ARDEN HILLS, Minn. – The College of Saint Benedict basketball team led Bethel until late in the third quarter, but the Royals used a big fourth quarter to come away with a 62-55 win over the Blazers Saturday afternoon in Arden Hills, Minn.
Saint Benedict is now 6-3 overall and 2-2 in the MIAC heading into the holiday break. CSB, which is one win away from its 500
th MIAC win since joining the league in 1985, is off until Dec. 29 when it takes on Minnesota-Morris in Morris, Minn.
The Blazers took a lead early in the third quarter on a layup by
Chelsey Guetter, and pushed that lead to five on a three-point play by
Niki Fokken. CSB held its lead until the final seconds of the quarter when Bethel (4-4, 2-2) scored on back-to-back layups to go up 46-43 heading into the fourth.
Those two baskets sparked a 14-3 run for the Royals that ended with a 56-46 Bethel lead with 5:36 to play. Fokken hit a pair of free throws and Ke'Avae Taylor hit a basket to make it a six-point game, 56-50, and baskets by
Alison Newton and Fokken made it a three-point game, 58-55, with 44 seconds left. But Molly O'Toole scored two straight baskets and the Blazers missed on two last-second chances and the Royals came away with the win.
After a close start to the game, Bethel pulled away for a 20-13 lead after the first quarter.
Kate Banovetz scored twice and Guetter scored to make it a one-point game to start the second quarter, and CSB was within one, 30-29, at halftime. CSB took a lead early in the third, but Bethel's big fourth was too much to overcome.
Fokken finished with 16 points to lead the Blazers and was the only player in double digits for CSB. Guetter added 10 rebounds and Banovetz finished with eight points. The Blazers shot 30 percent from the field and hit just one 3-pointers. CSB went 16-for-21 from the line and had 36 rebounds and 10 turnovers.
O'Toole led all scorers with 18 points for Bethel. Kalli Zimmermann added 12 and Rachel Parupsky finished with 11. O'Toole and Parupsky also had 10 rebounds each. The Royals shot 49 percent from the field and hit four threes. They went 8-for-13 from the line and had 40 rebounds and 18 turnovers.
After taking on Morris on Dec. 29, CSB hosts Buena Vista on Jan. 3, 2016. The Blazers return to conference play Jan. 6 against Macalester.
