Notre Dame opened their run to a National Championship on Friday with a dominant, team-oriented 106-54 win over Stephen F. Austin at Purcell Pavilion in a first-round matchup.
Photo via Notre Dame Athletics
The Ladyjacks started the game hot, opening the contest with back-to-back made threes as part of an 8-2 run in the first 2:11. The Irish quickly responded with a 10-0 run led by Maddy Westbeld with six points as Notre Dame gained a 12-8 lead about halfway through the quarter. SFA was held without a made field goal from 7:49 - 0:53 as the Irish finished the first quarter doubling the Ladyjacks points, 26-13. Hannah Hidalgo led first-quarter scorers with eight points, and she received support from Liza Karlen with seven and Westbeld with six.
The second quarter was more of a back-and-forth contest as both defenses played a bit stronger in this frame. Notre Dame’s Sonia Citron was the difference-maker in these ten minutes as she poured in eight points including two threes. The Ladyjacks ended the half with a buzzer-beating layup as the Irish entered the break with a 46-25 lead.
One key piece to the successful first half for the Irish was their dominance in the turnover battle, forcing 13 SFA errors while committing just six turnovers themselves. Sonia Citron had three blocks while Kate Koval added another pair. In the steals department, Hidalgo found three steals while Liza Karlen also added a pair. Accordingly, the Irish led in points off turnovers 14-3 at the half. Additionally, Notre Dame also dominated the boards, out-rebounding SFA 24-14 with Hidalgo leading the way with six despite her 5-6 height.
A high-scoring third quarter saw the Irish continue their domination, out-scoring SFA 32-16 in the frame. Notre Dame went on a 12-0 run from 9:23 - 7:22 led by Liatu King with six points to extend their lead to 30, 58-28. Following a pair of baskets from the Ladyjacks, the Irish responded with a 9-0 run thanks to three straight SFA turnovers which extended the lead to 67-33 with 5:17 remaining in the quarter. The rest of the frame was back-and-forth as a Westbeld hook shot with a second on the clock gave Notre Dame a 78-41 lead heading into the final quarter. Hidalgo led third-quarter scorers with 11 points as Citron contributed nine in the frame.
With an 82-43 lead and 8:44 to play, the entire arena went silent as Olivia Miles lay on the court, holding her ankle. She remained down for a couple of minutes but was able to walk to the locker room under her own power. Miles would not return to this contest with the result in hand. This will be something to monitor before Sunday’s second-round game.
Following the tense moments, Notre Dame went on an 8-0 run to take a 90-43 lead with 6:27 remaining. Just after the halfway point of this quarter, Notre Dame unloaded their bench. Walk-on Luci Jensen buried a three, marking her first career points, to extend the Irish lead to 98-47 with 3:58 to play. Sarah Cernugel, another walk-on, knocked down a jumper to put Notre Dame in triple digits. Bella Tehrani added her second made field goal of the season on a layup with 1:07 remaining. SFA hit a layup with 18 seconds left as Notre Dame protected their home court with a 106-54 first-round victory.
Notre Dame will host the six-seed Michigan Wolverines in a second-round matchup on Sunday.
Irish Stars
Hannah Hidalgo: 24 points (11-18 FGs), 6 rebounds, 5 assists, 5 steals, +44
Sonia Citron: 24 points (9-16 FGs, 4-8 3FGs), 7 rebounds, 4 steals, 3 blocks, +48
Liza Karlen: 13 points (6-7 FGs), 10 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals, +39
Key Team Stats
Field Goal Percentage: ND (56%) - SFA (33%)
Three Point Percentage: ND (37%) - SFA (27%)
Free Throw Percentage: ND (90%) - SFA (82%)
Turnovers: SFA (28) - ND (11)
Points Off Turnovers: ND (38) - SFA (5)
Steals: ND (18) - SFA (4)
Blocks: ND (9) - SFA (1)
Rebounds: ND (44) - SFA (30)
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