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Gallaudet University

OFFICIAL ATHLETICS SITE OF THE GALLAUDET UNIVERSITY BISON
GALLAUDET UNIVERSITY BISON
Gallaudet women's basketball player Claire Ruiz-Tucker is pumped up after a big win for the Bison.
61
Winner Gallaudet GALW 10-8, 7-2 UEC
54
St. Mary's (MD) SMCW 11-7, 8-1 UEC
Winner
Gallaudet GALW
10-8, 7-2 UEC
61
Final
54
St. Mary's (MD) SMCW
11-7, 8-1 UEC
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Gallaudet GALW 10 11 19 21 61
St. Mary's (MD) SMCW 19 15 6 14 54

Game Recap: Women's Basketball | | Sam Atkinson, Associate AD for Communications

Gallaudet women's team hands St. Mary's (Md.) first conference loss after being down 15 points

ST. MARY'S CITY, Md. – There is no quit in the 2024-25 Gallaudet University women's basketball team.

The Bison faced a 15-point deficit in the second quarter Wednesday night against St. Mary's College of Maryland in the Michael P. O'Brien Athletics & Recreation Center Arena but rallied in the second half.

GU outscored the host Seahawks, 40-20, over the course of the final 20 minutes of play to rally and win a key United East conference game, 61-54.

Gallaudet (10-8, 7-2 United East) increases its win streak to seven games as the Bison handed St. Mary's (11-7, 8-1 United East) its first conference loss of the season. The loss also ended the Seahawks' five-game win streak.

The Bison went into halftime down 13 points, 34-21, to the Seahawks but came out focused as they played with an edge. GU scored the first nine points in a two-minute span before the Seahawks notched their first bucket of the quarter.

Senior guard Raj Guettler (Frederick, Md.) made a jumper to knot the game at 36 all at the 3:03 mark in the third. Minutes later, first-year forward Sophia Wascher (Noblesville, Ind.) made a layup with 1:24 left in the third to give GU its first lead since the first basket of the game.

Gallaudet outscored St. Mary's, 19-6, in the critical third quarter as the teams were tied 40-40 as they entered the fourth.

The Bison leaned on their veteran players in the fourth as the quarter saw two lead changes and one tie during the first three minutes.

Junior center Hannah Puent (Indianapolis, Ind.) made a free throw at the 6:34 mark to give GU a 47-46 lead. The Bison would not relinquish the lead for the remainder of the game even though the Seahawks pulled to within one point, two different times.

The Bison made 5-of-6 free throws in the fourth quarter and shot 61.5 percent from the field (8 for 13), the highest field goal percentage in a quarter the buff and blue posted in the game.

St. Mary's made seven 3-pointers with over half of them in the first half.

GU had four different players in double figures led by senior guard Claire Ruiz-Tucker (Middletown, Md.) with 15 points, nine rebounds, four assists and three steals. Guettler finished a double-double with 13 points and 11 boards and added three steals. Puent chipped in 12 points, five rebounds and three steals while sophomore guard Cam Lexow (Abington, Pa.) tallied 11 points, eight boards, two assists, two steals and one block.

Lexow, the defending United East Women's Basketball Defensive Player of the Week, grabbed seven of her eight rebounds on the defensive end of the court.

Gallaudet's defense clamped down St. Mary's forward Keira Mason, the reigning United East Women's Basketball Offensive Player of the Week. Mason was held to single digits for points (six) for the fifth time this season as she made 3-of-11 shots from the field.

St. Mary's was led by Samantha Blaylock and Olivia Liszt who finished with 14 and 11 points, respectively. Mason grabbed a team-high six rebounds and made a game-high five steals in the loss.

BISON TRACKS
  • First-year forward Mackenzie Schirg (Factoryville, Pa.) made a game-high two blocks to go with five points, three boards and three assists
  • GU scored 34 points in the paint and made 18 second chance points off 16 offensive rebounds
  • The Bison outrebounded the Seahawks, 45-33
  • GU made 25 field goals in both meetings against St. Mary's this season
  • The Seahawks won the previous meeting 66-61 on Nov. 26, 2024, in the Field House
  • This is the second straight game Gallaudet went 25 for 60 (.417 percent) from the field
  • This was GU's second straight win at the Michael P. O'Brien Athletics & Recreation Center Arena
  • Prior to last season's win at St. Mary's, the Bison had lost 10 straight in St. Mary's City, Md., dating back to 2004
  • GU is now 34-28 against the Seahawks dating back to 1982
UP NEXT
Gallaudet returns home to host Penn College of Technology (11-8, 8-2 United East) this Saturday, Jan. 25, at 1 p.m. in a key conference game between two of the top teams in the United East. Penn College won the earlier meeting with Gallaudet, 66-59 at home, on Dec. 7, 2024.
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