Stanford women’s basketball (0-0, 0-0 ACC) took a sound 72-45 victory over Pacific (0-0, 0-0 WCC) in their first preseason exhibition game on Saturday. The Cardinal entered this game coming off a 21-14 season, in which they fell to Miami in the first round of the ACC Tournament and missed the NCAA tournament. Pacific finished the previous season 11-19.

Stanford took an early lead, with two early three-point shots by sophomore guard Hailee Swain securing the Cardinal a 13-point lead at the end of the first quarter.

Swain’s performance amounted to 18 total points, with eight points coming in the first quarter alone. The momentum stayed with the Cardinal side throughout the first half, finishing 20 points over Pacific with a score of 37-17 going into halftime. Junior guard Shay Ijiwoye also played a well-rounded game, recording three assists and three steals with her physical style on defense. 

The Cardinal lead never faltered, reaching as high as 26 points by the end of the third quarter, thanks to an impressive half-court shot from sophomore transfer forward Charlotte Tuhy to close out the period. Stanford would finish the game shooting 45.8% from the field, compared to Pacific’s 28.1%. Despite their success, however, the team struggled with free throws and turnovers.

“We turned over the ball way too much. I think we got a bit careless with it,” said head coach Kate Paye after the game.

Defensively, the spotlight fell upon Tuhy, who recorded 15 rebounds throughout the course of the game. She joins the Cardinal side after a strong freshman season at American, where she was one of only two freshmen nationally to average a double-double per game. When asked what makes Tuhy’s game so strong, Paye simply said, “effort.” 

“When we were looking at the portal, [we noticed] she averaged a double-double last year as a freshman, [and] she was the second leading freshman rebounder in the country,” Paye said. “Things like that translate.”

Swain and Ijiwoye were joined by junior transfer forward Inés Sotelo Míguez to record double-digit points, seeing 18, 15 and 12 respectively. Swain expressed her excitement and confidence in this year’s revamped Cardinal roster, consisting of three transfers and four freshmen joining the fold. She credited a preseason retreat for helping build chemistry among the team, especially as both she and Ijiwoye adapted into new leadership roles.

Paye noted that, along with the win, there were many points for improvement in the coming games and into the season.  

“I think for our team, we know we can play much better than this,” Paye said. “But we’re excited to build on it.”

Women’s basketball returns to Maples Pavilion Wednesday, Oct. 28 at 6 p.m. for the second and final exhibition game against U.C. Santa Barbara.