LATROBE, Pa. (Dec. 6) – The Saint Vincent women's basketball team held off a furious late-game rally to defeat Grove City, 49-44, in a Presidents' Athletic Conference matchup in the Robert S. Carey Student Center.

Saint Vincent (5-3, 4-1 PAC) jumped out to a 36-19 lead after three quarters of play, only to see the Wolverines (4-4, 3-2 PAC) pull to within three with a minute left in regulation. The hosts would thwart the Wolverine charge, however, as senior Emily Cavacini put the game away with four free throws over the final 10 seconds.

Emily Thompson led all scorers with 13 points, while Cavacini added eight and Madison Weber and Camdon Bashor seven apiece. Bashor and Alana Winkler tied for team-high honors with eight rebounds apiece, while Cavacini pocketed three steals.

The Bearcats rode the hot hand of Thompson and a stout defense to take a 12-4 lead at the close of the first quarter. The junior singlehandedly staked SVC out to a 7-2 lead four minutes into play, using a pair of mid-range jumpers and a long three from the right wing. Following a free throw from Weber with 5:10 to go, Thompson sank her fourth field goal with another jumper at the 1:30 mark to make it 10-4. Reese Gadsby would then close out the quarter's scoring with a pair of free throws with just under a minute left. While Thompson led the way offensively over the opening 10 minutes, the Bearcat defense as just as impressive, limiting the Wolverines to just 18 percent (2-for-11) from the field and forcing seven Grove City turnovers.

Saint Vincent continued to control play early on in the second quarter. Thompson's fifth field goal of the night, a catch-and-release jumper from the foul line would push the SVC lead into double digits, 14-4, a minute into the quarter, before Weber, Cavacini and Bashor each connected on layups in a 45-second span to up the margin to 20-5 with 5:57 left in the half. Lizzie Bender scored her first points of the night with a 15-footer at the 4-minute mark, making it 23-7. The Wolverines countered with the game's next five points, but Bashor would score the final two of the half from the foul line to send SVC into the locker room with a 25-12 lead. Over the opening 20 minutes, SVC surrendered just five Grove City field goals on 26 attempts.

The theme remained the same as the third quarter wound on, with the Bearcats permitting just two Grove City field goals over the opening six minutes. Meanwhile, Weber scored a pair of baskets over the opening 2:40 to up the lead to 29-13, before the margin ballooned to 18 points – 33-15 – following layups from Winkler and Cavacini at the midpoint of the quarter. After the Wolverines scored a pair of unanswered buckets, a long fastbreak three-pointer from the wing by Jillian Mannarino gave SVC a 33-17 advantage at the close of the quarter.

The teams traded baskets over the opening two minutes of the fourth frame, before SVC's lead would again reach 18, 43-25, on a corner three from Makenna Maier with 6:40 left in regulation. A layup by Mara Polcyznski with 6:15 left would then energize the visitors who promptly took control. Over the next 5:15, the Wolverines outscored the Bearcats 17-2 to cut the deficit to 45-42 on a Jaden Davinsizer fastbreak layup with 59 seconds remaining. Following the bucket, the Bearcats looked to eat time off of the clock, but missed a shot with two seconds left on the shot clock. The Bearcat defense would then force a Grove City miss with 10 seconds left, and Cavacini was promptly fouled. She would hit the first of two attempts at the line to push the lead to 46-42, and the rebound on the miss came right back to the Bearcats. Cavacini was fouled again, making the second attempt to push the lead to five. Grove City scored a quick layup to again cut the gap to three with two seconds left, and Cavacini drew another foul, this time making both shots with less than a second left to ice the game.

In the defensive battle, each team shot just 29 percent from the field, with SVC going 17-for-59 and Grove City 17-for-58. The two teams also shot nearly identically from behind the arc, with SVC going 3-for-23 and Grove City 3-for-21, but the Bearcats connected on 12 of 18 free throws, compared to the Wolverines' 7-for-13 performance from the line. Grove City held a slight 45-45 advantage on the glass, but the Bearcats forced 22 turnovers while committing just 17.

Clara Hannon led Grove City with 11 points and nine rebounds, while Kat Goetz scored 10 points.

Saint Vincent will return to action on Saturday, Dec. 6, playing its final home game of the 2023 calendar year with a 4 p.m. matinee against PAC foe Geneva College.