Rutherford, N.J. - The St. Thomas Aquinas College Women's Basketball team picked up its first win of the 2021-22 season with a 68-63 triumph over Felician University on Saturday afternoon at Job Gymnasium in Rutherford.

Five different Spartans recorded double-figure point totals for the Spartans (1-3), with Angelique Holguin leading the way with 13 points. Julia Reggio, Sarah Ericson and Liliana Kramer also posted an 11-point afternoons, with Chanel Brodeur-Muir chipping in 10 points.

STAC shot 39.3 percent from the field (22-56) on the day, while making 5-of-10 (50%) three-pointers and 19-of-25 (76.0%) free throws. Felician shot 40.0% (24-60) and made only seven of their 13 free throw attempts.

STAC NOTES AND HIGHLIGHTS: 

• Seven different players recorded double-digit minutes in the contest. 
• Sarah Ericson led the Spartans with 5 assists in the game.
• Liliana Kramer made 5 of his 7 field goal attempts on the day, with Julia going 4-for-6.
• The Spartans were 10-28 (35.7%) from the field in the first half and 12-28 (42.9%) in the second half.
• St. Thomas Aquinas picked up 10 steals in the contest, while forcing 26 Felician turnovers.
• The victory is the first for Head Coach Bill Cleary at St. Thomas Aquinas College, and the 270th of his career.

HOW IT HAPPENED:
First quarter

• Felician built a ten-point lead (16-6) with three minutes left in the first quarter, however STAC cut the deficit to three (16-13) by the end of the stanza.
• The Spartans managed to shoot just 5-of-14 in the opening frame, but grabbed 8 boards on the defensive side of the ball.
• Conversely, the Golden Falcons went 7-of-18 in the first and picked up 12 rebounds.
• Sarah Ericson led the Spartans with five points through the first 10 minutes of action.

Second quarter

• The teams traded baskets throughout the second quarter, with no team taking more than a six-point lead (Felician 19-13 at 9:09).
• St. Thomas Aquinas tied the game at 29 all with 40 seconds left in the half, but Felician would get a late free-throw from Briana Lee to take a one-point advantage (30-29) seconds before halftime.
• Sarah Ericson led all Spartan scorers in the stanza with five points and 10 total points through one half of play.
• Felician committed 11 turnovers in the frame.

Third quarter

• STAC outscored Felician 19-9 in the quarter thanks in large part to a trifecta of threes from Julia Reggio and Liliana Kramer, which gave STAC a nine-point margin on the scoreboard at 48-39.
• Reggio led all scorers with six points, while Kramer picked up five points.
• Briana Lee led the way for the Golden Falcons with five points and three rebounds.

Fourth Quarter

• St. Thomas Aquinas extended its lead to 14 (60-46) with just under three minutes to go in the game.
• The host Golden Falcons would chip away at their deficit and make it a three-point game with just three seconds to go.
• Chanel Brodeur-Muir's two free throws put STAC back up by five with two seconds left and STAC would take the game 68-63.
• Angelique Holguin recorded 10 points on 3-of-4 shooting from the field and a perfect 4-for-4 from the foul line in the quarter, with Brodeur-Muir earning seven points, including her two key insurance free throws in the final seconds of the contest.
• Briana Lee led the attempted comeback by Felician with 10 points and six rebounds in the frame.

UP NEXT: St. Thomas Aquinas College hosts Georgian Court University on Tuesday, November 23 in a pre-Thanksgiving matchup at Aquinas Hall. Opening tip is set for 5:30pm in Sparkill.