AUSTIN – Playing in a packed gym full of Travis Heights Elementary students, the St. Edward's women's basketball team fed off the crowd's energy to produce its best defensive performance of the season, defeating the Southwestern Pirates 76-34.
St. Edward's entered the game with little prep time, coming off a grueling road trip, splitting its Friday and Monday away games. The Hilltoppers arrived back on campus from Monday night's game at 2:00 a.m. with an early Wednesday tip-off time.
The presence of more than 200 Travis Heights Elementary students quickly dispelled any lingering fatigue. Travis Heights' third through fifth-grade classes made the field trip to the game as part of a team mentorship program with the school.
"The women have done a great job in our weekly visits over there. They spend a lot of time at Travis Heights making personal connections, and when we go into the classroom, we see the excitement and energy the kids have when they see us," St. Edward's head women's basketball coach J.J. Riehl says. "So, I think this game was about us giving back to them and giving those kids the same energy, love, and appreciation they show us."
The Hilltoppers set the tone in the first quarter, attacking the paint relentlessly to score 10 first-quarter points in the paint. LAUREN CATHERMAN continued the momentum she picked up over the previous road trip, opening the game with seven first-quarter points on six shots.
Catherman scored nine points in 23 minutes, shooting 4-for-9 from the field. However, her four steals and the Hilltoppers' work on the defensive end proved to be the most significant difference in the game.
St. Edward's defense limited Southwestern to three single-digit scoring quarters, including six-point quarters in the second and third quarters. The Hilltoppers held the Pirates to 12-for-55 shooting (21.8 percent) and forced 19 turnovers, blocking nine shots and recording 11 steals. The defense reached its apex in the third quarter, swarming to the ball with pinpoint rotations leading to a blocked shot from five players, including an emphatic rejection by starting point guard RONNIE CANTU.
The defense and bench scoring paved the way for a 10-0 run in the second quarter that blew the game open for good. BELLA MUSCOREIL was dominant inside, scoring eight points in the quarter on five shots.
Muscoreil scored 19 points and eight rebounds, shooting 9-for-12 from the field. Her performance continues a trend in which some of the Hilltoppers' best offensive flow comes from using their reserve center in different ways, acting as a pressure release valve with midrange jumpers, a facilitator for the elbows, or as the focal point inside.
Against an overmatched Southwestern team, St. Edward's focused on process over results, running its offense through all of its reads with precision to assist on a season-high 19 of its 29 made field goals. The Hilltoppers used Muscoreil to collapse the defense inside and a bevy of shooters to space the floor, playing Southwestern like an accordion.
The Hilltoppers connected on 53.3 percent of their 3-point attempts, tying the team's season-high of eight made 3-pointers. Cantu and Catherman each hit a 3-pointer, but the bench drove the outside accuracy, outscoring its Southwestern counterparts 48-18, shooting a combined 6-for-10 from deep. ISABEL LANGENBERG hit a pair of off-the-dribble 3-pointers, including a dazzling stepback jumper, and DAFNE GIANESINI added another couple of 3-pointers.
Gianesini scored 13 points in her first extended run of the season, complementing Muscoreil's inside game with some off-ball gravity. The junior forward was decisive, hitting both of her 3-point attempts on the move, making skip passes over the top of the defense, and cutting inside for a layup and a few trips to the free-throw line, where she hit 5-of-6 attempts.
"I think it's chemistry and culture. We're becoming more familiar and comfortable with what we're doing," Riehl says of her team's improved play since the calendar turned to December. "You have 12 people on the same page and starting to connect on things bigger than basketball."
The chemistry was on display in the fourth quarter, with the starters cheering on reserves closing the game out and giving the loudest ovation for Muscoreil's first collegiate 3-pointer in three career attempts on a feed from Cantu with 6:29 remaining.
"The last two weeks, we've built some confidence," Riehl explains. "It's all about our journey and process and figuring out how to become the best version of ourselves. I think we're trending up."
St. Edward's improves to 5-6 with the win. The Hilltoppers will host Arlington Baptist on Monday, Dec. 19, at 1:00 p.m.
