(CRESTVIEW HILLS, Ky.) – Seniors Nikki Kiernan (Cold Spring, Ky./Newport Central Catholic) and Abby Owings (Independence, Ky./Simon Kenton) combined to score 44 points and lead the fifth-ranked Thomas More College women's basketball team to an 86-61 win over Saint Vincent College today (Wednesday, January 17, 2018) in a Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) game at the Connor Convocation Center in Crestview Hills, Kentucky.

With the win, the Saints improve to 15-1 overall and remain undefeated in the PAC at 9-0.  With the loss, the Bearcats fall to 9-7 overall and 6-3 PAC.

Thomas More jumped out to a 23-8 lead with 3:38 to play in the first quarter when junior guard Madison Temple (Cincinnati, Ohio/Anderson) made a lay-up.  The Bearcats closed the quarter on a 10-2 run to cut the lead to 25-18 after one quarter when Kiara Arnold made a jumper with 29-seconds to play in the quarter.

The Saints opened the second quarter on an 18-6 run to run to extend the lead to 43-24 with 4:07 to play in the second quarter when junior guard Kelly Clapper (Newark, Ohio/Newark Catholic) made a three-pointer.  Saint Vincent cut the lead to 43-31 at halftime when Mara Benvenuti made one-of-two free-throws with four-seconds to play in the first half to cap a 7-0 run.

Thomas More led by as many as 19 points in the third quarter when sophomore forward Emily Schultz (Melbourne, Ky./Bishop Brossart) made a lay-up with 3:35 to play, but the Bearcats cut the lead to 59-47 after three quarters.  The Saints took control in the fourth quarter as they increased the lead to as many as 28 points as they went on to the 86-61 victory.

The Saints had a 38-26 advantage in points in the paint, 16-7 off turnovers and 15-9 in second chance points.

Kiernan led the team in scoring with a game-high 22 points, while Owings added 20 points.  Temple and sophomore guard Taylor Jolly (Alexandria, Ky./Campbell County) joined them in double-figures with 13 and 11 points respectively.  Kiernan and first-year guard Hayden White (Milford, Ohio/Milford) led the team on the boards with eight rebounds each, while Temple added seven boards.  Owings and Temple led the team in assists with seven each.

Thomas More returns to the hardwood on Saturday (January 20) when it hosts Grove City College at 3 p.m. at the Connor Convocation Center.