St. Mary's City, Md. – Junior Sophie Pruden (Carrboro, N.C./Chapel Hill) recorded her third career double-double but it was not enough as the St. Mary's College of Maryland women's basketball team suffered their first setback of the season, falling 62-48 to No. 15 York College of Pennsylvania in Capital Athletic Conference action Saturday afternoon.
Pruden finished the afternoon with a season-best 12 points while matching her career-high with 11 rebounds. Senior Joanna Murray (Reisterstown, Md./Franklin) was the other Seahawk to notch double-digit points with 11 while adding four boards, three assists, one block and one steal.
It was neck-in-neck in the first half as neither team led by more than four points. St. Mary's junior guard Aura Payne (Glen Burnie, Md./Severn School) knotted the contest for the third time at 22-22 with a jumper at 3:10 before senior Loreta Tonuzi (Hazlet, N.J./Raritan) helped the Spartans close out the half with a 6-4 run, knocking down a three-pointer at 2:49 to break the draw.
Pruden converted on a layup with one second on the clock off an assist by sophomore guard Sarit Truskey (Chevy Chase, Md./Bethesda-Chevy Chase) to send York into the locker room with a 28-26 advantage. The Spartans' junior Brittany Hicks (Dover, Pa./York Catholic) led all players with 10 points and 10 caroms while Pruden tallied 10 points and seven rebounds in the first half.
York (6-0, 1-0 CAC), who is ranked 15th in both the D3hoops.com Women's Top 25 and USA Today Sports Division III Top 25 Coaches' Poll, broke open the game with a 12-4 run to start the second stanza and post its first double-figure lead of the game at 12:53. The Spartans never looked back as the YCP defense held St. Mary's to just one made field goal in the final 4:22 of the contest, owning their largest lead of the game of 18 points at 2:24.
The Seahawks (4-1, 0-1 CAC) were handicapped by poor shooting in the final 20 minutes of the contest, making only 27% of their shots, while York outscored St. Mary's, 32-20, in the paint for the game. Junior forward Marché Pearson (Baltimore, Md./Laurel) helped the SMCM bench outscore York's with eight points and five rebounds as a reserve.
Hicks paced York with a double-double on 17 points and 11 caroms while junior guard Aja Wallpher (Ellicott City, Md./Seton Keough) added 13 points, eight steals, and six assists. Junior forward Kristen Haley (Silver Spring, Md./Georgetown Visitation) contributed 12 points and four blocks.
St. Mary's will be back in action on Thursday, December 6 when the Seahawks travel to Newport News, Virginia to face Christopher Newport University (4-0) in non-conference action at 7:00 pm.
Facebook: http://facebook.com/StMarysAthletics
Twitter: http://twitter.com/smcseahawks, #SeahawkNation