Aquinas Academy girls keep rolling, beat St. Joseph

By: Michael Love
Monday, December 22, 2025 | 9:44 PM

The Aquinas Academy girls basketball team is No. 1 in this week’s TribLive HSSN Class A rankings.

On Monday against Section 1 rival St. Joseph, the Crusaders continued to prove just how powerful they are.

Led by three players in double figures, including a game-best 23 from senior Tess Duer, experienced Aquinas, which boasts four senior starters, cruised past the Spartans, 63-41, at St. Joseph’s Walter Dlubak Athletic Center.

“St. Joseph is always a well-prepared team, and we knew we were going to have to play our best game to get this win,” said Aquinas coach Andrew Kurzawski, whose team improved to 7-0 overall and 3-0 in section play.

“They run some great stuff with some really nice players. We had a lot of time to prepare for them and watch film. (St. Joseph coach Geoff Dutelle) still hit us with a lot of stuff. It was good sets that we haven’t prepared for but were able to work through. Getting a win against a good rival team like St. Joe’s on the road is a major victory for us.”

Aquinas came in averaging 51.5 points and owned victories over Class 4A playoff contender Elizabeth Forward and Class 3A Freeport while taking down three-time defending WPIAL Class A champion Union by 35 on Dec. 11.

The Crusaders are back in action against District 10 power Wilmington on Jan. 3 at The Rumble at North Allegheny. They will return to section play Jan. 5 against Leechburg.

“Wilmington will be a great test for us before we get back into the heart of our section schedule,” Kurzawski said.

St. Joseph saw a three-game winning streak come to an end and fell to 5-3 overall and 3-1 in the section. The Spartans will have a full week away from game action before hosting their holiday tournament next Monday and Tuesday with Bishop Canevin, Fox Chapel and Neshannock.

Aquinas and St. Joseph will play again Jan. 26 at Aquinas.

The Spartans committed 26 turnovers in Monday’s game. Some were unforced, but a number of others came from the pressure the Aquinas defense placed on the youthful St. Joseph players.

The Crusaders turned a majority of those turnovers into points as they built a 21-10 lead at the end of the first quarter and were ahead 36-20 at the break.

St. Joseph sophomore Bella Bartolovic converted a three-point play with a layup and free throw early in the second quarter to cut Aquinas’ lead to eight, but the Crusaders went on a 9-2 run to build their advantage back to double digits with less than four minutes to play in the half.

Dutelle also saw his team miss out on converting several strong scoring opportunities, especially high-percentage ones close to the basket.

“Aquinas is so experienced. They’ve been around before,” Dutelle said. “I told the girls that you can’t beat a team like Aquinas until you lose to them. You have to see how it’s played.

“I told the girls at halftime that the biggest thing was rebounding. We could point to the fact that we turned the ball over a little more than we would’ve liked, and there were times when we couldn’t hit shots, but they did so well on the boards. They are not an overly big team. They are just really aggressive going after the ball. They are so tenacious. They know exactly where to go to position their bodies. They are just so physical. When you get that many chances, you are going to cash in.”

Duer, who missed the second game between the teams last year, was consistent Monday with at least five points in every quarter.

Senior Elliot Keverline scored 13 for the Crusaders, and junior Carly Bezila came off the bench to score 13.

Junior Katie Tarquinio tallied just four points, but she led the way with 14 rebounds. Duer added eight boards.

Senior Rebecca Guilen scored six points, all in the third quarter as Aquinas extended its lead from 15 at halftime to 23 heading into the fourth.

“For us, it’s not about one or two people carrying the load,” Kurzawski said. “We know that when we play good teams like St. Joe’s, they are going to be prepared. They are face-guarding Tess during the game, and other people are going to have to step up. It’s nice to see other girls shoot the basketball well and make plays.”

Bartolovic fronted St. Joseph with 13 points. Senior Kasey Cienik added 10 points and six rebounds. Junior Jocelyn Spinelli hit a trio of 3-pointers for nine points, and sophomore JJ Cienik pulled down seven rebounds.

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

Tags: Aquinas Academy, St. Joseph