SOUTH BEND, Ind. - The Southern Utah University women's basketball team's historic season came to an end against Notre Dame, as the Thunderbirds fell in their first ever NCAA Tournament appearance 82-56 to the Irish at Joyce Center on Friday, Mar. 17.

Southern Utah finishes a tremendous season with a 23-10 record, while Notre Dame improves to 26-5 overall.

Individual Leaders

Megan Jensen scored a team-high 11 points and pulled down five rebounds during the game. Jensen shot the ball efficiently, connecting on five of her nine attempts from the field.

Samantha Johnston (9), Tomekia Whitman (9), and Cherita Daugherty (8) each chipped in offensively for SUU.

Lizzy Williamson led the team in rebounds with seven, while Johnston served as the primary distributor with five assists.

First Half

Notre Dame jumped out to a 16-0 advantage over the first 4:26 of play.

Williamson ended the run with a layup to make the score 16-2 with 5:22 on the clock.

The Irish responded with a quick 4-1 burst, with Daugherty knocking down a free throw for SUU, to build a 20-3 lead with 4:27 left.

The two squads traded buckets for the remainder of the quarter, splitting the next fourteen points. Jensen scored five and Whitman added a jumper for the Thunderbirds to make the score 27-10 in favor of the Irish at the end of the first quarter.

Notre Dame began the second quarter with a 14-2 burst to claim a 41-12 lead with 5:51 remaining in the half.

SUU scored five consecutive points over the next 1:06, with Johnston drilling a three pointer and Whitman knocking down a jumper.

After the Irish added two points to their total with a jump shot, the Thunderbirds caught fire, ending the quarter with a 7-0 run to cut Notre Dame's lead to 43-24 heading into the break.

Second Half

The two squads traded baskets to begin the third quarter, with Daugherty connecting on a jumper to make the score 45-26 with 8:48 left.

Notre Dame extended its lead to 58-27 with an 11-1 run over the next 1:32 of play. 

Southern Utah continued to battle, mounting a 15-12 sprint to finish the third period.

The Thunderbirds never gave up, outscoring Notre Dame 14-12 in the fourth quarter, but it wasn't enough as the Irish would come away with a 82-56 victory.

Historic Season

• In its inaugural season in the Western Athletic Conference, Southern Utah finished WAC play with a 16-2 overall record en route to claiming the regular season title.

• The Thunderbirds swept the WAC Tournament 3-0 to clinch the conference tournament crown.

• SUU punched its ticket to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history.

• Head Coach Tracy Sanders secured the award for WAC Coach of the year after leading her squad to a career-best 23 wins.

• Lizzy Williamson was named the WAC Defensive Player of the Year after averaging 10.1 rebounds and 2.3 blocks per game.

• Williamson became the all time single season rebound leader with 329 rebounds on the year.

• Cherita Daugherty averaged a career-high 15.1 points per game and eclipsed 1000 career points while at Southern Utah.

• Tomekia Whitman was honored as the WAC Sixth Woman of the Year after averaging 11.8 points per game.

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