Fort Wayne, Ind. – Aquinas kicked off the WHAC Quarterfinals today (Feb. 28) on the road against the undefeated No. 16 Indiana Tech Warriors. Indiana Tech entered the postseason tournament with a 22-0 record in the WHAC and improved to 23-0 after a hard-fought battle against Aquinas. The Saints were within two possessions multiple times in the fourth quarter, but the seasoned Warriors pulled away at the end.

Indiana Tech will move on to play the winner of the #4 Cornerstone vs. #5 Rochester game in the semifinals.

#16 Indiana Tech 61, Aquinas 52

The two teams split the first 12 points of the game until Indiana Tech began to break away a bit in the first. However, Brynn Reams and Maddie Sermak both converted a jumper at the end to keep the score within four.

Indiana Tech began to build some momentum in the second quarter, taking as much as 14 points lead. The Warriors stout defense held Aquinas to just 19 points in the first half and took a 12-point lead into halftime.

The momentum that the hosts built in the second quarter continued into the third quarter, generating a 20-point advantage with just 1:29 left to go. However, a pair of free throws from Ashlyn Wilkes and two separate three-point plays from Claire Gregwer and Alona Blackwell at the end of the third cut into the deficit with the season on the line.

Aquinas kept rolling in the fourth quarter, scoring the first seven points to reduce the Indiana Tech lead to just six points. A Blackwell layup with just under seven minutes on the clock had the Saints down just 52-47.

However, that would be as close as the Saints would get. The home side rallied and reclaimed a double-digit lead with three minutes left. The Warriors made the second 61-52 with 1:33 remaining and those would be the final points of the game.

By the Numbers

The box score was very close between the two teams. Aquinas led in second-chance points (12-10) and bench points (19-3). The Warriors held the edge in points off turnovers (8-7), and points in the paint (28-20). Tech also had just more rebounds (46-40), assists (9-8), blocks (5-1), and steals (4-2).

Maddie Sermak led the team in scoring with 12 points after shooting 2-3 from three. Paige Guernsey just trailed her with 11 points along with five boards, two assists, and a steal.
Blackwell ended her AQ career and historic season with nine points, nine rebounds, and two assists.

Up Next

The Saints turn their eyes to preparing for the 2024-25 season after today's result.