Soares puts versatility on display in win over William Jessup

The two teams TMU Women's Basketball played this week may have stopped Stephanie Soares' lengthy double-double streak, but they surely didn't stop her impact on the game.
 
Soares scored a season-high 32 points, pacing the Mustangs to a 76-47 victory over visiting William Jessup University on Saturday afternoon inside The MacArthur Center.
 
"Stephanie saw a lot of doubles this week, both offensively and defensively on the glass, in an attempt to minimize her presence," Master's Head Coach Lisa Zamroz said. "It may have worked to end her double-double streak, but she stepped up in big ways offensively."
 
Soares, who began the season on a 16-game double-double streak before it ended on Thursday, hit multiple 3-pointers for the second-straight game. She has now scored 30-plus points twice this season and 23 or more in each of the past four.
 
"She scored from everywhere," Zamroz said of the 6-foot-6 junior. "She finished through contact down low, from mid-range and beyond the arc. She really showcased her versatility this week."
 
TMU began and ended the first quarter on separate 7-0 runs, with an Allyson Pettit triple giving the Mustangs a 10-point lead after one. Master's maintained that same advantage entering halftime, before pulling away in the second half.
 
Soares scored 10 points in the third, helping TMU more than double its lead going into the fourth. Ella Brubaker then scored 13 of her 19 points in the final period to put the finishing touches on the Mustangs' victory.
 
"Ella caught fire in the fourth today to help us close out the game," Zamroz said.
 
Master's dominated in points in the paint (44-20) and points off turnovers (30-12).
 
"I thought we did a great job collectively on defense," Zamroz said. "That is our mainstay and it proved to be again today, holding them to just 14% from 3-point range."
 
The win improves TMU to 18-0 overall (7-0 GSAC) on the season. The Mustangs' 18-consecutive wins to begin the season is the second-best start to a campaign in program history.
 
Master's has a chance to tie the team's best-ever start to a season in its next game, on the road at San Diego Christian on Jan. 13. Tip-off for that game is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.