Rochester Hills, Mich. – The Aquinas women's basketball team could not overcome a big first half and strong outside shooting from Rochester on Tuesday night (Nov. 21) in a road WHAC contest. RU jumped out to a big halftime lead and although Aquinas outscored the Warriors over the final 20 minutes, the deficit was too large to overcome, as AQ fell 78-65.
 
It was the second WHAC contest for each team in the 2023-24 season. Aquinas falls to 2-4 overall and 0-2 in conference play, while Rochester evens its record at 4-4, with a 1-1 league mark. 
 
Three Saints combined for 53 points on Tuesday, with Alona Blackwell finishing as the game's leading scorer yet again. She finished with 26 points, five rebounds, and three assists for her fifth 20-plus point game in six outings. Blackwell made all three of the Saints' triples.
 
Ciara Hardy tallied 16 points, while Paige Guernsey added 11; each player grabbed four rebounds and three steals. Guernsey made 5-of-7 field goal tries.
 
Rochester shot well on its home floor, making 46.9 percent of its shots and a game-changing 11-of-22 from three-point range. The teams each scored 36 points in the paint and AQ outscored Rochester at the free throw line (12-7), with the main difference being long distance shooting. 
 
Aquinas forced Rochester into 17 turnovers, while committing just 13 of its own. The rebounding battle was nearly even, with RU holding a slim 40-39 advantage.
 
Blackwell scored AQ's first eight points, hitting a pair of three-pointers in a 30-second span during the opening minutes. Although Hardy converted a fast break layup in the closing seconds of the first quarter, Rochester led 26-16 after 10 minutes.
 
The lead swelled to 23 points in the opening minutes of the quarter due to a 13-0 Warrior run. At halftime, it was a 43-25 score. Rochester kept up its offensive output in the third quarter, although the Saints matched RU and outscored the home squad 18-17 during the frame. 
 
Aquinas added 22 fourth-quarter points (eight for Hardy, seven for Blackwell) to cut the once 25-point lead down to 13 points. But the Saints could get no closer, taking the conference loss.
 
Alexis Thomas notched team-highs of 10 rebounds and six assists, while chipping in six points, two steals, and a block. Maddie Sermak connected on a pair of buckets for four points. Brynn Reams totaled six rebounds, three blocked shots, two points, and a steal, while Jenna Daschke recorded five assists and three rebounds.
 
AQ continues its three-game road swing against Cleary next Tuesday (Nov. 28) in a 5:30 p.m. start. The game will be played at Lansing Community College's Gannon Gymnasium.