(GREENVILLE, Pa.) - Junior guard Katie Kitchen (Alexandria, Ky./Campbell County) scored a season-high and a game-high 22 points to lead the 10th-ranked Thomas More College women's basketball team to an, 80-54, win over Thiel College today (Saturday, January 5, 2013) in a Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) game at Beeghly Gymnasium in Greenville, Pennsylvania.
With the win, the Saint improve to 12-1 overall and remain undefeated in the PAC at 6-0. With the loss, the Tomcats fall to 2-11 overall and 1-5 in the PAC.
Thomas More jumped out to an early 22-7 lead when senior guard Jill Brunsman (Cincinnati, Ohio/Mother of Mercy) made a lay-up with 11:07 to play in the first half. Thiel answered with a 6-2 run to cut the lead to 24-13 with 7:19 to play in the half when Kelly Barzak made a lay-up. The Saints responded with a 9-2 run capped by a lay-up by freshman forward Alexa Santamaria (Cincinnati, Ohio/Mother of Mercy) to extend the lead to 33-15 with 4:38 to play in the opening half. The Tomcats cut the lead to 35-22 with 2:39 to play in the half when Leanna Yeager capped a 7-2 run with a lay-up. Thomas More closed out the half on a 6-4 run to take a 41-26 lead at halftime when freshman guard Kiley Bartels (Southgate, Ky./Newport Central Catholic) made a jumper with 50-seconds to play in the half.
The Saints opened the second half on an 18-11 run to increase the lead to 59-37 on a Santamaria lay-up with 13:35 to play in the game. Thiel cut the lead to 59-40 at the 11:36 mark of the second half when Barzak made one-of-two free-throws. Thomas More answered with a 14-6 run to extend the lead to 73-46 with 5:50 to play in the game when senior guard Allison Long (Hebron, Ky./Conner) made a lay-up. Thiel closed out the game on an 8-7 run, but it wasn't enough as Thomas More won the game, 80-54.
Kitchen was joined in double-figure scoring as Long had 17 points and sophomore forward Jenny Burgoyne (Cincinnati, Ohio/McAuley) finished with 10 points. Burgoyne had a double-double in the game as she led the team on the boards with 10 rebounds and Long just missed a double-double as she led the team in assists with nine and also led the team in steals with six.
Thomas More returns to the friendly confines of the Connor Convocation Center on Wednesday (January 9) as it hosts Westminster College at 5:30 p.m.
