The St. Thomas Aquinas College women's basketball team fell to a 79-73 defeat against LIU Post in the East Coast Conference semi-finals at the University of Bridgeport. The Spartans fall to 26-4 on the season and will await word from the NCAA on an at-large bid to this year's tournament, while the Pioneers stay alive at 19-11, advancing to tomorrow's final against either Daemen or NYIT.

Both teams came out firing in a high-energy start but Post carried the momentum to a 25-18 advantage after one quarter. Missy Sadler's layup with 5:49 left in the half brought the Spartans to within 32-28, but Taylah Hudson scored to put the cap on a 6-0 run to end the quarter, giving LIUP a 45-31 gap at halftime.

STAC immediately captured the momentum in the third as a Sadler three-point play narrowed the score to 46-40. Asia Turner answered with a three, but the Spartans rolled off the next 11 straight, with Emily Preston giving her team a 51-49 edge with 4:27 left in the third. The battle was engaged from there with the teams exchanging leads, culminating in the Pioneers holding a 60-59 advantage heading into the final quarter.

Neither team was able to gain any separation in the final session until Shannon Doyle's three gave Post a 74-70 cushion with 1:10 to go. From there, the Pioneers rode foul shooting down the stretch to the upset victory.

Missy Sadler (17 points), Ruth Adams (15), Chelsea Murphy (14) and Emily Preston (10) led the scoring for STAC, while Shannon Doyle posted a game-high 18 for Post.