Box Score The Basics
-Score: St. Edward's 45, Newman 53
-Records: St. Edward's 13-13 (6-6 HC), Newman 11-15 (6-6 HC)
-Location: Austin, Texas (Recreation and Convocation Center)
 
How it happened
-St. Edward's took the early advantage 6-5, just five minutes into the contest. Both teams struggled early to knock down baskets.
-The Hilltoppers upped their lead to six points, 11-5. DAWN KIEL and STEPHANIE DEKKERS provided the offensive spark.
-Newman erased the deficit and took a one-point lead with 2:19 remaining. The Jets went into the half with a 20-17 lead.
-Newman jumped out on the Hilltoppers early in the second half scoring nine straight points to take an 11-point lead, 29-18.
-St. Edward's picked up the intensity and slowly crawled their way back into the game. Kiel connected on a layup to cut the deficit to seven points, 29-22.
-The Jets took advantage of the poor shooting by St. Edward's and saw their lead climb to 16 points with just under 10 minutes remaining.
-Dekkers drilled back-to-back treys and CASEY RILEY swished a short jumper for a quick 8-0 run by the Hilltoppers.
-The closest St. Edward's would come to taking the lead is six points with just 40 seconds remaining. Newman iced the game knocking down four consecutive free throws.
 
Beyond the Box Score
-The Hilltoppers return to the Heartland Conference Tournament after a one-year absence. St. Edward's upset the then one-seed Newman 77-58 in the 2011 Heartland Conference Tourney.
-First year head coach J.J. Riehl has recorded 13 wins in her first season on the Hilltop. That is the most wins since the 2008-09 season.
-Senior guard DAWN KIEL finished with a team high 14 points. She finishes the regular season as the leading scorer for the Hilltoppers and sixth in the Heartland Conference averaging 13.7 points per game. That scoring average is the highest since the 2009-10 season.
-STEPHANIE DEKKERS finished the regular season with 125 assists that is first in the Heartland Conference. She averages 4.8 assists per game. Dekkers also averaged 34 minutes of playing time per game, which is third in the conference.
-St. Edward's honored their three seniors playing in their final home game for the Hilltoppers. The three seniors are MONICA JAMES, SARAH KENDRICK and DAWN KIEL.
 
 
 
2012-13 Heartland Conference Women's Basketball Standings
Team                                                              HC       Overall
Texas-Permian Basin                                    11-1    19-6
St. Mary's                                                       10-2    20-6
Newman                                                         6-6      11-15
St. Edward's                                                 6-6      13-13
Texas A&M International                             5-7      10-16
UA Fort Smith                                                3-9      7-19
Oklahoma Panhandle State                         1-11    4-22
Oklahoma Christian University                   0-0      16-11
McMurry                                                        0-0      12-14
 
Up Next
The Hilltoppers will be back in action on Friday as they travel to Odessa and take on UT-Permian Basin in the first round of the Heartland Conference Tournament. Tip-off is set for 5:30 p.m. Live stats and video will be available through the Falcon website.