ST. JOSEPH, Minn. – Carla Meyer had 22 points and Tori Szathmary grabbed 12 rebounds to lead the College of Saint Benedict Basketball Team (15-7, 12-7 MIAC) to a 62-55 win over Carleton (7-15, 6-13 MIAC) and a spot in the postseason.

CSB is now tied for fourth in the league with Bethel at 12-7 and have clinched one of six spots in the MIAC Postseason Tournament. The 15 wins by the Bennies is tied for the mark of a year ago with the 12 victories the most since 2017-18 (16).

"We had a solid game of executing plays on offense and on the defensive end," said CSB Head Coach Mike Durbin, who now has 730 career wins. "Carla (Meyer) and Sophia (Jonas) hit a number of big shots and Tori (Szathmary), Olivia Boily, Megan Morgan and Lydia Hay came up big on the boards and in the paint," added Durbin, whose team closes the regular season home schedule against Saint Mary's on Senior Day on Saturday, Feb. 11 at Claire Lynch Hall.

CSB, which hit 23-of-60 field goals for 38.3 percent, opened an 18-12 lead after the first quarter. Carleton outscored the Bennies, 15-13, in the second quarter as CSB led 31-27 at halftime. In the third quarter, CSB had a 14-11 edge and with 17 points in the fourth quarter earned the 62-55 win and a sweep of the season series.

Inside the Numbers
Meyer recorded her fifth 20-point game of the season with her 46^th career double digit scoring game, including 18 this season. Meyer hit 9-of-17 shots from the field, including 4-of-11 from three-point range. She tied her career-high with four triples which she now has done eight times. In addition, the junior guard had six rebounds, three assists and a steal in 37:23 on the floor.

Sophomore guard Sophia Jonas also reached double-digits in points with 13, including three triples. She had two rebounds, two assists and three steals.

Senior forward Tori Szathmary had six points, 12 rebounds, three steals and two blocks in a big game inside. Szathmary had her 10^th double-digit rebounding game this season. On her birthday, Lydia Hay added seven points and four rebounds while Olivia Boily had seven points and five rebounds.

CSB shared the ball effectively with 14 assists on 23 made baskets. The Bennies knocked in eight threes for the first time since making eight triples on Jan. 16. With Szathmary's dominating play on the boards, the Bennies had a 42-to-26 edge on the boards.

In a game with three lead changes and two ties, the Bennies biggest lead was 11 points at 7:12 of the second quarter. With eight steals, CSB had a 23-to-13 margin in points off turnovers and with a 21-to-8 edge in offensive rebounds had a 14-to-7 margin in second chance points. Carleton, which was 21-of-48 from the field for 43.8 percent, was led by Jasmine Choi with 22 points.

1^st Quarter – Meyer scored seven to lead CSB to 18-12 lead
In the opening quarter, Meyer scored seven points and CSB hit 6-of-12 from the field, including 2-of-4 from three-point range, to take an 18-12 lead at the break. CSB led by as many as seven (7:02).  In that opening stanza, CSB held the visitors to 36.4 percent shooting on 4-of-11 from the field.
 
2^nd Quarter – Szathmary helps CSB to 31-27 lead
In the second quarter, Carleton responded by outscoring CSB, 15-13 to draw within 31-27 at the break. The Bennies led by as many as 11 points with 7:12 to play. At the half, Szathmary had six points and seven rebounds to lead CSB which had a 19-17 rebound edge. The Bennies, which had a 14-to-10 points in the paint edge at the break, had seven points from both Hay and Meyer. CSB was 12-of-32 for 37.5 percent at half but just 6-of-20 for 30 percent in the second quarter when they were 1-of-8 from three-point range.

3^rd Quarter – CSB has 11-0 run to overcome deficit and command of game
After Carleton had a 19-6 run dating to the second quarter, Meyer led the Bennies on an 11-0 run to overcome a 36-33 deficit and open a 45-36 with 59 seconds left to play in the quarter. CSB made 5-of-15 field goals, including 2-of-6 from three-point range in the quarter. Defensively, the Bennies limited the Knights to 30.8 percent on 4-of-13 shooting including 1-of-5 from three-point range.

4^th Quarter – Jonas three spurs late run to clinch win
Three times in the fourth quarter, the Knights drew within three points but couldn't get any closer. CSB made 6-of-13 field goals for 46.2 percent, including 3-of-8 from three-point range. Despite shooting 8-of-14 from the field for 57.1 percent, Carleton was unable to overcome the deficit. With 4:17 to play, CSB led by four but scored seven straight points, including a three from Jonas, for a 62-51 advantage with under two minutes left on the clock.