By Nairem Moran · nmoran@smcm.edu

Naples, Fla. – The St. Mary’s College of Maryland women’s basketball team strung together their first win streak of the season Saturday night down in Florida. St. Mary’s (4-7) posted a come-from-behind 59-53 victory over Immaculata University (4-8) with big fourth quarter play.

How It Happened

  • The Seahawks found themselves down 43-37 heading into the fourth period after Immaculata turned around a 10-point deficit.
  • St. Mary’s opened up the fourth with an 8-0 run behind four different scorers to reclaim the lead at 5:33 for the first time since a 32-30 lead at 7:41 of the third quarter. The Seahawks built up the advantage to seven three times before Amber Ballinger’s three-point shot cut it to 55-51 with 45 seconds on the clock, capping off a 6-3 push by the Mighty Macs.
  • The Seahawks outscored IU, 22-10, in the fourth as St. Mary’s went 10-of-12 from the free throw line, including a 7-of-8 effort by sophomore guard Kyaira Priest (Lexington Park, Md./Chopticon).
  • First-year Jazmyne Scott (Glen Burnie, Md./North County) broke an 11-11 draw with her layup in the waning seconds of the first frame to give the Seahawks a 13-11 lead.
  • St. Mary’s widened its margin to 25-15 with a 12-4 run to start the second stanza. However, the Mighty Macs worked their way back in and headed into the locker room down 30-29 after a Ballinger layup with 10 seconds to go in the half.
  • Immaculata came out of the gates hot in the third period, outscoring the Seahawks, 10-2, to establish a 39-32 margin – its first lead since 3:20 of the first quarter.
Kyaira Priest ’21 – Photo Credit: Bill Wood

Inside the Box Score

  • St. Mary’s, who now ranks 14th in Division III in turnovers forced with 24.9 per game, pushed the Mighty Macs into 28 mistakes – IU’s second highest total of the season – and was able to generate 22 points from those miscues.
  • Priest finished the night with 14 points for the second game in a row as she went 12-of-16 at the charity stripe. She also collected a career-best four steals, four rebounds, and three assists.
  • Like Priest, sophomore forward Hallie Persell (Pasadena, Md./Chesapeake) came off the bench to make significant contributions as Persell added a dozen points, six boards, and two steals.
  • Junior captain Gina Seifert (Owings, Md./Northern) was the only starter in double-figures as Seifert tallied 10 points and grabbed seven caroms plus two steals.
  • Senior captain Katie Robey (Kensington, Md./Georgetown Visitation) hauled in a team-best eight rebounds to go along with six points and six steals.
  • Ballinger led all players with 15 points and 15 boards.

Up Next for the Seahawks

  • Dec. 30 vs. Suffolk (8-4) – Naples, Fla. (Naples Shootout) – 1:00 p.m.

David M. Higgins II, Publisher/EditorEditor-in-Chief

David M. Higgins II is an award-winning journalist passionate about uncovering the truth and telling compelling stories. Born in Baltimore and raised in Southern Maryland, he has lived in several East...