Sparkill, N.Y. - The St. Thomas Aquinas College Women's Basketball team dropped a hard-fought 65-55 East Coast Conference matchup with Daemen University on Sunday afternoon at Aquinas Hall Gymnasium.

STAC falls to 2-8 overall and 1-3 in ECC action, while Daemen improves to 8-1 and 4-0.

Bailey Chapman led the maroon and gold offense with 13 points. Meanwhile, Sophie Auer led all Wildcats players in scoring with a game-high 17 points.

STAC shot 33.9 percent (20-59) from the field, while UDC shot 45.8 percent (22-48) from the floor.

STAC NOTES AND HIGHLIGHTS:

• Seven Spartans logged double-digit minutes in the contest.
• Bailey Chapman, Jona Kabashi, Toni Schuetze and Cassidy Mahaney led the maroon and gold with three assists apiece on the afternoon.
• Chapman hit 4 of her 12 field goal attempts and 4-of-6 free throws. 
• Daemen out-rebounded STAC by a slim 37-35 margin, with Angela Williams grabbing a team-high eight boards for the Spartans.
• St. Thomas Aquinas picked up ten steals, with the Wildcats turning the ball over on 23 separate occasions.
• The Spartans earned advantages in three team statistical categories over Daemen: Points off Turnovers (19-17), Fastbreak Points (9-6) and Bench Points (15-4).
• St. Thomas Aquinas held its largest lead of the game (two points) with just under five minutes to play in the second quarter, 25-23, on a Toni Schuetze layup.
• The game featured six ties and two lead changes.
• St. Thomas Aquinas trailed Daemen, 28-26 at the half and shot 33.3 percent (9-27) from the field, 71.4 percent (5-7) from three-point and 75.0 percent (3-4) from the foul line.
• Cassidy Mahaney led all Spartans' scorers with eight first half points, while shooting 50.0 percent (2-for-4) from the field, 66.7 percent (2-for-3) from beyond the arc and 100.0 percent (2-for-2) from the foul line.
• St. Thomas Aquinas' best shooting quarter came in the final frame, with the Spartans shooting 46.7 percent (7-15) from the field and 50.0 percent (3-6) from three. 

DAEMEN NOTES AND HIGHLIGHTS:

• Seven Wildcats logged double-digit minutes in the contest. 
• Sophie Auer paced Daemen's offense with 17 points, while teammates Ne'vaeh Buntley (16 points), Claire Pikett (13 points) and Cecilia Lapertosa (10 points) also scored in double digits.
• Joline Raposo led Daemen with four assists on the day.
• Auer went 8-for-11 from the floor, with Buntley hitting 5-of-13 field goal attempts, 3-of-7 three pointers and 3-of-6 foul shots.
• Buntley and Pikett also grabbed a game-high nine boards apiece for the Wildcats.
• Daemen picked up 13 steals, with the Spartans turning the ball over on 25 separate occasions.
• The Wildcats earned advantages in two team statistical categories over St. Thomas Aquinas: Second Chance Points (11-1) and Points in the Paint (30-22)
• Daemen had its largest lead of the game (14 points) with just under a minute to play in the fourth quarter, 65-51, on a Ne'vaeh Buntley layup.
• Ne'vaeh Buntley led all Wildcats' scorers at the half with eight points, while shooting 33.3 percent (3-of-9) from the floor and 40.0 percent (2-of-5) from three.
• Daemen's best shooting quarter came in the opening stanza, with the Wildcats shooting 50.0 percent (8-16) from the field and 62.5 percent (5-8) from the three-point line.

UP NEXT:

STAC heads to Vermont for a Wednesday afternoon (December 17) non-conference tilt with St. Michael's College. Opening tip between the Spartans and Purple Knights is set for 2:00 p.m. at the Ross Sports Center in Colchester.