"I thought we played a much better second half," said head coach Joan Bonvicni. "We were much more together as a team and played better defense. It was a tough mountain to overcome, but I though Sylvia did a nice job scoring. We need to stop fouling and it was a tough game, as far as some of the calls."
Daidra Brown (Seattle, Wash.) got the Redhawks on the board first with a clean three from the corner, but Jasmine Smith for SMC immediately countered with a three of her own. Saint Mary's would then go on a 7-0 run, before Amani Butler (Corona, Calif.) was able to drive in a layin.
The Gaels would control and set the tempo of action early in the game, but SU would work to keep the lead in range. At 15:50, Elle Kerfoot (Surrey, B.C.) would grab the ball under the Gael basket and pass it off to a driving Brown. Brown would then find a cutting Butler, to make it a two-point contest, 11-9.
Seattle U was unable able to build up their offensive momentum, as they allowed Saint Mary's to go an 11-0 run over the next four minutes.
A Brown steal and lone drive to the basket with just over 11 minutes to go in the first half would be SU's first points in nearly five minutes of play. Carley Butcher (Pitt Meadows, B.C.) then sunk in a pair of free throws and Shephard would follow with her first points of a game, to make it a 10-point contest with 10:08 in the half.
Fouling plagued the Redhawks play, as they committed seven in the first 10 minutes of action. They also struggled to find their fluidity on the floor, which SMC's took advantage of.
Shephard would add a behind the arc basket at 8:32, making it a 10-point game again, but the Gaels' full court press and shooting below 25 percent from the field continued to stymie SU's offensive efforts.
The freshman forward Shephard continued to add offensive lifts for the Redhawks, making it an 11-point contest with less than four minutes to go, but fouling and not taking advantage of Gael turnovers allowed SMC to go on a 8-0 scoring run.
Going into halftime, the Redhawks were held to a 26.3 field goal percentage (10-for-38), while the Gaels cruised through the first half shooting 50 percent (17-for-34) to hold a 46-29 advantage.
Shephard would kick off the second half knocking in a three-pointer and Kacie Sowell (Ventura, Calif.) would then add a jumper. Kerfoot followed, sending in a lane shot to go on a Seattle U 6-0 run, before the SMC bench would resend in their starting five.
Shephard continued to be a spark plug off the bench for Seattle U, as she would take in a lane drive to cut down SMC's once 19-point lead to 10. On the ensuing play she would steal the ball, setting up a Dickerson free throw opportunity at 14:30.
Down 48-39, Seattle U was unable to capitalize on their playing momentum as SMC would go on their own 16-point run heading inside the eight-minute mark.
Despite being down by as high as 22 points in the second half, Seattle U would continue to battle. Their game was ignited in the final five minutes of action, as play began to be much more aggressive. With 1:44 remaining, Dickerson would make it a 74-61 game. The Redhawks' Butler would follow by stealing the ball near the half court line, eventually setting up a Kerfoot three-pointer to make it a 10-point game for the sixth time with 1:28 remaining, 74-64.
Kerfoot would go on to score 14 points, to be the second-leading scorer for Seattle U. She also added four assists and a steal in 30 minutes of action.
The Redhawks were unable to garner control of the game, allowing Saint Mary's to add six additional insurance points to close out the contest.
In the game, SMC shot 45.5 percent (25-for-55) from the field, while SU was held to 29.2 percent (21-for-72). The Redhawks scored 28 points off of turnovers and had 29 points from their bench, to Saint Mary's six bench points. SU committed 27 fouls in the game, which allowed the Gaels to score 25 points.
For SMC, Louella Tomlinson led the game with 23 points, while Kate Gaze and Smith each had 17. Tomlinson also tallied 13 boards and 10 blocks in the contest for a triple-double.
Seattle U will resume action following a break for Christmas to host the State Farm Holiday Hoops Classic. Gonzaga, Loyola Marymount and Notre Dame will travel to KeyArena at Seattle Center for the two-day classic from Dec. 29-30. For tickets and more information, please log onto www.GoSeattleU.com.