COLLEGE STATION, Texas -- Marshall limited Southern to 10 points in the final 17 minutes and the defensive pressure helped the Thundering Herd beat the Jaguars, 57-47, Sunday in the final game of the Texas A&M Thanksgiving Classic at Reed Arena.

The Thundering Herd (3-2) finished 1-1 in the tournament. The Herd lost to Marquette on Friday. No. 24 Texas A&M beat Marquette, 84-64, in Sunday's other game.

Senior Veronica Ruiz led Marshall with 12 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for her first double-double of the season.

"She played composed, chased down balls, and played with good energy," first-year Marshall coach Matt Daniel said of Ruiz. "If she will play with good energy, she's got talent. There is talent in that dressing room, but the mentality has to continue to change and grow. I was happy to have that effort out of her because it only benefited us."

Suporia Dickens added 10 points, all in the first half. Orlandria Williams contributed seven points and made the all-tournament team.

Marshall had a 39-31 edge in rebounds and converted 18 of 23 free throws. The Jaguars shot just three and made them all.

Adrian Sanders converted two free throws with 3:29 left in the first half to give the Jaguars a 26-24 lead. The margin remained that way as neither teams scored the rest of the way.

Southern came out strong in the second half and opened a 13-point lead at 37-24 with 17:20 to play. The Herd then started its rally and Shay Weaver's 3-pointer with 6:47 remaining gave Marshall the lead for good at 41-39.

"We went into halftime and I told them, 'they scored 26 points, but you can hold them to 20 in the second half,' " Daniel said. "And we held them to 21. It's all in the approach. Our approach right now is not very good, but we can flip that. If we can do that then we can have a good program."

Marshall will return to action next weekend in the Eastern Kentucky Comfort Suites Tournament in Richmond, Ky. The Herd will meet Jackson State on Friday at 4:30 p.m.

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