LAKELAND, Fla. (February 26, 2021) - From the outset of the 2020-21 season, the goal for the St. Thomas University (STU) Women's Basketball team has been to compete for a Sun Conference Championship. On Friday night, STU plays for an opportunity to get back to the Sun Conference Tournament Championship game for the second time in the Head Coach Candace Walker-era. 

To reach the Sun Conference title game, the Bobcats must go through Webber International, a team they have yet to face under Walker in the Sun Conference tournament. STU swept the season series against the Warriors and are 7-2 against WIU since Walker took over as the bench boss before the 2017-18 season. 

The Bobcats defeated the Ave Maria University Gyrenes 65-59 on Tuesday evening in the Fernandez Family Center, earning the first postseason win since beating the Mariners of Coastal Georgia (76-60) in 2017-18.

STU took on Webber International for the first time in the 2020-21 season on December 20, defeating the Warriors 77-73 in Babson Park. The Bobcats opened the season on a five-game winning streak and beat the Warriors to extend the streak to four. The dynamic duo of Gianni Domond and Anari Dozier led STU to the win, combining for 35-points in the victory. Domond recorded a double-double with 15-points and 11-rebounds, while Dozier scored a team-high 20-points on 8-14 shooting.

In the second season match-up, on January 7, STU and WIU tipped-off the game tied for second place in the Sun Conference. The Bobcats once again prevailed over the Warriors, winning 77-71 once again in Babson Park. Freshman Brooke Bogatz led STU, scoring a game-high 19-points on 8-15 shooting from the field and dished seven assists. 

St. Thomas closed the regular season sweep with a 68-58 win over the Warriors on January 30. Domond, Kayla Rodriguez, and Samaria August all scored in double-digits for STU, while Keaubree Edwards collected 13-rebounds.

The Domond-Dozier combination will need to continue their dominance to send the Bobcats back to the Sun Conference title game. Domond, a Sun Conference First-Team representative for STU, scored a game-high 17-points, collected eight-rebounds, and shot 50% from the field to lead St. Thomas. Dozier was also named to the All-Conference First-Team and has been a prolific scorer all season for STU. 

Third-seeded Webber International is no stranger to success in the Sun Conference tournament, having knocked off regular-season champion Southeastern University in the semi-final round in 2019-20. 

The Bobcats are set to take on the Warriors from "The Furnance" on campus at Southeastern University on Friday evening, with tip-off set for 7 p.m.

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-STU-