Sparkill, N.Y. - Despite receiving double-digit scoring efforts from a pair of Spartans, the St. Thomas Aquinas College Women's Basketball team saw Mercy University put together a fourth quarter rally to take a 69-65 decision on Saturday afternoon at Aquinas Hall Gymnasium.

STAC falls to 5-16 overall and 3-7 in ECC action, while Mercy improves to 15-5 and 9-1.

Toni Schuetze led the maroon and gold offense with a team-high 23 points, while Bailey Chapman (19 points) also scored in double digits. Meanwhile, Grace Lesko led all Mavericks players in scoring with a game-high 30 points of her own.

STAC shot 33.3 percent (20-60) from the field and 44.4 percent (12-27) from beyond the arc, while Mercy shot 54.8 percent (23-42) from the floor and 45.5 percent (5-11) from three-point.

STAC NOTES AND HIGHLIGHTS:

• Seven Spartans logged double-digit minutes in the contest.
• Abby Jacoby led the maroon and gold with four assists apiece on the afternoon.
• Toni Schuetze hit 5 of her 17 field goal attempts and 10-of-12 free throws. Bailey Chapman went 6-for-11 from the floor, with 5-of-6 shots sailing through the nets from long range.
• Mercy out-rebounded STAC by a 37-27 margin, with Iyana Morel grabbing a team-high seven boards for the Spartans.
• St. Thomas Aquinas picked up seven steals, with the Mavericks turning the ball over on 19 separate occasions.
• The Spartans earned advantages in two team statistical categories over Mercy: Points off Turnovers (15-11) and Second Chance Points (8-4).
• St. Thomas Aquinas had its largest lead of the game (three points) with just over nine minutes to play in the third quarter, 36-33, on a Jona Kabashi jump shot.
• The game featured five ties and ten lead changes.
• St. Thomas Aquinas led Mercy, 34-33 at the half and shot 33.0 percent (10-30) from the field, 46.2 percent (6-13) from beyond the arc and 80.0 percent (8-10) from the foul line.
• Toni Schuetze led all scorers with 21 first half points for the Spartans, while shooting 41.7 percent (5-for-12) from the floor, 50.0 percent (3-of-6) from three and 80.0 percent (8-of-10) from the free-throw line.

MERCY NOTES AND HIGHLIGHTS:

• Six Mavericks logged double-digit minutes in the contest. 
• Grace Lesko led the Mavericks with a game-high 30 points.
• Angelina Barrera led Mercy with four assists on the day.
• Lesko went 12-for-16 from the floor, 3-of-5 from downtown and 3-of-3 from the free-throw line.
• Sophia Hoyt grabbed a game-high nine boards for the Mavericks.
• Mercy picked up three steals, with the Spartans turning the ball over on eight separate occasions.
• The Mavericks earned advantages in two team statistical categories over St. Thomas Aquinas: Points in the Paint (30-12) and Bench Points (13-12).
• Mercy had its largest lead of the game (12 points) with just over two minutes to play in the first quarter, 18-6, on a Kyla Nembach three-point jump shot.
• Grace Lesko led all Mavericks' scorers at the half with 17 points, while shooting 77.8 percent (7-for-19) from the floor, 66.7 percent (2-of-3) from three and 100.0 percent (1-of-1) from the free-throw line.
• Mercy's best shooting quarter came in the opening stanza, with the Mavericks shooting 66.7 percent (8-12) from the field, 66.7 percent (4-6) from downtown and 100.0 percent (1-1) from the foul line.
• Angelina Barrera reached the 1,000 career point mark for the Mavericks midway through the third quarter with the traditional three-point play (layup + free-throw).

UP NEXT:

STAC visits the University of Bridgeport for a non-conference matchup on Tuesday, February 3 at the Harvey Hubble Gymnasium. Tip-off between the Spartans and Purple Knights is set for 5:00 p.m.