ST. PAUL, MINN. - The St. Catherine University basketball team ended 2016 on a tear and started the new year with a bang. The Wildcats went 1-1 in their opening week of 2017 in two games against Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) opponents. Key to St. Kate’s success was senior guard LaShay Holt (Minneapolis, Minn. / Humboldt), who has been named Wildcat Athlete of the Week for her performances against Carleton College and Saint Mary’s University.
Holt played a huge roll in both games for the Wildcats last week on both offense and defense. In St. Kate’s 65-62 victory over Carleton on Wednesday, the senior guard scored 16 points of her 22 points in the first half, accounting for half the team’s offense in the opening 20 minutes of play. Holt also pulled in a team-leading 11 rebounds, recording her fifth-consecutive double-double of the 2016-17 season, which, according to available records, is a school record.
Holt’s defensive play was equally impressive against Carleton as well. After recording a steal early in the opening quarter, the senior guard set the school record for career steals against the Knights with a crucial steal late in the fourth quarter that helped secure the win for St. Kate’s. With that steal, Holt broke Natalie Lyzhoff's 11-year old school record for career steals (210), bringing her own career total to 211 that day.
Holt’s spectacular week continued against Saint Mary’s. She recorded her sixth double-double of the season with a team leading 19 points and 12 rebounds. She also nabbed two steals in the performance, bringing her career total to 213. Unfortunately, her high scoring day wasn’t enough to help the Wildcats secure their fifth-consecutive victory, as the team lost on the road 80-73.
Thanks to her big week, Holt’s career point total now stands at 1300 points, which is fourth all-time in the record books. Her 703 career rebounds stand second all-time to Jenna Spanning’s 762. She is currently second on the team in points (160) and leads the team in total rebounds (93) and points per game average (16.0).
Holt and St. Kate’s will return to action this week with two more key MIAC games. The Wildcats will travel to Hamline University on Wednesday for a 7 p.m. road game then will return home Saturday to host Bethel University at 3 p.m.
