(Story Courtesy of Trinity University Sports Information Department)
ABILENE, Texas – The Trinity University women's basketball team notched a 75-71 victory over the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor in Friday night's First Round NCAA Playoff game.
The Tigers improved to 23-5 this season, while the Crusaders fell to 21-7 with the loss. Trinity also earned an 84-74 win over UMHB to start the 2023-24 season. This also marks the third straight season that Trinity has won in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament.
Trinity was down six early in the fourth quarter, but rallied to take the lead for good with just over seven minutes to go in the game. After UMHB made three shots in the first minute-plus of the final period, the Tiger defense didn't allow another field goal until the final second of the game – giving up just five total points over the last 8:53 of the win.
Kylie Minter led Trinity with 23 points on 8-of-11 shooting that included four makes on her five attempts from three-point range. Jamie Ruede also had a red-hot shooting night with 21 points off the bench, hitting 7-of-10 overall and going 4-for-7 from distance.
Bailey Timmons just missed a double-double with nine points and a team-best nine rebounds tonight. Elanie King made her defensive presence felt with a career-high five blocks in the game. Ruede, Josie Napoli, and Maggie Robbins all tied for the team lead with four assists each. Napoli was Trinity's only other double-digit scorer with 11 points, while Robbins finished with eight, and both Tiger players picked up three rebounds each. Napoli also tied Trinity's single-season record for three-pointers made, adding three more tonight to move up to 78 total this season. That ties the mark set just two years ago by Ashlyn Milton, who went on to break Trinity's career three-point record as well.
The Rundown
Minter got going early in the game by scoring Trinity's first eight points in the game. Mary Hardin-Baylor scored the first four points of the game, but Minter hit a pair of threes in the opening minutes to give Trinity slight leads. After Napoli tied the game 11-11 with her first three-pointer of the night, UMHB scored the next four to begin to pull away just ahead of the two-minute mark. That's when Ruede joined the party and buried back-to-back shots from beyond the arc to push Trinity in front in the final minute. Maddie Mueller knocked down a three of her own after the Crusaders tied it again, and the Tigers took a narrow 20-19 lead after one quarter.
Both teams had a slow start in the second quarter as no one scored for more than two minutes at the start, and then the lead went back and forth between them for most of the period. Ruede (7 points) and Robbins (5 points) did most of the scoring for the Tigers, who never led by more than three points in the period. Timmons got the final points with 1:20 to play to put Trinity in front 34-32, but UMHB scored in the final minute to make it a tie game at the break.
After a low-scoring second quarter, both teams exploded in the third with the busiest quarter of the night. Napoli and Robbins exchanged early three-pointers with the Crusaders, but UMHB broke a 40-all tie with six unanswered points to begin to pull away. They carried that momentum to an 18-5 run that put them in control with a 13-point lead and only four-plus minutes left in the third quarter. The Tigers finished strong in the quarter, though, scoring 13 of the final 15 points to bring it back to a two-point game (60-58). Napoli hit a three-pointer to cut the lead to seven with 90 seconds left, then Minter scored five points in the final 29 seconds to get Trinity back in the game.
The fourth quarter began with three quick buckets by UMHB around one make by Minter to push it a 66-60 game. Ruede then scored five of the next seven points in the game, including a go-ahead three-pointer with 7:15 to play. Timmons then ended a scoring drought by both teams with a three-pointer of her own at the 4:36 mark that pushed Trinity in front 70-66. Despite not being able to make baskets, UMHB kept the game close enough with free throws - including two with 2:44 remaining that cut the lead back to just one at 70-69. Minter came back on the next possession with a clutch three to give another cushion. Neither team scored again until she put the game away with two free throws that made it a six-point game with 19 seconds left.
Coach Speak
"Winning in the NCAA Tournament can drive a team to their breaking point, so why not quote Point Break," said Head Coach Cameron Hill. "One of the most iconic lines in one of the most iconic movies is 'Utah, get me two!' We're halfway there, but to get it done against the home team, we're gonna have to be committed enough to jump out of the plane without a parachute. We'll see what happens. Vaya con Dios! ONWARD!"
Up Next
Trinity advances to the NCAA Second Round with tonight's win and will face off against hosting Hardin-Simmons University at 8:00 p.m. on Saturday night.
