Hilltoppers fall short in championship, lose to #24 St. Mary’s, 43-37
DENTON, Texas - Sophomore Sara Head tallied her second-consecutive double-double with 14 points and 13 rebounds but that was not enough as St. Edward's fell to #24 St. Mary's, 43-37, Saturday afternoon in the Heartland Conference Championship at the Super Pit.
In a low scoring first half, St. Mary's (24-4) took an 11-6 lead with 8:01 remaining. Natalie Gamez scored four points and Juanita Merchant added a three-pointer during the opening run.
St. Edward's (12-16) was down 16-6, with 4:43 remaining in the first half, but the Hilltoppers used an 8-2 run to close out the half. Senior Jackie Saathoff came off of the bench to score six points, as senior Sara Head was relegated to the bench with foul trouble.
In the second half, Ashton Benford hit a layup on the Rattlers' first possession. After that St. Edward's went on an 8-3 run over the next three minutes to knot the score, 22-22, with 16:18 remaining. Head was key to the run with six points and senior Tammy Bartosh capped off the run with as jumper.
St. Mary's responded with a 13-1 run over the next six minutes to take a 35-23 advantage with 10:16 remaining in the contest. Stephanie Gurnell scored four points which included a three-pointer.
The Hilltoppers were not going away without a fight as they closed the gap to 41-37 with 47 seconds remaining, but Gamez closed the game out with two free-throws.
Head was only 3-of-14 from the field but was 8-of-9 from the charity stripe. Junior Whitney Regian and Bartosh both pulled down seven rebounds.
Gamez led the Rattlers with 15 points, while Mallory Moeller added seven points and 11 rebounds.
St. Edward's ends its season with a 12-16 record and a third-place regular-season finish in the Heartland Conference. They also advanced to the Heartland Conference Tournament Championship for the first time.
All-Tournament Team
Natalie Gamez, St. Mary's (MVP)
Rachel Jones, St. Mary's
Ashton Benford, St. Mary's
Alesheia White, St. Edward's
Sara Head, St. Edward's
Hayley Harvey, Incarnate Word
Megan Hamilton, Panhandle State