WASHINGTON, D.C. -- University of the District of Columbia held St. Thomas Aquinas without a field goal for nearly the final five minutes of regulation as the Firebirds pulled away late to win their third straight game, 62-48 in East Coast Conference play Thursday night in the nation's capital.
The Firebirds, ranked No. 8 in the D2SIDA East Region poll this week, improved to 14-3 overall and 7-2 in ECC play. They are currently 3rd in the league standings behind Queens and NYIT – who each have one loss in league play. STAC fell to 8-11 overall and 4-6 in league play with tonight's loss.
After shooting a paltry 30-percent (10-of-30) in the first half from the field, the Firebirds made up for it by shooting 48-percent (14-of-29) in the second half. UDC also owned a sizeable, 43-24 rebounding advantage thanks in large part to its two forwards, senior Denikka Brent (Mechanical Engineering – Chesapeake, VA/Booker T. Washington HS) and junior Tatyana Calhoun (Architecture – Disputanta, VA/Sussex Central HS) combining for 26 rebounds. Brent finished with a team-high 17 points and 10 rebounds while Calhoun hauled in a season and game-high 16 rebounds (nine on the offensive glass), scored 10 points and had three steals.
UDC outscored STAC 30-18 in the paint and 18-6 in second-chance points courtesy of 22 offensive rebounds. The Firebirds also forced 18 Spartan turnovers and cashed them in for 22 points.
STAC had just one scorer in double figures – guard Jenna Erickson with 13 points. Erickson shot 5-of-11 from the field and also registered four assists and three steals. Kaitlyn McCue had a game-high five assists for the guests and KC Sokolski pitched in with a team-high nine rebounds.
The first half featured three ties and three lead changes as the two ECC foes were never separated by more than five points the entire half. The Firebirds, led by Calhoun's six points and nine rebounds, took a 25-21 lead into halftime.
Still a five-point game halfway through the closing period, the Firebirds used a 6-0 run to take their first double-digit lead of the night, 47-36 just past the eight-minute mark. The Spartans came charging back with a 10-2 surge, highlighted by back-to-back three-pointers by Samantha Lane and consecutive layups by Erickson. The second of Erickson's layups brought STAC within three, 49-46 with 4:52 remaining.
On the ensuing Firebirds possession, UDC had the ball for 38 seconds including four shot attempts before junior guard Tajruba Baldwin-Kollore (Criminal Justice – Newport News, VA/Denbigh HS) converted a layup to put the Firebirds up five. Then, following a STAC turnover, Brent earned a trip to the free-throw line and converted a pair to extend the lead to seven with 3:45 left to play.
In the final 4:52, STAC managed only two free throws (on four attempts), shot 0-for-6 from the field and turned the ball over three times. Meanwhile, UDC made 7-of-8 free-throws and made its last two shots from the field, closing out the game on a 13-2 run to win by its largest margin of the night, 14.
Next up, UDC visits ECC foe Mercy in Dobbs Ferry, NY on Saturday, January 24th at 12:30 p.m.
COURTESY UNIVERSITY OF DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA SPORTS INFORMATION
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