ST. JOSEPH, Minn. – After four straight wins, the College of Saint Benedict Women's Basketball Team (6-1, 5-1 MIAC) will travel to participate in the Big Island Classic in Hilo, Hawaii on Dec. 18-19. The Bennies will play a pair of nonconference games with Worcester State on Dec. 18 (4:30 pm, CST) and DePauw on Dec. 19 (8 pm, CST) with both contests at Afook-Chinen Civic Auditorium.

CSB has opened the season with a 6-1 record, including 5-1 in MIAC play as they are tied with three other teams for first in the MIAC. The Bennies started the 2022-23 season with a pair of road wins, including a 57-52 decision over Minnesota Morris and a 63-59 overtime win at St. Olaf which opened MIAC play.  In the home opener on Nov. 22 against Gustavus, CSB dropped a 64-47 decision. Since then, CSB has wins over St. Scholastica, 77-50; Augsburg, 82-68;  Macalester, 67-52; and topped Hamline, 53-52, to move into a tie for first place in the league. The Augsburg and Macalester wins were at home at Claire Lynch Hall. This past Saturday, Sophia Jonas hit the game-winning lay-up and Hannah Johnson had a career-best performance of 11 points and 13 rebounds to lead CSB to a dramatic 53-52 MIAC decision over Hamline.

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Worcester State -- live stats - live video
DePauw -- live stats - live video

PREVIEW -
Breaking Down Worcester State
In the opening game on Sunday, Dec. 18, the Bennies face Worcester State is directed by 29^th-year head coach Karen Tessmer. She coached on the Division I level for six years, first with James Madison University, a team that competed in the NCAA Regional's two straight years and was ranked in the top 10. In 2018, Tessmer earned her 300^th career win at Worcester State in a conference game against MCLA. This season, Worcester State, a Division III school in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC), has a 1-9 overall record, including 1-7 in conference play. The Lancers have hit 27.7 percent from three-point range and 38.4 percent from the field while averaging 67.0 points per game. The team is led in scoring by Erin Gallella, who puts up 14.4 points per game followed by Sarah Blomgren averaging 11.6 points per game along with 6.6 rebounds per game.
 
Breaking Down DePauw
On Monday, Dec. 19, CSB will face DePauw is directed by head coach Kris Huffan. She was named the head women's basketball coach at DePauw in June 1993 and has since compiled a 680-132 record in 29 seasons through the 2021-22 season. Huffman led DePauw to NCAA Division III championships in 2007 and 2013, a semifinal appearance in 2002 and quarterfinal trips in 2006 and 2008. This season, the Tigers have an overall record of 4-4 and 1-0 in North Coast Athletic Conference. This season, DePauw has outscored their opponents by a margin of 62.3-54.9 The Tigers have hit 31.4 percent from three-point range and 38.2 percent from the field while averaging 62.3 points per game. DePauw is led in scoring by Ava Hassel, who averages 14.3 points per game. Diana Burgher adds to the team by averaging 6.4 rebounds per game.
 
CSB Schedule Breakdown 
After Jan. 1, 2023, CSB plays 15 games starting with a road trip to St. Catherine on Jan. 4. The MIAC Tournament Championship begins on Feb. 21 with the quarterfinals. The league title game is 3 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 25.
 
Inside Look at CSB WBB
CSB is a veteran squad which returns 2021-22 All-MIAC point guard Carla Meyer along with All-MIAC honorable mention standouts Sophia Jonas and Gabby Martin from the 2021-22 team that was 15-11. In addition, senior Tori Szathmary was named to the All-MIAC Sportsmanship Team while Lydia Hay also returns as a starter. CSB Head Coach Mike Durbin, who has 722 career wins, is ranked in the top 20 coaches in wins regardless of the division.  
 
