The St. Thomas Aquinas College women's basketball team opened the 2021 season with a 44-41 setback at the hands of American International College at Aquinas Hall in the season opener for both teams.

With AIC arriving late due to a problem with its team bus, combined with the long layoff, both teams were sluggish in the early going, with the Spartans holding an 8-2 lead at the end of one quarter. A Karolina Jaruseviciute basket gave the hosts their largest lead at 11-5 but the Yellow Jackets closed to 16-14 by intermission on a late hoop by Kayle Robinson.

Destine Perry's three-pointer gave AIC its first lead at 20-18 in the early minutes of the third, but St. Thomas Aquinas reeled off the last seven points of the session to take a 33-30 edge into the final stanza. Back-to-back threes by Robinson and Nyrie Holliman to open the fourth quarter gave the Yellow Jackets and the Spartans played from behind until Alexa Huertas nailed a trey with 1:21 remaining to draw even at 41-41. That was to be the last field goal of the afternoon, as Perry hit three of four from the line in the final 49 seconds, and STAC was unable to get off a final shot before time expired.

Huertas led the way for the home squad with 13 points, Victoria Kurisko snagged a game-high 13 rebounds to go with nine points, and freshman Angie Holguin recorded five blocks while clearing eight caroms. Perry posted a game-high 14 points to lead AIC's comeback win.

These teams will square off in a rematch on Sunday, January 24 at 2:00 pm as STAC travels to American International to close out the home-and-home weekend. The Spartans are slated to return to Aquinas Hall on Wednesday, February 3, taking on Molloy College in a 6:00 pm start for the East Coast Conference opener. Please note that schedules are subject to change so check back frequently, and all home games will be carried live on the Spartan Sports Network.