The Saint Vincent women's basketball team battled early, but lost to nationally ranked Thomas More University in a non-conference contest by a score of 82-46.
 
With the victory, the Saints are now 24-0 on the year, while SVC falls to 16-4 overall.
 
Saint Vincent got off to a strong start, as Madison Kollar hit a three, followed quickly by a steal and layup by Kayla Slovenec that made the score 5-2.

The Saints, ranked #2 in the nation, regrouped quickly, hitting a pair of threes to take an 8-5 advantage, before Kollar hit another shot from outside the arc to tie the game with 7:15 remaining in the first quarter.
 
After the Saints opened a 5-point lead, the Bearcats again came back, with Kollar hitting another three at the 4:45 mark to tie the game at 15-all. 
 
Thomas More took a 20-15 lead, but Taylor Boring provided a spark for the Bearcats.  First, she was fouled while shooting a three and hit all three shots, then scored on a long-range shot to put Saint Vincent in front, 21-20, late in the first quarter.  
 
Saint Vincent took a 22-20 advantage into the break after 10 minutes of play.
 
The lead was short lived, however, as the Saints tallied 24 consecutive points in the second quarter to take a 44-22 lead.  The Bearcats didn't score until the 1:18 mark of the period, when Bri Van Volkenburg hit a pair of free throws.    

Thomas More led by a score of 47-24 at the end of the first half.  
 
The third quarter was played more evenly, as the Saint Vincent defense caused multiple Thomas More turnovers, but the offense struggled to make shots, shooting below 25% through 30 minutes of play. 
 
The Bearcats started the fourth quarter on a 5-0 run but the Saints quickly answered to end the run. Both teams then traded possessions and points until the final buzzer.

Kollar led Saint Vincent with 15 points, while Carlee Kilgus contributed six. The Bearcat defense picked up 12 steals on the night while forcing Thomas More to turn the ball over a total 19 times.

Saint Vincent returns to action on Saturday afternoon, February 2, traveling to New Wilmington for a Presidents' Athletic Conference game against Westminster College.