Amherst, N.Y. - The St. Thomas Aquinas College Women's Basketball team opened a two-game weekend Western New York road trip on Friday evening, visiting Daemen University. An East Coast Conference showdown with standings implications went down to the wire at Lumsden Gymnasium, before the host Wildcats slipped past the Spartans, 68-64.

STAC slips to 14-10 overall and 8-4 in the ECC, while Daemen improves to 15-6 and 10-2. The teams have now split their regular season series, with the Wildcats holding a two-game lead in the standings over the Spartans for first place.

Sarah Ericson led the way for the Spartans, recording a team-high 19 points, along with 19 rebounds, while teammates Erin Leary (14 points) and Trinity Cheatom (13 points) also posted double figures in scoring.

STAC shot 37.1 percent (23-62) from the field, while Daemen shot 37.5 percent (24-64) from the floor.

STAC NOTES AND HIGHLIGHTS:

• Six Spartans logged double-digit minutes in the contest. 
• Sarah Ericson and Trinity Cheatom led the maroon and gold with four assists apiece on the evening.
• Ericson hit 6 of her 16 field goal attempts, with 2-of-8 going in from beyond the arc. She was also 5-for-7 from the charity stripe. Meanwhile, Erin Leary went 5-of-17 from the floor.
• Daemen out-rebounded STAC by a 45-39 margin, with Sarah Ericson grabbing a game-high 19 boards for the Spartans.
• St. Thomas Aquinas picked up five steals, with the Wildcats turning the ball over on 13 separate occasions.
• The Spartans earned advantages in two team statistical categories over Daemen: Points in the Paint (24-22) and Fastbreak Points (8-2).
• The game featured five ties and eight lead changes.
• STAC's largest lead of the contest came with 5:34 remaining in the second quarter, when Spartans led by seven points, 22-15 on a pair of made free throws by Emily Strunk.
• Sarah Ericson led the Spartans first half scoring with eight points.
• Despite being outscored 24-20 in the third quarter, the Spartans shot 41.2 percent (7-of-17) from the field and 80.0 percent from three (4-of-5).
• St. Thomas Aquinas won both the first (14-12) and fourth quarters (16-13).

DAEMEN NOTES AND HIGHLIGHTS:

• Eight Wildcats logged double-digit minutes in the contest. 
• Alahna Paige led her team with a game-high 36 points, while teammate Claire Pikett (14pts) also scored in double digits.
• Julia Hauer led Daemen with four assists on the night.
• Alahna Paige went 11-for-26 from the floor, 7-of-16 from downtown and a perfect 7-for-7 from the foul line.
• Julia Hauer grabbed a team-high 10 boards for the Wildcats.
• Daemen picked up seven steals, with the Spartans turning the ball over on 12 separate occasions.
• The Wildcats earned advantages in two team statistical categories over STAC: Second Chance Points (18-9) and Bench Points (9-6).
• Daemen's largest lead of the contest came with 5:25 remaining in the first quarter, when Wildcats led by nine points, 11-2 on a Claire Pikett made jump shot.
• Alahna Paige led all scorers with 16 first half points for the Wildcats.
• Daemen's best shooting quarter came in the second stanza, as the hosts shot 50.0 percent (7-of-14) from the field and 60.0 percent (3-of-5) from distance.
• The Wildcats won both the second (19-14) and third quarters (24-20).

UP NEXT:

St. Thomas Aquinas visits D'Youville University on Sunday, February 18, with the Spartans and Saints squaring off at 1:00 p.m. inside of the College Center Gym in Buffalo, N.Y.