SPARKILL, N.Y. – Saint Thomas Aquinas (10-4) won the second half 39-25, including 22-13 in the fourth quarter, to come back and stun the #21/11 Thomas Jefferson University women's basketball team (12-2), 74-68, in non-conference action on Wednesday afternoon.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Rams dominated the start of the contest, posting the first 10 points on the way to a 17-4 advantage with 5:51 left in the opening quarter. Haley Meinel led the way with 13 points. The Spartans then fought back, going on a 14-0 run to jump in front 18-17 at the 3:43 mark. Jefferson clung to a one-point edge (24-23) entering the second quarter.
 
The teams battled back and forth in the second, with the Rams outscoring STAC by just one and holding a 37-35 lead with 2:42 on the clock. Jefferson then scored the last six points of the half to take an eight-point cushion into the break (43-35). The Rams shot 54.1% (20-of-37) over the first two periods.
 
The Spartans were within six (45-39) early in the third before Jefferson tallied six in a row to up the difference to 12 (51-39) with 7:48 remaining. STAC trailed 55-45 at the 3:59 mark before closing the frame with seven in a row to cut the deficit to three (55-52) entering the final quarter.
 
The Spartans carried the momentum into the fourth, scoring the first five points of the stanza. Overall, the 12-0 surge put STAC in front 57-55. The Rams answered with a jumper to tie it up but the Spartans came back with a three-pointer to regain the upper hand. The score was 62-59 before Jefferson netted four straight to go ahead 63-62 with 3:18 to go.
 
The home team drilled a go-ahead three with 2:19 left and the score was 65-63. The Rams responded with a layup to even it up at 65. A STAC jump shot gave the Spartans a 67-65 edge with 1:54 to play. Jefferson then went cold, missing its next four shots as the Rams were unable to respond. In that time, STAC added another jumper and went 3-for-4 at the foul line to build a seven-point margin (72-65) with 14 seconds remaining. Jefferson finally sank a three with nine ticks left to get within four but two more free throws iced the victory for the Spartans.
 
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
Haley Meinel: 18 points, 5 steals, 4 rebounds, 2 assists
Cassie Murphy: 12 points on 6-of-11 shooting, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block, 1 steal
Emma Kuczynski: 12 points on 6-of-10 shooting, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals
Morgan Robinson: 8 points, 10 assists, 6 rebounds, 1 steal
 
JEFFERSON AS A TEAM
FG: 31-of-72 (43.1%)
3PT: 3-of-12 (25.0%)
FT: 3-of-3 (100.0%)
 
NOTES
- The defeat snapped the Rams' seven-game win streak.
- Jefferson shot just 31.4% (11-of-35) in the second half.
- The Rams were sent to the foul line just twice during the game for a total of three free throw attempts.
 
UP NEXT
Jefferson heads to Bridgeport for a CACC game on Saturday, January 7^th at 1 p.m.