SEASON BREAKDOWN
Jonas earns consecutive MIAC Offensive Player of the Week honors
Sophia Jonas, who averaged 14.0 points, hit 50 percent from the field and hit the game-winner against Hamline, was named the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) Basketball Offensive Player of the Week on Dec. 12. A sophomore accounting major from Hudson, Wis., Jonas has become the first-ever CSB Basketball player to earn back-to-back MIAC weekly honors. She is the 30^th overall CSB basketball student-athlete to earn a MIAC player of the week honor in program history. She was also named the CSB Athlete of the Week on Monday (Dec. 12). Jonas, who was also honored by the MIAC as Offensive Player of the Week on Dec. 5, helped lead the Bennies to a 67-52 win over Macalester on Dec. 7 at Claire Lynch Gym and a thrilling 53-52 win on the road over Hamline on Dec. 10.

CSB opened with 57-52 win over Minnesota Morris on the road
Sophomore Sophia Jonas knocked down five threes and scored 15 points to lead CSB past Minnesota-Morris, 57-52, on Nov. 12 on the road. Both Olivia Boily (12 points and 7 rebounds) and Abigail Kubouchek (10 points and 7 rebounds) had career-highs in points and helped CSB to a 22-14 advantage in bench scoring. With the win, CSB improved its series lead over UMM to 12-3 with a 12^th straight win in the series.

Bennies win MIAC opener in overtime at St. Olaf
Carla Meyer, Sophia Jonas and Tori Szathmary scored in double-digits and sparked a second-half rally as the College of Saint Benedict (2-0, 1-0 MIAC) opened MIAC play with a 63-59 road win in overtime over St. Olaf (3-1, 0-1) on Nov. 19. Trailing 32-28 at halftime, the Bennies outscored the Oles, 28-24 in the second half to force overtime. With a 7-3 advantage in the extra session, CSB earned the victory in the closely contested league match up. The key play in the second half (overtime) was from junior forward Lydia Hay (seven points), who converted a three-point play with 16 seconds left to give the Bennies a 61-59 lead. Then, Szathmary had a pair of foul shots late to help the Bennies to the win. It was the 10^th straight victory in the series for the Bennies, which owns a 63-10 all-time mark. Senior center Tori Szathmary recorded the fourth double-double of her career with 14 points and tied a career-high with 13 rebounds (Augsburg, March 3, 2021). In her ninth career double-digit scoring game, Szathmary was 4-of-10 from the floor, hit 1-of-2 from three-point range and 5-6 at the foul line. With the 13 rebounds, she surpassed 300 rebounds for her career (305). Sophomore guard Sophia Jonas continued her sharpshooting from the perimeter by scoring 15 points for the second straight game. She was 4-of-8 from three-point range and had two rebounds. Junior guard Carla Meyer led the team with 18 points.

CSB falls to Gustavus
In its home opener, CSB dropped a 64-47 MIAC decision to Gustavus Adolphus (4-0, 2-0 MIAC) on Nov. 22 at Claire Lynch Hall. CSB was led in scoring by junior guard Carla Meyer who had 14 points, four rebounds, two assists, two steals and a blocked shot. Overall, the Bennies had struggles shooting from the field as they hit just 25.4 percent on 15-of-59 shooting, including 5-of-27 in the second half. CSB was 4-of-25 from three-point range for 16 percent but knocked down 13-of-18 free throws for 72.2 percent. CSB trailed just 17-15 after the first quarter before Gustavus had a 21-13 margin in the second to take a 38-28 lead to halftime. CSB was outscored, 20-10 in the third quarter as the Gusties built a 58-to-38 lead. The Bennies outscored Gustavus, 9-to-6 in the fourth quarter but it was not enough.

Bennies roll past St. Scholastica, 77-50
Sophia Jonas tied a career-high with five three-pointers and four players scored in double-digits to lead the College of Saint Benedict basketball team (3-1, 2-1 MIAC) to a 77-50 road win over St. Scholastica (0-5, 0-3 MIAC) on Nov. 30 in MIAC action. St. Ben's scored 20 points or more in three of four quarters for the first time this year. The Bennies took control of the game with a 14-2 run in the second quarter which pushed the lead to 40-24 at the break.  The Bennies hit a season-best 41.5 percent from the field by making 27-of-65 field goals. In the opening half, CSB was particularly effective by hitting 16-of-31 field goals for 51 percent.

