The St. Thomas Aquinas women's basketball team jumped out to an early lead and cruised to a 91-54 East Coast Conference victory over Mercy College at Aquinas Hall. The Spartans have won 9-of-10 overall and remain in a first-place tie in the ECC with a 9-1 record, while Mercy dropped its 14th straight to fall to 3-17, 0-10. Six scorers hit double-figures for STAC, which is tied with NYIT for the conference's top slot.

Zaria Thomas and Julia Winnik drained three-pointers in the first two minutes of play, touching off a 15-2 explosion over the first 4:05. Thomas struck again from deep to extend the lead to 20-4, and STAC's gap expanded to 28-10 by the end of the quarter. The Spartans scored the first 10 points of the second quarter and the rout was on as the hosts held a commanding 46-24 lead at intermission and cruised from there.

Contributions came from many factions with the balanced scoring attack led by Thomas (14), Ruth Adams (13), Chelsea Murphy (12), Missy Sadler (12), Alexa Huertas (12), and Winnik (10) spreading the wealth. Alexis Lake pace the Mavericks attack, tying for game-high with 14 points, though St. Thomas Aquinas dominated on the boards by a 51-30 margin.

The Spartans hit the road as part of a big three-game stretch, starting at the University of Bridgeport on Saturday, February 2. They then travel for what promises to be a big ECC showdown at NYIT on Wednesday, February 6, before returning to Aquinas Hall for a battle with LIU Post on Saturday, February 9.