Sparkill, N.Y. - The St. Thomas Aquinas College Women's Basketball team earned its second straight victory on Saturday afternoon, downing American International College, 78-54 at Aquinas Hall to sweep the 2022 STAC Tip-Off Classic.

STAC moved to 2-0 on the young season, while AIC falls to 0-2.

Angelique Holguin and Erin Leary led the way for the Spartans, posting 14 points apiece, while Joline Raposo (13 points) also scored in double-figures.

STAC shot 45.3 percent from the field (29-64) and 29.4 percent from behind the arc (5-17) on Saturday, while AIC shot 33.3 percent (23-69) from the floor.

STAC NOTES AND HIGHLIGHTS:

• Nine different players recorded double-digit minutes in the contest. 
• Joline Raposo led the Spartans with three assists on the day.
• Angelique Holguin made 6 of her 12 field goal attempts, while Raposo went 5-of-10 from the floor.
• STAC out rebounded AIC 49-36 through 40 minutes of action, with Sarah Ericson posting a team-leading 11 boards.
• St. Thomas Aquinas picked up 10 steals in the contest, with American International turning the ball over on 23 different occasions.
• The Spartans earned advantages in four team statistical categories over AIC: Points off of Turnovers (22-11), Second Chance Points (17-6), Points in the Paint (40-34) and Bench Points (25-9).

HOW IT HAPPENED

• STAC got out to an 8-3 lead midway through the opening quarter, as Joline Raposo sunk a jumper with 6:53 to play.
• AIC powered its way back to even the score at 13-13, before Raposo cashed in on a three-point play to put the Spartans back on top 16-13 through the first 10 minutes of action.
• Second quarter action saw the maroon and gold get its game on track to push the lead to as much as nine (26-17) on an Angelique Holguin layup. Again the Yellow Jackets would make mini runs in the stanza and kept its deficit manageable, as St. Thomas Aquinas headed to the locker room at halftime up 31-23.
• Back and forth play between the squads opened the second half, but STAC took advantage of missed opportunities by the Yellow Jackets to close the gap on the scoreboard and put the pedal to the metal, grabbing multiple 10-point leads and finishing the third quarter up 13 at 52-39.
• A 5-0 run to open the fourth quarter put the Spartans ahead by 18 points (57-39) and even though American International would slightly narrow the double-digit lead from time to time, the hosts continued play strong defense, which lead to additional offense.
• STAC closed out the game with its largest lead of the day, 24 points, which was also the final margin of victory.

UP NEXT

St. Thomas Aquinas heads across town to face-off with Rockland County rivals, Dominican University on Wednesday, November 16. Opening tip between the Spartans and Chargers is set for 5:00 p.m. at the Hennessy Center in Blauvelt, N.Y.