CSB runs past Augsburg, 82-68 as Jonas scores 22
In winning its second straight game and fourth in five outings, the College of Saint Benedict Basketball Team (4-1, 3-1 MIAC) featured clutch shooting, dominating rebounding and major contributions off the bench in defeating Augsburg (5-2, 2-2 MIAC), 82-68, on Dec. 3 at Claire Lynch Hall. CSB had career-best performances off the bench from sophomore forward Olivia Boily (13 points), first-year guard Megan Morgan (seven points) as well as a near career-high from sophomore sharpshooter Sophia Jonas (22 points). CSB jumped to a 21-18 lead after one quarter and led, 43-30, at the halftime break. Then, with a 39-38 edge in the second half, the Bennies came away with a season-high in points in its best game of the young season. In the 77^th meeting, CSB earned its 62^nd win and now have a 28-10 home mark against Augsburg. Jonas just missed a career-high with 22 points (23 points, St. Olaf, 1/10/22) as she has now reached double-digits in points for the fourth time in five games. For the fourth time in her career, she hit five three pointers, doing so on 10 attempts.  In total, CSB had three players in double digits as junior point guard Carla Meyer had 17 points to go with eight assists, five rebounds and two steals. For the seventh time in her career, she hit four three-pointers in a game as she did it efficiently on seven shots.
 
Bennies cruise past Macalester, 67-52
The trio of Carla Meyer, Gabby Martin and Sophia Jonas all scored 15 points to lead the College of Saint Benedict Basketball Team (5-1, 4-1 MIAC) to its third straight win in a 67-52 MIAC win over Macalester (2-6, 1-4 MIAC) on Dec. 7^th at Claire Lynch Hall. The Bennies moved to 4-1 in league play and sit in a four-way tie for second place with Gustavus Adolphus, St. Catherine and Bethel. CSB, which is 5-1 overall, registered its second straight home league win. Early on, the game was close as the Bennies led, 13-11, at the first quarter break. With an 18-10 margin in the second quarter, CSB took a 31-21 lead to halftime. The Scots outscored CSB, 17-16, in the third quarter to stay within 47-38 at the third quarter break before the Bennies had a 20-14 margin to record a third straight double-digit win.
 
CSB records a dramatic win over Hamline
Sophia Jonas hit the game-winning lay-up and Hannah Johnson had a career-best performance of 11 points and 13 rebounds to lead the College of Saint Benedict (6-1, 5-1 MIAC) to a dramatic 53-52 road MIAC decision over Hamline (7-1, 5-1 MIAC) on Saturday afternoon. With the victory, Saint Ben's won its fourth straight game to move into a tie for first place in the MIAC with Bethel (5-3, 5-1) and Hamline (7-1, 5-1). Of the six total lead changes in the game, four of them came in the final minute, culminated by a lay-up from Jonas with seven seconds left. CSB, which led by as many as 14 points in the first half, called a timeout after Hamline had taken a 52-51 lead with 10 seconds to go on a lay-up from Lyndia Lecher. Then, Jonas made the shot to lift CSB into first place. The Bennies started fast by grabbing a 12-7 lead after the first quarter and took a 28-17 lead to the halftime break with a 16-10 advantage in the second quarter. Hamline rallied with a 19-13 edge in the third quarter to draw within 41-36 of CSB. Then, the Pipers had a 16-12 advantage in the fourth quarter and twice took the lead late.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

Inside look at CSB
This year, St. Benedict is averaging 63.7 points per game for fourth in the league while allowing 56.7 for fourth in the MIAC. The Bennies rank second in the league with 7.4 made three-pointers per game (52 total). In addition, defensively, CSB is holding opponents to 34.8 percent shooting (2^nd, MIAC) from three-point range and 25.0 percent (1^st, MIAC) overall from the field.

