(CAMPBELLSVILLE, Ky.) – The top-ranked Thomas More women's basketball team dropped their first game of the 2022-23 season Saturday afternoon to the No. 3 ranked Campbellsville University Tigers on the road, 70-59.
The Saints now sit at 22-1 overall this season and 16-1 in the Mid-South Conference.
- Senior Courtney Hurst (Burlington, Ky./Conner) got things started off with a bang for the Saints, hitting a three-pointer just 27 seconds into the contest. However, three points would be the largest lead Thomas More held in a back-and-forth first quarter.
- After a Rachel Martin (Cincinnati, Ohio/Summit Country Day) layup made it 10-7, the Tigers ended the quarter on an 8-3 run to give them a 15-13 lead.
- The Saints took an early advantage in the second quarter, with a 7-2 stretch giving them a 20-17 lead. Senior Emily Simon (Hilliard, Ohio/Hilliard Davidson) scored five points during this run.
- With 5:40 remaining, Thomas More held a one-point 23-22 lead. Campbellsville then exploded for a 13-2 rally to give them their largest lead of the game to this point at 35-25.
- The Saints would battle back over the final minute as a pair of layups from Simon and Zoie Barth (Fort Thomas, Ky./Highlands) sent them to the locker room trailing 35-29.
- The Saints came out of the gates strong in the third quarter, tying the game at 40-40 after just four minutes in the quarter. The 11-5 flurry was fueled by six Barth points, all on layups.
- The Tigers didn't blink though and ripped off a 12-4 run to end the quarter and put them up 52-44 heading to the final period.
- A Barth layup with 8:50 to play got the Saints within six points in the fourth, but that was as close as they would get, with the Tigers doing a great job of keeping the Saints at bay in their victory.
- Barth tied her season-high with 22 points against the Tigers, the other 22-point performance coming at Shawnee State University on Dec. 10, 2022. She knocked down nine shots from the field on 12 attempts.
- Simon also scored 12 points, knocking down seven free throws, while also grabbing a team-high eight rebounds and stealing two passes.
- Barth and Martin both had three assists, while first-year Rylee Turner (Newport, Ky./Newport Central Catholic) led with two blocks.
Thomas More gets a week off before their next game Saturday at home against the Wilberforce University Bulldogs at 1:00 p.m. The Saints blew out the Bulldogs 92-41 in their earlier matchup this season on Nov. 22, 2022.
