Queens, N.Y. - A strong defensive game by the St. Thomas Aquinas College Women's Basketball team, helped fuel a second half rally to defeat Queens College, 60-50 on Wednesday evening at Fitzgerald Gymnasium.

STAC improves to 13-5 overall and 5-2 in the ECC with the victory, while Queens drops to 5-11 and 3-4.

Erin Leary led the way for the Spartans, recording 20 points and 14 rebounds.

STAC shot 42.9 percent from the field (24-56), while Queens shot 34.5 percent (20-58) from the floor.

STAC NOTES AND HIGHLIGHTS:

• Nine different players recorded double-digit minutes in the contest. 
• Erin Leary led the Spartans with four assists each on the night.
• Leary made 7 of her 13 field goal attempts, while Karolina Jaruseviciute went 4-of-5 from the floor.
• STAC out rebounded Queens 41-30, with Erin Leary posting a game-high 14 boards.
• St. Thomas Aquinas picked up five steals in the contest, with the Knights turning the ball over on 16 separate occasions.
• The Spartans earned advantages in four team statistical categories over Queens: Points off Turnovers (15-14), Second Chance Points (11-9), Points in the Paint (30-24) and Bench Points (19-3).
• The game featured five ties and nine lead changes.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Queens opened the game, scoring eight of the first 11 points to lead 8-3 at the halfway mark of the quarter.
• Erin Leary, Sarah Ericson Karolina Jaruseviciute and Alexa Huertas put together a 10-6 run for the Spartans to only trail by one, 14-13 through the first 10 minutes of action.
• A Jaruseviciute layup to start the second stanza, gave STAC its first lead of the night, 15-14.
• Back and forth action between the squads saw the Knights expand their lead to only four points during the frame, while the Spartans cut their deficit to only two on several occasions.
• Queens held a slim four-point margin (26-22) at the halftime break.
• Karolina Jaruseviciute paced the Spartans offense with seven first-half points, while Brianna Davis led all scorers with 12 points for the Knights.
• When the teams returned to the hardwood for the third quarter, its was the host Knights who scored the first four points to expand their lead to eight, 30-22.
• Taking a nine-point lead (36-27) with 6:40 to play in the frame, STAC used a quick timeout to settle the troops and then proceeded to rattle off 13 of the next 16 points, with Sarah Ericson, Erin Leary, Alexa Huertas, Kaitlyn Watrobski and Julia Reggio all leading the Spartans offensive charge to pull ahead by one, 40-39.
• STAC would trail by just one, 43-42, following two Knights free throws to end the third stanza.
• A 6-0 streak by the Spartans to open the fourth quarter, flipped the scoreboard once again, and gave the maroon and gold a five-point advantage with seven and a half minutes left to play.
• Queens would rally back to tie the score at 48-48, before a 12-2 run by STAC over the final five minutes would finally give the visitors a comfortable lead until the final buzzer. Karolina Jaruseviciute, Sarah Ericson, Erin Leary, Trinity Cheatom provided timely scoring, while the aforementioned Spartans and teammates Julia Reggio, Kaitlyn Watrobski, Alexa Huertas and Melissa Alifano supplied strong defense down the stretch to seal the deal on the conference triumph.

UP NEXT:

St. Thomas Aquinas College hosts Molloy University on Saturday, January 21 (1:00 p.m.) at Aquinas Hall Gymnasium in Sparkill.