ST. MARY'S CITY, Md. - Junior forward Easter Faafiti (Pittsburg, Calif.) had another monster game for the Gallaudet University women's basketball team as she poured in 20 points and ripped down a season-high 20 rebounds, but the Bison could not overcome a slow start as they lost to Capital Athletic Conference foe St. Mary's (Md.) College, 74-59, on Saturday afternoon at the ARC Arena. 

Gallaudet (9-5, 4-3 CAC) struggled from the field early on as the Bison missed their first five attempts and St. Mary's (3-11, 2-4 CAC) took advantage as it opened the game on a 15-0 run. Sophomore Andrea Amati (Frederick, Md.) ended the run with a field goal at the 14:01 mark as the offense began to chip away at the deficit. The Bison limped into halftime down 12, 35-23.

St. Mary's extended its lead back to 15 points, 43-27, three-minutes into the second half which caused a Gallaudet timeout. After the timeout, the Bison found some rhythm on the offensive end thanks to a strong second half by Faafiti. She sparked a 9-2 run, as she scored four of the nine points to help cut the Seahawk lead to eight, 47-39, with 13:04 left to play. Faafiti netted 13 of her 20 points in the second half and also grabbed nine rebounds (five offensive), three steals and a block to record her ninth double-double of the season.

Despite a 40-30 rebound advantage, which included a 17-9 edge on the offensive glass, the Bison were unable to trim the deficit further. The Seahawks responded with another 13-0 run to put the game out of reach. Freshman Ann Whited (Fishers, Ind.) and junior Nukeitra Hayes (Anderson, Ind.) both reached double figures in loss as they chipped in 11 and 10 points, respectively. 

The Seahawks had an outstanding game on the offensive end as they shot 50 percent from the field and had four players reach double figures in points led by a team-high 20-point effort from senior Steph Saint-Aubin. Gallaudet turned the ball over 29 times, a season-high, which led to 32 Seahawk points.

Gallaudet will look to get back on track next Wednesday, January 20, as the Bison return to the friendly confines of the Field House, where they have posted an 8-1 record this season. GU will host CAC opponent Wesley College at 6 p.m.