(CRESTVIEW HILLS, Ky.) – Junior guard Abby Owings (Independence, Ky./Simon Kenton) and sophomore guard Madison Temple (Cincinnati, Ohio/Anderson) combined for 38 points to lead the No. 4-ranked Thomas More College women's basketball team to a 66-59 win over Denison University on the second day of the 15th Annual Julie Costello Memorial Classic presented by Barleycorn's at the Connor Convocation Center in Crestview Hills, Kentucky.
With the win, the Saints remain undefeated as they improve to 4-0. With the loss, the Big Red fall to 1-5.
Thomas More jumped out to an early 7-5 lead when sophomore guard Michaela Ware (Newport, Ky./Newport Central Catholic) made jumper with 7:11 to play in the first quarter. Denison put together 9-3 run to build a 14-10 lead with 2:11 to play in the opening quarter when Gabriella Nottage made jumper. Owings made a three-punter with 1:36 to play in the quarter to cut the lead to 14-13 after one quarter.
The Saints opened the second quarter on a 9-6 run to take a 22-20 lead when first-year guard Kylie Kramer (Alexandria, Ky./Campbell County) made a jumper with 5:57 to play in the quarter. Denison's Alison Schafer capped a 4-0 run as the Big Red retook the lead at 24-22 with 3:31 to play in the second quarter. Thomas More closed out the second quarter on a 6-2 run to take a 28-26 lead at halftime when senior forward Kirsten Paul (Cincinnati, Ohio/Cincinnati Christian) made a lay-up with six seconds to play in the half.
Thomas More opened the third quarter on a 16-9 run to extend the lead to 44-35 with 3:00 to play in the quarter when junior forward Nikki Kiernan (Cold Springs, Ky./Newport Central Catholic) made a lay-up. Denison closed out the quarter on a 10-3 run to cut the lead to 47-45 after three quarters when Schafer made a jumper at the buzzer.
The Saints increased the lead to 65-50 as they opened the fourth quarter on an 18-5 run capped by a Temple lay-up with 2:22 to play in the game. Denison closed the game on a 9-1 run, but it wasn't enough as Thomas More won the game 66-59.
Thomas More out-scored Denison 36-20 in the paint, 18-6 on second chance points and 19-4 on fast break points.
Owings and Temple finished the game with 19 points each. Kiernan finished the game with a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds to go with a team-high five blocked shots. Paul just missed double-figure scoring with nine points. Temple led the team in assists with four, while she and Kiernan each had four steals to lead the team.
Temple was named the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the classic, while Owings joined her on the All-Tournament Team.
Thomas More returns to action on Wednesday (November 30) when it hosts Grove City College at 5:30 p.m. in its Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) opener.