Game Summary / GameDay Preview

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — It seems fitting that the Saint Mary's University women's basketball team defeated Colorado College 62-38 Friday evening in the opening round of the Colorado College Tip-Off Tournament to push its season-opening record to 2-0.

After all, the last time the Cardinals started the season 2-0 was six years ago, when SMU defeated Colorado College 72-54 for its second straight win.

“It's nice to get off to a solid start to open the season,” said SMU coach Mandy Pearson, whose Cardinals will square off against Hardin-Simmons at 4 p.m. on Saturday in the second game of the tournament. “We had a great total team effort tonight — everyone played, and played well.”

Jessica Thone (Woodbury, Minn.) led the way for the Cardinals, scoring 12 points, while Cherie Kulig (Independence, Wis.), Jess Miller (Carver, Minn.) and Renee Pecarina (Winona, Minn.) each chipped in nine points.

The Cardinals raced out to a 29-16 halftime advantage and never looked back, outscoring the Tigers 33-22 over the game's final 20 minutes in cruising to their second straight victory.