SAN FRANCISCO – Despite a furious fourth-quarter rally, the San Francisco women's basketball team couldn't scratch out the win against the visiting Saint Mary's Gaels in the West Coast Conference opener for both squads. The Gaels halted USF's seven-game winning streak with the 78-68 win on Monday night at War Memorial at the Sobrato Center.

With the loss, the Dons move to 9-3 on the year, and 0-1 in WCC action, while Saint Mary's jumps into a tie for first place in the league standings with a record of 10-2 (1-0 WCC).

For the Dons, the night belonged to junior Hashima Carothers, who finished with 18 points and 15 rebounds, including 10 offensive boards, to notch her first career double-double for the Green and Gold.

"Tonight I really focused on rebounding," said Carothers after the contest. "I know Coach Stires always tells me that should be on my mind. After halftime, she challenged me to focus more on my offensive rebounding and I did, and I think it worked."

After the talk midway through the game, Carothers grabbed seven offensive rebounds in the second half to help the Dons in their late charge. Dons by a score of 73-51 with 3:02 remaining, the Dons methodically chipped away at the deficit.

Full-court pressure resulted in back-to-back turnovers by the Gaels, and those miscues led to consecutive 3-pointers for Taylor Proctor. Forcing two more errant plays for the visitors and making the tally four turnovers in less than two minutes, the Dons strung together 13 unanswered to cut the lead to nine with 56.6 seconds to play. USF sliced it to eight after a successful trip to the line for Zhane Dikes with 30.4 ticks on the clock, but the Dons could pull no closer.

Despite shooting just 4-for-15 from the floor in the contest, Carothers finished the night a perfect 10-for-10 from the line, becoming the eighth woman in program history to finish with a 1.000 free throw percentage on at least 10 attempts.

Rachel Howard added 14 points and three assists for the Dons, and after swishing three 3-pointers in the final 10 minutes Proctor finished with 13 points and five assists. Dikes posted a nine-point, eight-rebound, seven-assist night in the loss.

The storyline for the Gaels revolved around the 3-point line, as Saint Mary's finished with a 12-for-24 effort from distance, with four women hitting multiple triples. Same-name teammates Devon Brookshire and Devyn Galland finished with 19 and 15 points, respectively, combining to go 7-for-12 beyond the arc.

Next, USF takes on Pacific as the team travels to Stockton for one last game prior to the Christmas holiday. The Dons and the Tigers tip from the Alex G. Spanos Center Wednesday at 5 p.m., as both squads vie for their first WCC victory.

"Going into Pacific, we know what we have to do," said Carothers. "Pacific is kind of like Sacramento State – they penetrate and pitch. They're a similar team, just a little bigger. I think if we guard the 3-point line in that game, we'll be good to go."