Washington, D.C. - The St. Thomas Aquinas College Women's Basketball team suffered a 68-58 defeat at the hands of the University of the District of Columbia on Wednesday evening at the Dr. Edwin Bancroft Henderson Sports Complex.

STAC drops to 5-2 and 0-1 in the ECC, while UDC moves to 4-3 and 1-0.

Angelique Holguin led the Spartans with 13 points, while Sarah Ericson (11 points) and Karolina Jaruseviciute (10 points and 10 rebounds) also scored in double-figures.

STAC shot 32.8 percent from the field (20-61), while UDC shot 37.5 percent (24-64) from the floor.

STAC NOTES AND HIGHLIGHTS:

• All eight Spartan players recorded double-digit minutes in the contest. 
• Trinity Cheatom and Karolina Jaruseviciute led the Spartans with four assists apiece on the night.
• Angelique Holguin made 6 of her 9 field goal attempts, while Melissa Alifano went 3-for-6 from the floor.
• District of Columbia out rebounded STAC 47-41 for the contest, with Jarseviciute grabbing 10 boards for the maroon and gold.
• St. Thomas Aquinas picked up seven steals in the contest, with the Firebirds turning the ball over on 16 separate occasions.
• The Spartans earned advantages in three team statistical categories over UDC: Second Chance Points (10-9), Points in the Paint (32-30) and Bench Points (13-12).
• The game featured six ties and nine lead changes.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• UDC scored the game's first three points, before a Sarah Ericson trey tied things at 3-3 with 7:46 to play in first quarter.
• See-saw action had the score close until STAC went on a 6-0 run to take a five-point lead at 11-6.
• A three-point play by the Firebirds and a layup by the Spartans Angelique Holguin closed the scoring in the opening stanza, giving STAC a slim three-point advantage, 12-9.
• St. Thomas Aquinas built a added to its lead early on in the second stanza, going up by five (14-9), before UDC powered back to within one (14-13), forcing the Spartans to call timeout.
• The teams continued to battle, flipping the scoreboard on more than one occasion, but a late layup by Holguin put STAC ahead by just one point, 24-23 at the halftime break.
• Angelique Holguin paced the Spartans offense with seven first-half points, while Shanell Haskins posted seven points of her own for the Firebirds.
• Following the break, the visitors in maroon and gold responded early, going on a 9-2 run to increase their lead to eight at 33-25.
• After a quick timeout by UDC, the Firebirds offense punched back and were able rally and eventually tie the game at 37-37.
• Another two minutes of scoring swings by both squads squared things at 42 all through 30 minutes of play.
• An evenly matched start to the final quarter, spun out of control quickly for STAC when a 14-4 run by UDC put them on top 56-46 with just over three minutes to play.
• Despite a valiant effort by the Spartans to climb back into the game by fouling to stop the clock, hoping for limited damage from the free-throw line and scoring on the other end of the floor, a six-point deficit ballooned to ten, when the Firebirds went 12-for-16 from the charity stripe in the final two minutes of the game to seal the victory.

UP NEXT:

St. Thomas Aquinas College hosts the College of Staten Island on Saturday, December 3 (1:00 p.m.) at Aquinas Hall.