Why Penn’s season-opening rout of Marist was like ‘Christmas’ for junior guard Stina Almqvist

Almost exactly a year ago, Penn edged Marist in its season-opener.

In another season-opening tilt against the Red Foxes, Penn beat Marist again — only this time it wasn’t close. The Quakers routed their Poughkeepsie, N.Y., visitors, 74-51, behind a dominant performance on both ends of the floor.

The Quakers forced a whopping 26 turnovers and only gave up 10 of their own. That — and a host of other factors — was the difference in a commanding first game for Penn.

This offseason, Penn (1-0) lost star guard Kayla Padilla, who accounted for the most points per game on the team in each of her three seasons.

If Saturday’s game is any indication, replacing her output will be three players: junior guard Stina Almqvist, senior forward Jordan Obi, and junior guard Lizzy Groetsch.

Almqvist, in particular, led the way for Penn against Marist. In career-highs across the board — all of which she had achieved by the end of the third quarter — she put up 24 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists.

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Almqvist attributed part of her growth to how she spent her summer. Too old to play for Sweden’s youth national team anymore, she participated in 3x3 competition with her sister, who plays professionally.

“We’ve just been waiting for this game for so long. I like the U.S., but no basketball until November is a long time,” said Almqvist, a Sweden native. “We start in September, so it was almost like Christmas coming to the game today.”

Obi, meanwhile, tallied 10 points in the first half but was quiet in the second and didn’t score. The forward stood out on the defensive end and was a huge part of the Quakers’ turnover-forcing effort, amassing five steals in the first half alone — as many as she had in the final seven games of last season.

Groetsch contributed 18 points and was dominant on the boards with a team-high nine rebounds, five of which were offensive. Both were career-highs.

“Rebounding has been a huge focus for me,” Groetsch said. “This year, just looking at my role on the team, I know I can really compete at a high level and bring a lot of grittiness, toughness, go after all the loose balls.”

Added head coach Mike McLaughlin: “Lizzy has worked as hard as any kid I’ve coached. I’ve been doing this for 29 years. This kid has lived and died in the gym and [didn’t] get rewarded her first two years and [struggled]. … What she did [today] is the way she plays every day in practice, and, as a coach, you’re just satisfied when somebody finally gets where she wants to be.”

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Penn’s offense largely clicked because of how it spread of the ball. The Quakers combined for 20 assists, more than they had in any of their final 13 games last season and over three times as many as they had against Marist last year.

Thanks to the commanding lead the team held throughout the bulk of the contest, 13 Quakers saw the floor, including three freshmen. Rookie guard Mataya Gayle even cracked the starting five in her first outing, and, over 26 minutes, contributed nine points and three rebounds.

“[Gayle] makes us go,” McLaughlin said. “She’s really good in the open floor. She can shoot the three, and she can create her own shot. Once she gets some more minutes, this kid’s going to have a great career here at Penn.”

After Marist (1-1) started out the contest up, 4-0, it was all Penn. The Quakers went on an 18-2 run to end the first quarter, and also scored 17 straight points between the end of the second and beginning of the third quarters.

Senior forward Floor Toonders and senior guard Michaela Stanfield were out with injuries, but McLaughlin indicated that both have a chance to return for the team’s next game.

Penn made some pretty outlet passes Saturday, and arguably none were prettier than Obi’s to Almqvist toward the end of the first quarter.

Obi corralled the board and immediately found Almqvist in space down the right side of the floor, and Almqvist drove in through contact to finish for the score.

Penn’s second game of the season will tip off Big 5 play, as the Quakers face St. Joseph’s (2-0) Tuesday at the Palestra (6 p.m., ESPN+).