Saturday, February 21
Moraga, CA
5:00 PM
Saint Mary's College of California
15-14,6-10WCC
60
vs
61
San Francisco
16-11,9-7WCC
1
2
3
4
OT 1
F
San Francisco
6
12
19
19
5
61
Saint Mary's (CA)
16
16
14
10
4
60
Photo by: Saint Mary's Athletics / Tod Fierner
WBB | Gaels Go Down to the Wire with Dons but Fall in Overtime on Senior Night
2/21/2026 9:21:00 PM | Women's Basketball
MORAGA, Calif. - The Saint Mary's women's basketball team found themselves in another dog fight Saturday night inside UCU Pavilion as the Gaels fell narrowly to San Francisco 61-60 in overtime fashion.
San Francisco (16-11, 9-7 WCC) climbed all the way back after being down as many as 16 points in the first half but Saint Mary's (15-14, 6-10 WCC) hit a three-pointer with four seconds remaining thanks to Abigail Shoff to help send the game to overtime. Both teams combined for just nine points in the overtime period but the Dons hit a three ball of their own with 15 seconds remaining and got two defensive stops to hang on.
Shoff tied her career high again with 19 points with 11 of those points coming in the second half and overtime combined. Jada Hunter also reached double-figures with 12 points off the bench and sophomore guard Mauriana Hashemian-Orr added eight points for the Gaels.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Saint Mary's got it done on both ends of the floor to start the game, holding San Francisco to just six points in the opening quarter and 18 for the first half while also putting together back-to-back 16-point quarters to take a 14-point lead at the half. Abigail Shoff and Jada Hunter had eight points apiece and the Gaels also had five of their six bench players score points contributing to a +19 scoring advantage in bench points in the first 20 minutes.
Junior transfer Charlece Ohiaeri hit a corner three-pointer with 3:07 remaining in the second quarter to give the Gaels a game high 16-point lead. 11 forced turnovers, nine steals, four three-pointers and 50% shooting from the field helped contribute to a complete half and a 14-point lead at the break for the Gaels.
USF had its work cut but got things moving in the right direction with a 19-point third quarter. The Dons started to pile up the forced turnovers, recording six in the third quarter alone, and were able to get downhill and score in transition. They were just 1-for-5 from three-point range but shot 46% from the field and also hit six free throws in the period, cutting the deficit to nine points heading into the fourth.
San Francisco took its first lead of the game since the opening quarter after a layup from Candy Edokpaigbe, forcing a timeout from SMC head coach Jeff Cammon. After a pair of made free throws, the Gaels were down to their final offensive possession needing a three-pointer to tie. Two offensive rebounds inside the final ten seconds would allow a second attempt from Shoff, who buried a wing three with four seconds remaining to tie the game at 56. The Gaels defended two shot attempts on the other end including a block from Edie Clarke as time expired to send the game to overtime.
Shoff continued her scoring with a made jumper to start the OT period, giving the Gaels a 58-56 lead. USF tied the game the very next possession with a second chance layup inside as the game would remain tied at 58 until the final minute of the overtime period.
Jada Hunter connected on a signature pull-up jumper off the ball screen to take a 60-58 lead but the Dons hit a kickout three to take a 61-60 lead the ensuing possession with 15 seconds remaining. A SMC timeout would advance the ball but San Francisco successfully defended a floater in the lane from Hunter that rimmed out as time expired to seal the dramatic one-point victory.
Saint Mary's now sits in a tie for 8th place in the WCC standings along with Pacific at 6-10. The two teams will duke out in their final two regular season games next week to decide the ninth seed in the Credit Union 1 WCC Basketball Championship starting on March 5.
GAME NOTES
Saint Mary's will head to the Pacific Northwest next week for their final two games of the regular season, taking on Gonzaga on Thursday and then Washington State in the finale on Saturday.
Be sure to follow your Gaels on Facebook, Instagram, and X to get all the latest Saint Mary's athletics updates and information.
#GaelsRise
San Francisco (16-11, 9-7 WCC) climbed all the way back after being down as many as 16 points in the first half but Saint Mary's (15-14, 6-10 WCC) hit a three-pointer with four seconds remaining thanks to Abigail Shoff to help send the game to overtime. Both teams combined for just nine points in the overtime period but the Dons hit a three ball of their own with 15 seconds remaining and got two defensive stops to hang on.
