Saint Vincent women lose to Thomas More in NCAA Tournament first round

For more than two quarters, the Saint Vincent women looked like they were poised to pull off one of the biggest upsets in college basketball this season. Matched against No. 1-ranked Thomas More (27-0), a team that beat Saint Vincent by 36 in January in Latrobe, the Bearcats led by two two minutes into the second half of a first-round NCAA Division III Tournament game.

That’s when the Saints showed why they were the scourge of the Presidents’ Athletic Conference during their tenure there.

Emily Schultz and Madison Temple had double-doubles, and Thomas More pulled away in the second half for a 79-54 victory at the Saints’ home in Crestview Hills, Ky. Saint Vincent, which won the PAC title and finished 23-5, was outscored 52-30 in the second half.

In the first half, the Bearcats forced 15 turnovers and held Temple, who is fifth in the nation in scoring at 23.6 points, to four points and were within 27-24 at halftime. Madison Kollar (Latrobe) had a pair of 3-pointers, and Maria Morgan had a 3 and a layup in the first 2 minutes, 2 seconds of the the third quarter to give the Bearcats a 35-33 lead.

It would be their last lead as the Saints dominated down the stretch.

Kollar had 17 to lead Saint Vincent, and Morgan and Jenna Lafko (Hampton) had 11 each. Shelby Rupp led Thomas More with 18 points and had nine rebounds. Schultz had 16 points and 11 rebounds, and Temple had 12 points and 15 rebounds. The three combined to shoot 21 of 31 from the field.