SAN ANTONIO – A decisive fourth quarter in which The University of the Incarnate Word women's basketball team outscored St. Thomas 30-7 propelled the Cardinals to a 74-52 victory Saturday afternoon at the McDermott Center.
 
The Cardinals started the first quarter strong, getting ahead by as many as 15 points. Junior guard Kara Speer got into a rhythm early in the first quarter, scoring 12 points on a perfect 4-4 from the field, including 2-2 from the three-point line and 2-2 from the free-throw line to put UIW up 21-9.
 
A string of turnovers and missed shots by the Cardinals allowed the Celts to go on a 12-0 run that would tie the game with just seconds left in the first half, but a last-second layup by Lunden Henry gave the lead back to UIW heading into halftime.
 
St. Thomas took the lead for the first time in the game off an and-one with less than two minutes left in the third quarter. As the clock ran out in the third, the Celts hit a three that would bring the Cardinals within one (45-44) going into the final 10 minutes of the game.
 
Senior Imani Robinson, who scored her 1,000th career point during the match, proved to be the catalyst for the Cardinals in the fourth quarter, scoring 11 of UIW's final 30 points to lift the team to a 74-52 victory.
 
QUOTING COACH DOW
"Obviously we played really well in the first and fourth quarter. We had a great first quarter and I think we got a little too relaxed there in the second quarter, but that fourth quarter was really good, I thought that last group that was in there the last five or six minutes played really well."
 
On Robinson:
"Really happy for Imani, it is a tremendous milestone anytime you score 1,000 points in your career. She was very efficient this game. It was good to get her going."
 
NOTABLES:

• Imani Robinson, who led the team with 19 points (a season high), reached the 1,000-career point milestone during the game and now has 1,014 career points.
• Kara Speer got the first double-double of the season for the Cardinals, scoring 16 points and grabbing 10 rebounds, while also recording four steals.
• Victoria Jackson had three steals in the game and now leads the team with 13 steals this season.
• Brittany Stafford made a career-high five three-pointers, tallying a career-high 17 points.
• Four Cardinals scored in double-digits for the first time this season; Macy Ray finished with 10, Speer had 16, Stafford added 17 and Robinson scored 19.

UP NEXT
UIW opens Southland Conference play against Central Arkansas (Dec. 18). They play host their last two nonconference opponents San Diego State (Dec. 21) and Paul Quinn (Dec. 28), before heading into SLC play for the remainder of the season.