Piller's Double-Double Helps Spartans Beat Flagler and Sweep FIT Holiday Tournament

Melbourne, Fla. – The University of Tampa Women's basketball stayed in Melbourne, Florida for their final game of the FIT Holiday Classic. The Spartans were looking to keep up the strong defensive play that propelled them to a win in yesterday's contest. Going up against a Flagler Saint team that also won thier first game in the FIT Holiday Classic, Tampa knew they needed to bring thier best. Although this afternoons contest started slow, nothing not keep this Spartan squad from going into the holiday break on a bad note.

INSIDE THE MATCHUP:

Final Score: #15 Tampa 58,  Flagler 48

Records: #15 Tampa 10-2, Flagler 4-6

Location: Charles and Ruth Clemente Center I Melbourne, Fla

All-time series: This was the 23rd meeting all-time between these two programs. With the win, Tampa extends the series lead to 18-5.

HOW IT HAPPENED: 

FIRST HALF: In the final game of 2024, the Spartans did not get off to the start they wanted. Both teams traded baskets in the first minute before the Saints went on a huge run. They would score 12 straight points to run away with the lead. Flagler led 14-4 by the under five media timeout. The Spartans were getting good looks but the shots were not falling to start this contest. Tampa would leg out the rest of the quarter, trading baskets with the Saints for the final minutes. Tampa would be down 19-7 going into the second quarter, needing a spark to get back into this contest. That spark would come at the hands of multiple Spartans, Sairiana Rodriguez, Zoe Piller, and Audrey Ramsey. Rodriguez was all over the court in the second quarter, snagging back to back steals at one point during the comeback effort. Zoe Piller and Audrey Ramsey led the comeback effort on the offensive front, combining for 17 points and 14 rebounds in the first half. The Spartan went from down 12 to retaking the lead by the three minute mark of the second quarter. Sariana Rodriguez drained two jumpers from beyond the arc to go along with her stellar defense to close out the first half and give the Spartans a two point lead.

Score: #15 Tampa 31, Flagler 29

SECOND HALF: After completing a first half comeback, the Spartans knew they needed to keep up the aggressiveness and efficiency that helped them overcome the double-digit deficit. The first few minutes were dominated by defense for both sides until Zoe Piller got the scoring going. Piller would hit the double-double mark in this contest and shut down the post offense of the Saints. The Spartans began to fully control the game by the midway point of the third quarter, in total they outscored the Saints 14-5 by forcing bad shots and turnovers. Zoe Piller took over in the final minutes of third, adding a half dozen more points to her name in the process. Flagler began to fight back towards the end of the quarter and into the start of the fourth quarter by draining some shots. The Spartans would lead 45-34 going into the final quarter and Flagler was able to pull to within six. However the Spartan shot making and defensive play was too much for Flagler to handle and in the end the Spartans ended up with a double digit point win.

Final: #15 Tampa 58, Flagler 48

INSIDE THE STATS:

• Zoe Piller drops 16 points, snags 12 rebounds to record another double-double

• Spartan defense recorded 6 steals and forced 11 total turnovers 

• Spartans held both opponents in the FIT Holiday Classic to under 50 points 

UP NEXT: The #15 ranked Spartans will head into the holiday break before returning to campus right before the new year. Tampa will be back in action on January 1st, 2025 as they hit the road to face Nova Southeastern. This contest is scheduled to tip at 5:00pm. 

Follow Us: @TampaSpartans on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube