (3-1, 0-0)
Head Coach: Lora Westling (160-157)
at St. Mary's (3-0, 0-0)
Head Coach: Valerie Huizar (72-77)
Broadcast: FloCollege • Play-by-Play: Dan Hawkins

Saturday, November 29 • 4 p.m.
Oklahoma Baptist (3-1, 0-0)
Head Coach: Bo Overton (92-118)
at St. Mary's (3-0, 0-0)
Head Coach: Valerie Huizar (72-77)
Broadcast: FloCollege • Play-by-Play: Dan Hawkins

 

Thanksgiving Classic: The St. Mary's Women's Basketball team hosts the 11th Thanksgiving Classic on Friday and Saturday, welcoming Oklahoma Baptist, Texas A&M-Kingsville and Washburn to town. The Ichabods are the only first-time team in the four-team tournament, as the Javelinas are 4-2 after competing in each of the last three tournaments, while this is the third-straight appearance for the Bison.

Final Two: St. Mary's is one of only two undefeated teams remaining in the Lone Star Conference, joining No. 6 Lubbock Christian, which is 7-0. The 3-0 start for the Rattlers is the first since the 2012-13 team also won its first three games of the season. That team finished 22-7 and won the Heartland Conference Championship.

First to Twenty: Junior guard Allie Garcia became the first Rattler this season to top the 20-point scoring milestone, leading the team with 21 points in the one-point win against Western Colorado. Garcia scored 12 of her 21 points in the fourth quarter, including back-to-back deep three-pointers to regain the lead with 4:17 remaining, and the Rattlers held on for the victory.

History with Washburn: The Ichabods, who are receiving votes in the WBCA Poll, hold a 1-0 lead in the all-time series, knocking the Rattlers out of the 2006 NCAA South Central Region Tournament with a dominant 92-58 win. The 2025-26 team is currently 3-1 and has won its last three games after falling 73-61 in the season opener to St. Cloud State.

History with Oklahoma Baptist: The Rattlers hold a 3-1 advantage in the series with the Bison, and all four meetings have come inside Bill Greehey Arena. St. Mary's won 64-59 a season ago after losing 67-56 in 2023. This is the third-straight year the Bison have competed in the StMU Thanksgiving Classic.

Taking Care of the Ball: Junior guard Andrea Montesinos currently ranks 11th in the nation and leads the Lone Star Conference with a 3.67 assist-to-turnover ratio. Montesinos leads the team with 11 assists and has turned the ball over only three times in 84 minutes. The Rattlers have done a much better job of keeping the ball this season, averaging 13 turnovers per game, compared to 19.7 a year ago.

Three for Three: In all three games this season the Rattlers have had a different newcomer lead the team in scoring. Junior Brianna Vargas led the team with 15 points in the win at South Dakota School of Mines, senior transfer Aina Maynou scored 15 in the win at Black Hills State and junior guard Allie Garcia paced the team with 21 points in the home-opener victory against Western Colorado. The five newcomers on the team who have played account for 42 percent of the team's scoring, while the eight returners with action have scored the other 58 percent of the points.

Keeping It Close: St. Mary's has won all three games by a combined eight points, keeping fans on the edges of their seats until the final buzzer. The Rattlers defense is allowing only 57.7 points per game, which ranks 66th in the nation.

Balanced Attack: The five starters for the Rattlers this season are all averaging between 7.0 and 11.7 points per game, led by junior guard Allie Garcia with 11.7. Sophomore forward Christin Callens is also averaging double figures with 10.3 per contest, and sophomore forward Raynne Malik leads the team with 10.0 rebounds a night.

It's An Honor: Sophomore forward Raynne Malik was named the Lone Star Conference Defensive Player of the Week for the second time in her career. Malik blocked a last-second three-point attempt at Black Hills State to secure the road win ending the week with seven blocked shots and double figures in rebounds in each game with 10 at South Dakota School of Mines and 13 at BHSU. 

Middle of the Pack: St. Mary's has been selected to finish in the middle of the pack in the Lone Star Conference this season, getting voted 10th in the 17-team league. The usual suspects topped the poll in Texas Woman's (20 first-place votes, 810 points), Lubbock Christian (14, 776), UT Tyler (8, 761) and West Texas A&M (6, 663). Eastern New Mexico rounded out the top five with two first-place nods and 657 points. The Rattlers grabbed 438 points for 10th in the poll. 

Returning Firepower: The Rattlers return 83.8 percent of its scoring and 82.5 percent of its rebounding from the 2024-25 team, as the team brings back nine letterwinners from a team that finished with a 14-14 record. Six of the nine returners started 10 or more games last year, including Christin Callens who started all 28, Raynne Malik who started 24 of the 27 she played and Imani Ivery, who was in the starting lineup 21 times in her 26 contests.

Welcome Newcomers: In addition to adding a pair of Lone Star Conference transfers in senior guard Aina Maynou (Texas A&M-Kingsville) and sophomore guard Peyton Stellato (Angelo State), the Rattlers welcome Franklin Pierce sophomore transfer Cornelia Petersson, junior college transfers Allie Garcia (Williston State) and Brianna Vargas (Midland), as well as freshman guard Emily Buitron from Laredo. In six games at Bill Greehey Arena, Maynou has averaged 4.8 points, 2.2 rebounds and 2.5 assists while playing for the Javelinas, while Stellato had eight points, three rebounds and two assists last season for the Rambelles.