ST. JOSEPH, Minn. – After scoring 15 points in her first two seasons with the College of Saint Benedict basketball team, junior Kate Seyer doubled her career scoring total in a single game Saturday afternoon.
 
Seyer went off for a career-high 16 points – including a handful of long-range shots – to help the Bennies improve to 2-0 with a 70-56 win over Hamline.
 
After a career night in scoring and on the boards Wednesday, senior captain Maddie Schmitz just missed tying her career high, but instead added her name to the CSB record books. She led all scorers with 22 points and went a perfect 12-for-12 from the free-throw line. She is the first Bennie basketball player to shoot 100 percent from the line in a game since Annie Dittberner on Dec. 11, 2013.
 
In the first half Saturday afternoon, Hamline (0-3) had CSB's number, and at one point in the second quarter led by 10 – 35-25 – after starting the quarter on a 16-6 run. Carla Meyer hit a three and Seyer scored on a layup to make it a five-point game, but Hamline answered with a basket to keep its lead at seven, 37-30, heading into halftime.
 
Whatever head coach Mike Durbin told the Bennies in the locker room at halftime had an immediate effect on the team out of the break. Meyer hit another three to start the quarter to spark a 15-5 CSB run that spanned the first five-and-a-half minutes of the third and ended with CSB up three, 45-42. CSB pushed its lead to as many as five, 51-46, on another three from Meyer, and again after a three-point play from Schmitz, but the Pipers hit a three at the buzzer to make it a one-point game, 54-53, heading into the final quarter.
 
Schmitz scored the first six points of the fourth – including four straight free throws – to push her team's lead to seven, 60-53. The Bennies outscored the Pipers 16-3 in the final quarter thanks in large part to Schmitz and a pair of threes from Seyer.
 
Schmitz – who tied her career high with 25 points Wednesday – recorded her second double-double of the season with 22 points and 12 rebounds. Sixteen of those 22 points came in the second half to help the Bennies complete their comeback. Seyer went 4-for-7 from long range and scored a career-best 16 points to go along with five rebounds, and first year Carla Meyer had 11 points and a career-high eight assists. Eight assists in the most in a game for any CSB basketball player since Mattie Lueck recorded seven against Carleton in January 2014.
 
CSB shot 38.6 percent from the field, hit seven 3-pointers and went 19-for-21 from the line. The Bennies had 42 rebounds to the Pipers' 37 and committed just nine turnovers.
 
Jaiden Kline led the Pipers with 16 points and six rebounds. Hamline shot 34.5 percent from the field and made just two 3-pointers while finishing 14-for-24 from the line. The Pipers had just seven turnovers.
 
CSB is on the road for the first time in 2021 Wednesday, Feb. 10, when it heads to Moorhead to take on Concordia for the second time in one week. Game time is scheduled for 7 p.m. Stay tuned to gobennies.com for schedule updates.