MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – Coastal Georgia battled back from a 15-point deficit but ultimately fell short in a 83-79 loss to St. Thomas on Saturday afternoon at the Fernandez Family Center.
The Mariners (11-4, 2-2) struggled early, trailing 23-14 after the first quarter as St. Thomas shot 50 percent from the field. Taylor Blackshear scored the game's first basket, but turnovers and cold shooting plagued Coastal Georgia in the opening period as they connected on just 33.3 percent of their attempts.
Coastal Georgia found its rhythm in the second quarter, outscoring the Bobcats 22-14 behind strong shooting from Hadiya Kennerly, who scored seven of her 11 points in the period. The Mariners cut the deficit to one point on a three-pointer by Amanda Roach with 8:13 remaining in the half, but St. Thomas carried a 37-36 advantage into the locker room.
The third quarter proved costly for the Mariners as St. Thomas expanded its lead to 15 points at 52-37 with 6:44 remaining in the period. Coastal Georgia shot just 25 percent from the floor in the quarter while the Bobcats capitalized on transition opportunities. Niya Moon provided a spark off the bench with back-to-back three-pointers late in the third to help trim the deficit, but the Mariners still faced a 63-57 gap entering the final period.
Coastal Georgia mounted an impressive fourth-quarter comeback, outscoring St. Thomas 22-20 down the stretch. Blackshear was perfect from the field in the period, going 2-for-2 with four made free throws to score eight points. Moon added five more points, and Abby Shepard connected on a crucial three-pointer to pull the Mariners within two at 75-73 with 1:36 remaining. Kennerly's layup with 14 seconds left made it 81-79, but St. Thomas sealed the victory at the free-throw line.
Blackshear led all Coastal Georgia scorers with 16 points on 4-of-11 shooting while adding eight free throws. Moon provided 13 points off the bench on 5-of-10 shooting, including three three-pointers. Alli Stone contributed 12 points in 21 minutes, while Kennerly finished with 11 points and four rebounds.
The Mariners were outscored in the paint 36-24 and committed 25 turnovers compared to just 20 for St. Thomas. Coastal Georgia shot 34.2 percent from the field and 31.3 percent from three-point range, though they were strong at the free-throw line, converting 19 of 24 attempts for 79.2 percent.
The Mariners will look to regroup as they continue conference play. Despite the loss, Coastal Georgia showed resilience in fighting back from the double-digit deficit and will aim to build on that fourth-quarter performance moving forward.
