HOUSTON, Texas – The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor women's basketball team closed 2024 with a 61-49 win over the University of St. Thomas (Houston) Tuesday in Houston. The win improved the Cru to 9-4 on the season while the Celts fell to 2-6.
 
Josie Bruder opened the contest with back-to-back three-pointers before Katelen Brooks added a jumper for an 8-0 lead. Rachel Okoye added five more points to put the Cru up by 13 before the Celts finally got on the board at 6:10. Okoye added another layup, followed by a layup from Karlee Cronk for a 15-point margin. Okoye hit a foul shot at 3:06 for a 16-point lead before the game went into scoreless play for more than three minutes. Bruder ended the quarter the way she started it, banking a three-pointer for a 21-2 lead.
 
The second quarter played scoreless for 1:59 before Audrey Hernandez hit a three-pointer for the Celts. St. Thomas cut the Cru's lead to 15 with another three-pointer but the Cru continued to score, taking a 20-point lead with 3:58 to play in the frame. The Celts dwindled the lead down to 17 twice but Bruder again ended the frame with a field goal, giving UMHB a 34-15 first-half lead.
 
Bruder totaled 20 points in the first half, going 7-for-12 in field goals and 2-for-2 in foul shots.
 
UMHB led by as many as 26 points in the third quarter, limiting the Celts to just 11 points in the frame. St. Thomas chipped away at the lead in the fourth but the Cru stayed on top, cruising to the 61-49 win.
 
Eleven different athletes saw playing time for the Cru with points scored from eight. Bruder ended the game with 25 points, followed by Okoye with 12. UMHB shot 41.1 percent in the contest, scoring 24 points in the paint and 18 off turnovers.
 
Jaycie Brisco led the Cru with 10 rebounds and five assists while Keziah Bachert added a team-high three steals.
 
UMHB returns to action on Friday, January 3^rd in a 2 p.m. contest against UC Santa Cruz at the Mayborn Campus Center in Belton.