SPARKILL, N.Y. – 11 members of the Concordia College (N.Y.) women's basketball team scored at least one point on Saturday afternoon at St. Thomas Aquinas, with the bench scoring the majority of the Clippers' points in a 93-50 setback to the host Spartans.
NOTES
• Concordia drops to 2-8.
• St. Thomas improves to 9-1
STANDOUT PERFORMERS
• Junior guard Nicole Nicholson (Staten Island, N.Y.) scored a team-best 14 points.
• Sophomore forward Jordyn Hornbuckle (Hopkinsville, Ky.) pulled down a team-high nine boards.
• Sophomore guard Saundra Cleckley (Queens, N.Y.) recorded three steals
• For St. Thomas Aquinas, Zaria Thomas and Julia Winnik both scored 14 with Winnik adding five assists while Ruth Adams recorded eight rebounds.
HOW IT HAPPENED
• STAC began the contest with the opening six points before a junior center Amiya Rankins (Somerset, N.J.) basket put Concordia on the scoreboard and made it 6-2 with 8:31 left in the quarter. Sophomore guards Cameron Corbett (Staten Island, N.Y.) and Jackie Ciccotto (Staten Island, N.Y.) plus Nicholson all scored for the Clippers in the opener quarter, with the hosts holding a 41-8 advantage heading into the second frame.
• After a Spartans' basket kicked off the second quarter, Concordia responded with three-straight free throws from sophomore forward Sabrina Clement (Queens, N.Y.) and Nicholson to make it 43-11 with 8:27 to go in the half. The hosts countered with a 9-0 run before a freshman guard Sara Hopkins (Mountain Top, Pa.) triple made it 52-14 with 3:49 to play in the half. STAC ended the frame on a 11-4 run with Rankins and Nicholson scoring for Concordia to create a 63-18 halftime score.
• Concordia cut into the separation with an 18-9 stretch to start the third frame with Hornbuckle, freshman forward Rhona McCaughey (Maspeth, N.Y.), Nicholson, Hopkins and Cleckley all contributing to make it 72-36 with 2:19 remaining in the third quarter. STAC ended the rally with a triple, adding a jump shot to their total before the quarter while Concordia got one free throw from McCaughey to make it 77-37.
• The Spartans began the final frame with the opening six points before a freshman guard Faith Hernandez (Queens, N.Y.) basket made it 83-39 with 5:38 to go. Hornbuckle, Nicholson, McCaughey, Hopkins and redshirt-freshman guard Caitlin Thompson (Bronx, N.Y.) all scored for Concordia in the final stanza.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
• The Clippers converted on 16-53 shots, going 4-15 from three-point territory and 14-20 from the free throw line.
• St. Thomas Aquinas finished 38-70 from the field, 10-20 from distance and 7-14 from the free throw line.
• Concordia dished out two assists versus 23 for the visitors.
• Concordia committed 27 turnovers, resulting in 31 points for STAC. The Spartans committed 19 turnovers, leading to eight points.
• STAC held a 47-32 advantage in rebounds.
• Concordia' bench scored 26 points while St. Thomas Aquinas got 53 from its bench.
• Concordia recorded eight steals while STAC stole the ball 16 times with one block.
UP NEXT
Concordia heads to Southern Conn. State on Wednesday, Dec. 19 for a non-conference clash starting at 12:00 p.m.
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