ST. JOSEPH, Minn. – It was a battle of the conference unbeatens Saturday afternoon in Claire Lynch Hall, and the College of Saint Benedict basketball team hung with the No. 13 team in the country. Down 14 at halftime, CSB came out on fire in the third quarter and got within five points of St. Thomas before the Tommies came back for a 77-52 win.
The loss is just the second of the season for CSB, which is now 15-2 overall, and the team's first MIAC loss of the year. CSB is now second in the league at 9-1 as UST takes over sole possession of first place at 15-2 overall and 10-0 in the league.
The Tommies hit two early 3-pointers and Hannah Spaulding had three quick buckets in the paint to push UST out to an early lead, but
Sidney Schiffler hit several free throws and, near the end of the first quarter,
Haylee Fingalsen knocked down a three,
Courtney Nelson scored and
Kate Banovetz hit a layup to cut the gap to four, 19-15, after one.
UST went on a 10-2 run to start the second and took a 29-17 lead. The Tommies outscored CSB 23-13 in the second and held a 42-28 lead at halftime.
Megan Thompson hit a three and
Niki Fokken scored on a jumper to make it an 11-point game early in the third, and Spaulding left the game with her third foul less than three minutes in, and from there CSB went on a 14-2 run that cut UST's lead to five, 47-42, with 4:07 left in the third. Thompson hit two free throws and got a steal that led to a free throw by Fokken, and Fokken scored again following a UST turnover to cut the lead to six, 46-40. Schiffler hit a pair of free throws to make it a five-point game before the Tommies scored again to increase their lead.
The Tommies led by eight, 51-43, after three quarters, but started the fourth on a 12-2 run to push the lead to 19 at 63-44, and from there UST held on for the win.
Fokken finished with 15 points and Thompson and Schiffler each had 10 for CSB, which shot 31 percent from the field. Schiffler went 8-for-11 from the line.
Chelsey Guetter led the team with five rebounds but was held to just there field-goal attempts. CSB hit three 3-pointers and went 17-for-28 from the line. The team had just eight turnovers.
Spaulding finished with 23 points and eight rebounds to lead UST, which shot 49 percent from the field and hit nine 3-pointers. Three other players scored in double digits for the Tommies, who went 12-for-15 from the line and outrebounded CSB 42-24.
CSB is back at home and looks to start a new winning streak Wednesday, Jan. 24, when it hosts Hamline at 7 p.m.
