ARDEN HILLS, Minn. – After a big win Wednesday against St. Thomas, the College of Saint Benedict basketball team looked to carry some of that momentum over to Saturday for a road game against a tough Bethel squad.
The Bennies struggled with consistency shooting and committed 25 turnovers as they fell 81-69 to the Royals in a MIAC matchup in Arden Hills. CSB is now back at .500 at 3-3 overall and 2-3 in conference play.
Saint Benedict struggled offensively in the first quarter, and shot 28 percent from the field. The Royals shot 57 percent in the first quarter and 62 percent in the second, and built a 44-31 halftime lead. CSB kept things close in the early goings, and a layup by
Maddie Schmitz tied the game at 8-8 with just under four minutes left in the first quarter. A pair of free throws from Schmitz stopped a short Bethel run, and a single free throw from Schmitz got CSB within four before the Royals scored to take a 17-11 lead into the second quarter.
A three from
Carla Meyer cut the Royals' lead to five, 21-16, early in the second, and later a three from
Makiya Luetmer and a pair of baskets and a three from Meyer made it a one-point game, 28-27, but the Royals ended the half on a 14-2 run to push their lead to 13 heading into halftime.
Schmitz scored and
Tori Szathmary hit a three in the first two minutes of the third to get the Bennies within 10, 46-36, but Bethel quickly pushed its lead back to 15 and never allowed CSB to get closer than 11 points the rest of the quarter. CSB outscored the Royals 18-12 in the final quarter, but it was too little, too late.
Szathmary led the Bennies with 16 points and eight rebounds, Schmitz had 13 points and 10 rebounds, Meyer finished with 12 points and four assists and
Kate Seyer added 10 points. Luetmer scored a career-best seven points, including a pair of 3-pointers. The Bennies shot 40.7 percent from the field, went 16-for-22 from the line and had 36 rebounds and 25 turnovers.
Bethel's defense played a key role in the win as Bella Williams set a school record with 11 steals. Kat Brown-Erdal led the Royals with 16 points and Elizabeth Schwarz added 15 points and eight rebounds. Bethel shot better than 52 percent from the field and went 9-for-18 from the line. The Royals had 29 rebounds and 19 turnovers.
CSB is back on the road for a rare Thursday game this Thursday, March 4, when it heads to St. Paul for a 7 p.m. matchup with Hamline.
