MORAGA, Calif. — Saturday afternoon marked the final home game of the season for Saint Mary's Women's Basketball, as the Gaels honored their four outstanding seniors. Those seniors helped play a role in Saint Mary's hanging in there for nearly three quarters against a tough BYU Cougars squad, but BYU was able to pull ahead late and secure a 79-61 win over the Gaels inside University Credit Union Pavilion. BYU improves to 14-3 (10-2) on the season while Saint Mary's wraps up play at home with a mark of 5-16 (3-12).
 
KEEPING IT CLOSE
For the first 25 minutes or so, it never felt like the Gaels were out of the game. That probably has to do a lot with the fact that Saint Mary's was taking care of the basketball and making timely shots. Down by just five going into the second quarter, the Cougars opened up a 12-point lead with 6:14 remaining before Saint Mary's went on a 12-0 run to tie the game. A bevy of players got involved in the scoring, with Madeline Holland hitting the first bucket, and Amy West hit a pair of shots. Brianna Simonich gave the Gaels a brief lead before half when she hit a three from the top of the arc, but BYU answered, taking a 38-37 lead going into the break.
 
BOMBS AWAY
Both teams combined to make just four three-pointers in the opening half, but the game opened up immediately in the third quarter. Taycee Wedin began hitting threes at a rapid pace, knocking down a trio of triples in the quarter to put up 11 points. She was met shot for shot by Paisley Harding and Shaylee Gonzales of BYU, however, who each hit a pair of shots from distance in the quarter. After Saint Mary's and BYU traded buckets for a period of time, with the Gaels going up two and then down by one again, BYU opened up a 20-6 run to extend the game to a 13-point lead, one they would never relinquish.
 
YOU LOVE TO SEE IT
Saint Mary's received a pair of big performances from a pair of players who made their biggest impacts of the season. Hannah Rapp saw the most minutes of her collegiate career with 23, and she responded with the first double-digit scoring performance of her young career. Rapp totaled 11 points in the game on 4-9 from the floor, added a pair of rebounds, a steal, and an assist. The Gaels also welcomed back West into the mix after missing most of the season with a shoulder injury. West looked good when on the floor, with nine points and eight rebounds to tie for the team lead in boards with Simonich. While she didn't score often, Leia Hanafin had a nice afternoon, with four rebounds and a career-best four assists, while also blocking two shots (part of a season-best seven blocks for Saint Mary's).
 
UP NEXT
The Gaels will spend the remainder of the regular season on the road, as they have a pair of games in Southern California next week. Saint Mary's will look to snap its losing streak against a pair of teams they beat at home earlier this season when they travel to LMU on Thursday, February 18 at 6:00 pm and Pepperdine on February 20 at 3:00 pm.