WINTER PARK, Fla. (January 8, 2025) - Playing in their first game since December 16, women's basketball came out of the gates on fire, using a big first quarter to earn a win over Saint Leo, 78-62. The victory moves Rollins to 7-6, 2-4 SSC on the year while the Lions fall to 7-7, 2-5 SSC.
Coming off a loss to Tampa that saw Rollins only manage 48 points, they exploded for 30 in the first quarter on Wednesday. Whether it was working the paint, or making an extra pass for a wide open three, the Tars were cooking in all facets of the offense, shooting 13-20 (65%) in the opening frame.
Maddie Dillinger led the way with eight points, helping Rollins to a 30-15 lead after one.
The second quarter saw both teams struggle to maintain their pace from the first quarter. However, once the Tars got going, they were able to use their size advantage to earn easy buckets in the paint. In fact, the final ten points of the period scored by Rollins all came on layups. they took a 46-15 lead into halftime.
Rollins came out of the break hot once more, with
Ajalon Gillard scoring five points on the first two possessions, followed by triples from
Claire Erickson and two from
Kaitlyn Sanders. The lead would grow as high as 26 points when
Aaliyah Irizarry-Perez earned a layup off a nice feed from Sanders to make it 69-43 with 2:58 to go. The Lions chipped away at the lead though, and made it 70-51 after three.
The Tars ran out of gas in the fourth, but still maintained their conference-leading defense, limiting the Lions to only eleven points in the final frame. A Sanders layup with 3:25 to play would be the final points of the game for the Tars, who held on for a 78-62 win.
Sanders was the standout in this one, stuffing the stat sheet to the tune of 24 points, seven rebounds, five assists, and two steals.
Maddie Dillinger added a double-double with 11 points and 13 boards, while Irizarry-Perez chipped in nine points and eleven rebounds of her own. The Tars managed to clean the glass 51 times in the game; they came into the game ranked fourth in the country in rebounds, averaging 46.3 per contest.
Next up for the Tars is another home game on Saturday, January 11. Rollins will play host to Lynn University, with tipoff scheduled for 2:00 pm at Warden Arena.