Shoff tied her career high again with 19 points with 11 of those points coming in the second half and overtime combined. Jada Hunter also reached double-figures with 12 points off the bench and sophomore guard Mauriana Hashemian-Orr added eight points for the Gaels.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Saint Mary's got it done on both ends of the floor to start the game, holding San Francisco to just six points in the opening quarter and 18 for the first half while also putting together back-to-back 16-point quarters to take a 14-point lead at the half. Abigail Shoff and Jada Hunter had eight points apiece and the Gaels also had five of their six bench players score points contributing to a +19 scoring advantage in bench points in the first 20 minutes.
Junior transfer Charlece Ohiaeri hit a corner three-pointer with 3:07 remaining in the second quarter to give the Gaels a game high 16-point lead. 11 forced turnovers, nine steals, four three-pointers and 50% shooting from the field helped contribute to a complete half and a 14-point lead at the break for the Gaels.
USF had its work cut but got things moving in the right direction with a 19-point third quarter. The Dons started to pile up the forced turnovers, recording six in the third quarter alone, and were able to get downhill and score in transition. They were just 1-for-5 from three-point range but shot 46% from the field and also hit six free throws in the period, cutting the deficit to nine points heading into the fourth.
San Francisco took its first lead of the game since the opening quarter after a layup from Candy Edokpaigbe, forcing a timeout from SMC head coach Jeff Cammon. After a pair of made free throws, the Gaels were down to their final offensive possession needing a three-pointer to tie. Two offensive rebounds inside the final ten seconds would allow a second attempt from Shoff, who buried a wing three with four seconds remaining to tie the game at 56. The Gaels defended two shot attempts on the other end including a block from Edie Clarke as time expired to send the game to overtime.
Shoff continued her scoring with a made jumper to start the OT period, giving the Gaels a 58-56 lead. USF tied the game the very next possession with a second chance layup inside as the game would remain tied at 58 until the final minute of the overtime period.
Jada Hunter connected on a signature pull-up jumper off the ball screen to take a 60-58 lead but the Dons hit a kickout three to take a 61-60 lead the ensuing possession with 15 seconds remaining. A SMC timeout would advance the ball but San Francisco successfully defended a floater in the lane from Hunter that rimmed out as time expired to seal the dramatic one-point victory.
Saint Mary's now sits in a tie for 8th place in the WCC standings along with Pacific at 6-10. The two teams will duke out in their final two regular season games next week to decide the ninth seed in the Credit Union 1 WCC Basketball Championship starting on March 5.
GAME NOTES
- Abigail Shoff led the Gaels with 19 points for her eighth straight game in double-figures.
- Jada Hunter recorded 12 points off the bench for her sixth game of the season in double-figures.
- Saint Mary's shot 43% from the field compared to just 36% from San Francisco.
- The Gaels outscored the Dons 33-2 in bench points; lead the WCC and rank 11th in the country with 27.5 bench points per game.
- The Gaels also got back to double-digit steals with 14 on the night; they rank second in the WCC with 10.2 steals per game.
- Saint Mary's led for over 35 of the game's 45 minutes on the night
- Malia Latu had a season high six assists
- Seniors Georgia Grigoropoulou, Malia Latu and Melesungu Afeaki were also honored pregame for the Gaels
Saint Mary's will head to the Pacific Northwest next week for their final two games of the regular season, taking on Gonzaga on Thursday and then Washington State in the finale on Saturday.
Be sure to follow your Gaels on Facebook, Instagram, and X to get all the latest Saint Mary's athletics updates and information.
#GaelsRise
Team Stats
USF
SMC
FG%
.367
.426
3FG%
.185
.333
FT%
.545
.600
RB
41
38
TO
20
22
STL
13
14
Game Leaders
Pts
19
FGM
8
3FGM
3
FTM
0
Pts
12
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Pts
8
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Pts
6
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
PF
/ Women's BasketballPF
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's BasketballWBB | Saint Mary's vs. San Francisco Highlights, 2-21-26
Saturday, February 21
WBB | Saint Mary's at Santa Clara Highlights, 2-19-26
Thursday, February 19
WBB | Jeff Cammon Postgame Interview vs. Seattle U, 2-16-26
Monday, February 16
WBB | Saint Mary's vs. Seattle U Highlights, 2-16-26
Monday, February 16
