WBB | Gaels Bang Ten Three’s but Fall on Opening Night to Stanford in Maples Pavilion

Wednesday, November 4

Stanford, CA

7:00 PM

Saint Mary's College of California

0-1,0-0WCC

Stanford

1-1,0-0ACC

Team	1	2	3	4	F
Saint Mary's (CA)	12	17	16	9	54
Stanford	25	19	21	22	87

Highlights

11/4/2026 10:34:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score Highlights

STANFORD, Calif. - The Saint Mary's women's basketball team battled the Stanford Cardinal in its season debut on Wednesday and fell 87-54. Three Gaels reached double-figures including a team-high 14 points from transfer guard Lihi Azouri. Saint Mary's eclipsed last season's highest single-game three-point total with ten made three's on the night including four from Azouri. Stanford dominated the paint though with more than half its points coming from inside as they ran away with the 87-54 victory for their first of the 2026-27 season.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Saint Mary's threw the first punch to kick off its season, jumping out to a 4-2 lead after a made three-pointer from freshman guard Lucy Aherne. The made three told the story of the first half for the Gaels as they combined to make eight three's over the first 20 minutes of action. Aherne as well as sophomore transfer Lihi Azouri lit it up from beyond the arc, combining for six of the team's eight three's in the first half.

Turnovers plagued the Gaels though as Stanford was able to get out on the fastbreak and force eight turnovers in the opening period. In the half court, Saint Mary's did a good job stifling the Cardinal offense as they were just 2-for-8 from three-point range. Despite that, Stanford did all its work on the interior, outscoring the Gaels 26-4 in the paint thanks to 15 forced turnovers in the first half. Azouri and Aherne led the Gaels with nine points apiece at the break as well as five points and a pair of rebounds for freshman Evelyn Tounkara in her ten minutes off the bench.

The Gaels started the second half on a 7-3 run to cut the deficit to eleven. Azouri was at it again with five of the seven points during that stretch including another deep three ball to start the quarter. Saint Mary's put up 16 points on 47% shooting but the three-point well ran dry, finishing the third quarter just 1-for-5 from downtown. Stanford also shot 47% from the field but earned ten free throw attempts in the quarter to grow its lead to 20 heading into the fourth. The Cardinal ran away with things in the final period, outscoring the Gaels 22-9 to solidify the 87-54 victory for their first of the season.

Three Gaels reached double-figures including a team-high 14 points from Azouri. Aherne was close behind with 13 points on 50% shooting from the field while Tounkara scored 11 for the Gaels in her 23 minutes off the bench.

GAME NOTES

Lihi Azouri finished with a team-high 14 points on 5-of-8 shooting and four made three-pointers
Lucy Aherne had 13 points in her collegiate debut along with three made three's
Evelyn Tounkara scored 11 points in her collegiate debut; both Tounkara and Aherne became the first freshmen to reach double-figures in their debuts since Zeryhia Aokuso scored 17 points in her collegiate debut back in 2023
Abigail Shoff grabbed a team-high seven rebounds
Niveya Henley led the team with three assists in her SMC debut
Saint Mary's shot 50% from three and hit ten three-pointers on the night, the most made three's in a single-game since hitting 11 against Louisiana Monroe (11/24/24)
Eight total players made their Saint Mary's debut while six freshmen made their collegiate debuts Wednesday night

LOOKING AHEAD

Saint Mary's will continue its opening week and head to Colorado Springs to take on Air Force on Saturday, November 7. Tip-off is slated for 12:00 PM pacific time and all the action can be streamed live on Mountain West+.

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