ST. JOSEPH, Minn. – If there was ever any doubt how ready and excited Maddie Schmitz and her teammates were to get the 2021 season started, they erased and all of them Wednesday night.
 
Schmitz and Tori Szathmary both had career nights and were two of four players to score in double digits as the College of Saint Benedict basketball team kicked off the season with a 74-65 nonconference win over Concordia in Claire Lynch. The game marked the first for CSB since Feb. 22, 2020, and the first home contest for any CSB team since hosting the MIAC Indoor Track and Field Championships Feb. 27-29.
 
Both teams were cold to start, and it was the Cobbers (0-1) who scored the first basket of the game, but that was the only time they led all night. Schmitz and Madison Doran started the scoring for CSB, and after Concordia got within two at 6-4, Schmitz scored the Szathmary scored three straight buckets to make it a 10-point game, 14-4, with 2:52 left in the quarter.
 
Concordia whittled the lead to seven, 18-11, at the end of the quarter, and made it a five-point game early in the second. The Bennies maintained a lead throughout the second quarter, but the Cobbers never let it get more than nine points. A jumper by Schmitz put CSB up eight, 30-22, late in the second, but Concordia had an answer and made it a six-point game at halftime.
 
Baskets by Schmitz and Carla Meyer made it a 10-point game in the third quarter, and a three from Szathmary put CSB up 37-26 with 8:37 left in the third. The Cobbers went on a short run late in the third to cut the gap to four, 49-45, but Schmitz hit a three and Meyer scored in the paint and the Bennies' lead was back to nine, 54-45, to end the third.
 
A pair of free throws from Schmitz and a 3-pointer from Kate Seyer made it a 14-point game, 59-45, early in the fourth. CSB was able to maintain a double-digit lead throughout much of the quarter, and made it a 15-point game with just over four minutes left to play before the Cobbers cut their deficit to single digits.
 
Schmitz tied her career-high and led all scorers with 25 points Wednesday night. She shot .533 from the field, finishing 8-of-15, and she also pulled down a career-best 18 rebounds. Szathmary also had a career-high with 15 points on 7-of-9 shooting from the field. Meyer finished with 12 points in her collegiate debut and Doran finished with 10. As a team, CSB shot 44 percent from the field and went 13-for-18 from the line. The Bennies had 41 rebounds to the Cobbers' 29 and both teams had 18 turnovers.
 
Mary Sem led four players in double digits with 15 points for Concordia, and she also had five rebounds. The Cobbers shot 41.8 percent from the field and went 14-for-23 from the line.
 
CSB is scheduled to be back at home Saturday, Feb. 6, when it hosts Hamline at 2 p.m. in the team's first MIAC game of the year. The JV team plays at noon. All schedules are subject to change; check www.gobennies.com for updates.