AVE MARIA, Fla. - The Ave Maria University women's basketball team could not dig themselves out of a first half hole on Tuesday evening, suffering a 62-44 defeat at the hands of the Bobcats of St. Thomas University at the Rhodora J. Donahue Academy gymnasium. Ave Maria played an even second half with the second place team in The Sun Conference, but could not rally from an 18-point first half hole.
The Bobcats and the Gyrenes traded the first seven baskets of the game, with the deficit bouncing between two-point STU leads (2-0, 4-2, 6-4, and 8-6) and ties (2-2, 4-4, and 6-6.) St. Thomas proceeded to build a seven-point lead with a 7-0 run, taking a 13-6 lead before a layup from Monica Behrend cut the Bobcats' lead back to 13-8 entering the second quarter.
St. Thomas' second quarter proved to be the difference in the game, as the Bobcats outscored the Gyrenes 17-4. STU's surge included a 10-0 run that pushed the Bobcat lead from 19-10 to 29-10. AMU's two field goals in the second quarter were provided by Syanne Rowe and Taylor Allen. The STU run in the second quarter allowed the Bobcats to take a 30-12 lead into the halftime break.
In the third quarter, AMU made two three-pointers in the first three minutes of the quarter to cut STU's lead back to 12 points. That would prove to be the closest the Gyrenes would get for the remainder of the game, as the Bobcats immediately responded with a 12-0 run to increase the edge to 24 points. AMU was able to close the quarter on a 7-2 run, getting the STU lead back to 18 points at 47-29.
Ave Maria ended on a high note on Saturday, finishing the game on a 10-0 run that cut St. Thomas' lead down from a game high of 28 points. Rowe and Catie Reszel both scored four points in the final four minutes of the game, which would prove to be the best stretch for the home team.
Rowe and Behrend did much of the scoring, as the pair combined for 31 of Ave Maria's 44 points. Rowe posted her sixth double-double of the season with 18 points and 13 rebounds, while Behrend added 13 points. St. Thomas' leading scorer was Brooke Bogatz, who scored 16 points. Anari Dozier (13) and Gianni Domond (11) were also in double figures for the Bobcats.
Two more games remain for the Gyrenes in the regular season, with the home finale scheduled for Thursday evening. Ave Maria will host first place Southeastern University at the Rhodora J. Donahue Academy gymnasium, with tipoff scheduled for 5:30 p.m. The season finale is set for Saturday afternoon, when the Gyrenes travel to West Palm Beach for a meeting with the Seahawks of Keiser University.