Bennies Player Notes
Guard Carla Meyer, a junior from New Brighton, Minn., has scored double digits in 26 of the past 30 games (33 double-digit career scoring games), including a career-best 26 points against Bethel on Feb. 2, 2022. Meyer, who has a high of 18 points this year vs St. Olaf on Nov. 19, has double-digit points in five of the seven games, averaging 13.0 points per game for 11^th in the MIAC. She has grabbed 4.7 rebounds with 4.6 assists per game. Meyer, who has made four threes in a game seven times, has totaled 543 points (91 this year), 187 rebounds (33 this year), 84 three-pointers (34.0 percent on 247 attempts), 40 games, 39 starts, 48 steals and 145 assists. She is 204-of-508 in field goals for 40.2 percent and 51-of-61 for 83.6 percent in free throws in her career.

Gabby Martin, a senior from Pillager, Minn., scored a career-high 17 points against St. Olaf on Feb. 9, 2022, and has a high of eight rebounds at St. Scholastica on Nov. 20, 2021, with a high of six assists also against St. Olaf on Feb. 9, 2022. Martin, who has 17 double digit scoring games in her career, is averaging 5.9 points, 3.6 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.6 steals per game in 2022-23. She registered her first double-digit points game with 15 against Macalester on Dec. 7, 2022. With eleven steals this year in five games, Martin ranks 18^th in the league. She had five steals on Jan. 10, 2022, against St. Olaf on the road for her career best. Martin, who has made 25 career threes at CSB, is approaching 300 career points (299), 62 steals, 64 assists and 131 rebounds in playing in her second year with the program.
  
Tori Szathmary  has four career double-doubles, including the latest against St. Olaf on Nov. 19, 2022. She has nine double-digit rebounds totals with a career-high in rebounds of 13 against Augsburg on the road on March 3, 2021, and against St. Olaf on Nov. 22, 22022. This season she is averaging 6.1 points and a team-best 7.0 rebounds per game which places her tenth in the MIAC. She has five blocked shots this season and 24 in her career. She set a career-best in points with 17 against Bethany Lutheran on Nov. 13, 2021. Originally of Lakewood, Colo., she has played in 64 games at CSB. Szathmary has scored double-digits nine times. Szathmary has 322 (43 in 2022-23) career points with 344 career rebounds (49 this year). The co-president of the SAAC, she has 109 career offensive boards and 20 this year. She has twice made two threes in a game and has 19 made triples in her career. In her career, Szathmary is 121-of-332 from the floor for 36.4 percent and 19-of-62 from three-point range for 30.6 percent. She has 61 made three throws in 115 attempts.
 
Junior forward Lydia Hay has recorded six double-digit scoring games, and reached double digits in rebounds once (11, Wisconsin-Superior, 11/23/21).She has one double-digit game this year against St. Scholastica on Nov. 30. This year, Hay is averaging 5.5 points and 4.0 rebounds per game with five blocked shots. Originally of Maple Grove, Minn., Hay, who has 191 points and 123 rebounds in her career, scored a career-best 14 points against Macalester on 12/11/21. In 36 career games, including 29 at CSB, she has hit 69-of-201 field goals for 34.3 percent and is 21-of-90 from three-point range.
 
Sophomore wing Sophia Jonas has scored double-digits in six of the seven games this season. She now has 15 career double-digit scoring games. Jonas, who earned her first-ever MIAC Offensive Player of the Week honor on Dec. 5, scored 19.5 points and hit 55.6 percent of her three-pointers (10-of-18) in wins over St. Scholastic and Augsburg. Jonas, was the first ever in CSB Basketball history to earn consecutive MIAC Offensive Player of the Week honors on Dec. 12, averaging 14.0 points, hitting 50 percent from the field and hit the game-winner against Hamline. Jonas has matched her career-best of five made three times this year and has made five triples four times in her career.  In 2022-23, Jonas has supplied 14.4 points per game for seventh in the MIAC. Overall, this year, she is 25-of-57 on made threes for 44.4 percent for third in the MIAC. Her 25 threes put her at first in the league and her 3.6 per game is best in the MIAC. She is averaged 2.1 rebounds and 1.0 steals per game. On Jan. 10, 2022, against St. Olaf, she had five threes and set her career high with 23 points. Fifteen times, she has hit three or more three-pointers in a game. She has 311 career points, two 20-point games, 69 (206 attempts, 33.5%) made three-pointers and 65 rebounds.  

