The St. Thomas Aquinas College women's basketball team topped Pace University by a 62-48 score, as Jenna Erickson's game-high 27 points included her 1,000th career tally. The Lady Spartans, ranked #6 in the most recent East Regional poll, improved to 10-3 on the season while dropping Pace to 8-6.

Both teams showed the expected post-layoff rust early, with a 4-4 tie through over six minutes being broken by Sam Burden's three-pointer, giving the Lady Spartans their first lead. Erickson, who entered the game with 999 career points, did not score until the final minute of the quarter, eliciting a rousing ovation from the Aquinas Hall faithful and giving her team an 11-6 lead.

From there, Erickson caught fire, scoring 14 of STAC's next 18 points on the strength of four treys, as the Lady Spartans extended their margin to 30-19 by half. Pace quickly responded in the third, scoring the first seven points to draw to within 30-26, but another Erickson three put an exclamation point on a 49-37 lead through three.

Pace was never able to draw closer than eight in the final session, as the tenacious STAC defense held the visitors to just 11 points. Highlighting that defensive effort was the stellar play of Adiya Henderson, who finished with game highs of 11 points and six blocks. Alexandra Monteleone led the way for the Setters with a team-high 14 points.

The Lady Spartans will have a quick turnaround, returing to Aquinas Hall tomorrow, Saturday, December 31, to host nearby rival Nyack in a noon start. That game will precede the men's contest against Bloomfield, starting at approximately 2:00 pm