Gary, Ind. – Sophomore forward Veronica Bafia (Homer Glen, Ill./Lockport Township) scored a game-high 21 points, going 8-for-20 from the field and 3-for-5 from three-point range to help guide the Saint Xavier University women's basketball team (7-3, 5-0 CCAC) to a 79-66 triumph over Indiana University Northwest in Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference (CCAC) play Saturday afternoon at the Savannah Center in Gary, Ind. Bafia added six rebounds, a season-high five assists and a pair of steals while playing all 40 minutes. She was one of six players to make a three as the Cougars drained a season-best 16 treys on 38 attempts (42. 1 percent). Overall, SXU shot 40.6 percent (28-for-69) from the floor, their second game in the last three contests that they have shot over 40.0 percent as a team.

Bafia started the game with the first four points for Saint Xavier. IUN tallied the next five points and held a 7-6 advantage before senior guard Jaidn Green (Evansville, Ind./Evansville North) sank a three at the 4:04 mark to give the Cougars a 9-7 lead. SXU remained on top the rest of the contest as IU Northwest came within a point to start the second quarter, 20-19, however Bafia knocked down a trey allowing Saint Xavier to maintain a two-possession game, and they would hold a double-digit lead for most of the second half.

• Freshman guard Brooklynn Johnson (Aurora, Ill./West Aurora) collected 17 points, shooting 4-for-7 from beyond the arc, and a career-best nine rebounds in 36 minutes of play.
• Green totaled 15 points, four assists and four rebounds while also logging 36 minutes on the court.
• Freshman guard Julia Benjamin (Glen Ellyn, Ill./Glenbard West) made four of her five shot attempts, finishing with 10 points and a rebound in 14 minutes of action off the bench.
• Senior guard Lia Chudzik (Pewaukee, Wis./Pewaukee) tallied nine points, two assists and a pair of rebounds.
• Sophomore guard Maeve Egan (Chicago, Ill./Mother McAuley) came away with five points, two assists, two rebounds and two steals.
• Freshman guard Elinor Lindal (Libertyville, Ill./Libertyville) added two points, a rebound and a steal, while Freshman forward Alaina Peetz (Lockport, Ill./Lockport Township) pulled down eight rebounds with two steals, an assist and a blocked shot.

Saint Xavier (7-3/5-0 CCAC) hosts Aquinas College (Mich.) in a non-conference tilt on Wednesday, December 10 at the Shannon Center. The game is slated for a 5:00 pm start.