The Thiel College women's basketball squad suffered a 59-57 loss to Saint Vincent College Wednesday evening at Beeghly Gymnasium.
Saint Vincent (8-14) was led by Laura Klimchock's 19 point, seven rebound effort. Maria Maroffio added 10 points and five rebounds in 31 minutes off of the bench. The Bearcats shot 33.8 percent (23-68) from the floor and hit just 2-of-13 three-point chances.
Sophomore guard Jasmin Jones (Pittsburgh/Wilkinsburg) (Pittsburgh/Wilkinsburg) led the Tomcats with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Junior guard Jena Cook (Brookville, Pa./Brookville) (Brookville/Brookville) added 10 points and three rebounds while junior guard Catie Sieber (Glenshaw, Pa./North Hills) (Glenshaw/North Hills) tallied nine points, five assists and a career-high 11 rebounds. The Tomcats shot 31.3 percent (20-64) from the floor and 20.0 percent (4-20) from three-point range while converting on 13-of-18 (72.2%) free throws. Thiel also finished with a 51-40 advantage on the glass.
Thiel jumped out to an early 12-6 lead before a 13-6 Saint Vincent run put the visitors out in front 19-18 with just over three minutes to go in the first. Sieber's three-pointer with 20 seconds to go in the opening period was the final points of the half and the teams went into the break tied at 25-25.
Senior forward Elysa Farrell (Greenville/Kennedy Catholic)'s (Greenville/Kennedy Catholic) layup with just over six minutes to play gave the Tomcats a 50-46 advantage. A 6-0 Bearcat run, capped by a Klimchock layup with 4:40 remaining, put the visitors in front 52-50. A pair of free throws from freshman forward Kim Stitt (Hermitage/Hickory) (Hermitage/Hickory) with 1:32 to go tied the game at 56-56 before Kathy Bianco's layup with 1:05 remaining gave Saint Vincent a 58-56 lead. Cook converted on 1-of-2 free throws with 51 seconds to play to cut Saint Vincent's lead to one, 58-57, but Caryn Glassbrenner hit on 1-of-2 free throws with three seconds left to put the Bearcats in front 59-57.
The Tomcats will return to Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) action on Saturday, Feb. 16 when they travel to Westminster College. Tipoff is scheduled for 2 p.m.
