Women’s Basketball Skates Past Billikens in Senior Day Match-Up 

The Loyola women’s basketball team narrowly defeated Saint Louis University March 1 in a 63-62 victory. Tanin led the Ramblers with a double-double, scoring a total of 17 points and grabbing 11 rebounds, while several Billikens posted double-digit scores, including first-year guard Shun’teria Anumele, third-year guard Brooklyn Gray, fourth-year forward Tierra Simon and graduate forward Peyton Kennedy. 

Prior to the start of the game, five graduating players — graduate guard Naelle Bernard, fourth-year guard Jess Finney, fourth-year forward Destiny Jackson, graduate guard Thoranna Kika Hodge-Carr and graduate forward Sitori Tanin — were honored for their dedication to the Loyola program. 

Tanin said she was happy to cap off a successful senior season with a win in Gentile alongside her team. 

Tanin grabbed the opening tipoff for the Ramblers and hit two free throws after being fouled by Billiken’s graduate forward Mya Glanton, giving the Ramblers an early lead. 

Saint Louis graduate forward Peyton Kennedy drained a 3-pointer following a Loyola shot clock violation to take the 3-2 lead.

After a missed Bernard three, third-year guard Emma Theodorsson grabbed the rebound and found Finney for a three-pointer, allowing Loyola to keep pace down 6-5. 

The Billikens then went on a scoring run with layups by Simon and Gray and a three-pointer by Kennedy to give them a 10-7 lead. 

With just under four minutes left in the first quarter, the Billikens were up 15-7 after a steal by Gray led to a layup. Loyola cut the lead to 17-14 at the end of the quarter after Tanin managed a layup alongside a 3-pointer from Bernard. 

With less than a minute into the second quarter, a foul was called on Billiken’s Glanton, allowing Tanin to shoot two free throws. Tanin missed the first but made the second, making the score 17-15. 

With eight minutes left in the half, Kennedy drained a three for the Billikens to take a 20-15 lead. Kennedy grabbed her own miss and layed it in for two, leading to a 24-17 advantage for the Billikens.

Over six minutes into the second quarter, Saint Louis extended their lead to 29-17, capped by a three from Shun’teria Anumele. The gap increased further as Gray had a successful trip to the line and Anumele scored another three.

With 11 seconds left, Tanin snuck in a layup, but Anumele remained hot with another three to end the half at 34-21. 

Each team traded five points to start the third quarter, with third-year guard Emma Theodorsson hitting a 3-pointer and two free throws. 

With under six minutes left in the quarter, Gray finished a layup for a 43-29 score, marking the beginning of a Billikens scoring drought for the rest of the quarter. 

A three-point play from second-year guard Rosalie Mercille helped the Ramblers close the gap on the Billikens 43-37. Finney made a layup with 12 seconds to go. 

Guth said the game’s momentum shifted for the Ramblers after a big play from Mercille. 

“When Rosalie got to the basket off of a drive, got an and one score, I thought the vibe, the energy, was intense,” Guth said.

Theodorsson closed out the quarter with two free throws, making the score 43-41.

Mercille kicked off fourth quarter scoring with a three-point play on a layup which tied the game. She hit the following free throw to retake the lead for Loyola. 

The Billikens quickly tied it back up at 47 apiece after fourth-year guard Kennedy Calhoun had a successful trip at the line. Hodge-Carr drained a three to give Loyola the lead back. 

After several minutes of back-and-forth play, with Saint Louis jumping ahead again, Tanin finished a tip-in to tie the game at 56. Theodorsson’s free throw gave the Ramblers a one-point lead with three minutes left. 

A string of fouls by both teams allowed Loyola to go up 61-58 with under two minutes left.

Chivers drew her fifth and final foul on Anumele, allowing the Billikens to catch up with a score of 60-61. Anumele missed her free throw for a failed three-point play opportunity.

Following a Loyola timeout, called with one minute remaining, Theodorsson made a layup to snatch the lead. Despite the Billikens calling a timeout with 45 seconds left in the game, they were unable to muster a response, as the Ramblers secured a 63-62 win. 

Guth said she’s proud of the team’s performance on senior night, being able to grab a team victory in honor of the five upperclassmen. 

“So I think, like our commitment and to see two wins near the end here, because we’ve struggled,” Guth said. “We keep it a bunk with you. We’ve struggled. So for us to get two wins and to send these guys out the way that they’ve poured their blood, sweat, and tears, and that’s what it’s all about, and the team did it for these guys.”