Ali Newton after scoring 20 points vs Superior

ST. JOSEPH, Minn. – In the first half Tuesday against UW-Superior, the College of Saint Benedict basketball team couldn't get anything going. The Blazers shot 17 percent from the field, hit one two-point basket and scored 15 points.
 
In the second half, nothing could stop the Blazers.
 
Saint Benedict shot nearly 50 percent from the field in the second half to overcome a 12-point halftime deficit and beat Superior 62-51 Tuesday night in Claire Lynch Hall. The win wraps up a stretch that saw the Blazers play four games in five days, and pushes CSB's record to 4-1 overall. This marks the best start for CSB since 2011-12 when it also went 4-1 in its first five games.
 
After being down 27-15 at halftime, CSB came out hot in the second half. Niki Fokken hit a jumper and Grace Wolhowe hit a three to spark a 16-2 CSB run that ended with a 31-29 Blazer lead with 5:29 left in the third quarter. Superior (3-2) tied the game and was able to take a slim lead, and maintained a one-point lead, 35-34, heading into the fourth quarter.
 
Fokken started the scoring again in the fourth quarter, and Annie Dittberner hit a three to put CSB up four, 39-35. Alison Newton hit a three and Fokken scored again to make it a nine-point game, and after a short Superior run, Newton converted a three-point play to put the Blazers up eight, 49-41, with 6:19 left to play.
 
The Yellowjackets cut the lead to five with 5:46 left, but Newton scored to spark a 10-2 CSB run and ended with a 59-46 CSB lead with 46 seconds left. Newton hit three free throws and Dittberner added one down the stretch to seal the win.
 
The first half was a completely different story for CSB. Tyla Wilder hit a free throw for the Blazers at the 5:15 mark, but CSB didn't hit a field goal until Wolhowe hit a three with 3:02 left in the first to cut Superior's lead to four, 10-4. Wolhowe added another three and had six of CSB's seven first-quarter points. Wolhowe added another three early in the second quarter, but Saint Benedict managed just eight points in the quarter and hit one two-point field goal in the first half.
 
After shooting 17.4 percent in the first half, CSB finished the game shooting 34.6 percent, including a 7-for-19 clip from long range and 19-for-30 from the line. Newton finished with 20 points and she went 11-for-14 from the line. Wolhowe added 15 points on 4-of-5 shooting from long range and she also had seven rebounds. Chelsey Guetter added seven rebounds and Fokken had nine points and eight rebounds.
 
Superior shot 38.9 percent but only hit two 3-pointers and went 7-for-8 from the line. Hailey Kontny led the Yellowjackets with nine points and six rebounds. Superior outrebounded the Blazers 38-30.
 
CSB returns home and opens MIAC play Wednesday, Dec. 2, when it hosts Carleton at 7 p.m.