Sophomore Olivia Boily set a career-best with 13 vs Augsburg on Dec. 3, 2022. It was her third double-digit game of the season. She has three double-digit games this year and in her career. She set her career-high in rebounds with seven against Minnesota-Morris in the opener on Nov. 12, 2022. Boily is averaging 7.9 points and 4.3 rebounds per game this year. In 32 career games, she has 169 points (55 this year), 138 rebounds, 23 assists, 20 steals and 12 blocks. Boily has hit 2-of-6 from three-point range and 70-of-156 from the floor for 44.9 percent. This year, the sophomore is shooting 44.2 percent from field.  She has grabbed three or more rebounds five times this season and 17 times in her career. Twice she has reached double-digits in rebounds including a career best 11 against Carleton on Jan. 26, 2022.

Abigail Kuboushek, a sophomore from Prior Lake, Minn., opened her sophomore season by setting a career-best with 10 points and seven rebounds vs. Minnesota Morris. She also had three made three-point shots in 18 attempts. Kuboushek, who also recorded her first-double-digit scoring game against UMM this year, now has 63 points and 42 rebounds in her career in 23 games. She is averaging 4.3 points and 2.0 rebounds per game this year.
 
CSB Head Coach Mike Durbin has 722 career wins
Durbin, who is in his 37th season with the Bennies in 2022-23, recorded his 700th win at home (Claire Lynch Hall) on Feb. 24, 2021, in an 88-83 win over the University of St. Thomas. This season, the Bennies stand 6-1 overall and 5-1 (tied for 1st) in MIAC play. In 36 seasons, Durbin has recorded 32 winning teams, coached 70 All-MIAC First Team selections, 54 honorable mention athletes, 15 players All-MIAC Defensive Team members and 15 all-first year team picks. Overall, he has a 722-265 record, including 718-243 with the Saint Ben's program. Under Durbin's direction, CSB has averaged nearly 20 wins a season for nearly 40 years and has won or shared 13 MIAC championship titles. CSB has finished in the top four in the conference 29 times in his 36 seasons at the helm. CSB has also competed in the NCAA Tournament 17 times in Durbin's 36 years, including eight NCAA Sweet 16 appearances, three Elite 8 appearances and two NCAA Final Four appearances. In 2015-16, Durbin guided CSB to the 500th MIAC win in program history since joining the league in 1985. Saint Benedict is the third program to reach the milestone and was the last team to join the conference. He holds a 557-173 mark in conference play. He is 19th in the NCAA in total wins regardless of division. During the summer of 2003, Durbin was inducted into the Minnesota High School Girls Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame. On Dec. 1, 2001, against Macalester at Claire Lynch Hall, Durbin surpassed former University of St. Thomas head coach Ted Riverso to become the winningest coach in MIAC women's basketball history. In 1992-93, Saint Benedict made its first appearance in the NCAA Final Four, and then repeated that accomplishment just six years later. In the 1998-99 season, he led CSB to the NCAA Championship game, finishing as the national runner-up with a 74-65 loss to Washington University (Mo). Four CSB basketball players have received MIAC Player of the Year honors, nine have received All-American Honors and five have received Academic All-American honors. Under Durbin's watch, 20 players have surpassed the 1,000-point milestone in their careers. Durbin, the eldest of nine children, was born and raised in Howard, Ohio. At East Knox High School, he competed in basketball and football. After his high school graduation in 1977, Durbin attended Kent State University, where he received his Bachelor of Arts degree in communication and public relations in 1981. He later earned a master's degree from Ashland College in sports administration. He served as an interim coach at Wittenberg University (Springfield, Ohio) for one year before coming to CSB in 1986.