ARDEN HILLS, Minn. – Despite four players in double-digits, including 22 from Carla Meyer, the College of Saint Benedict basketball team (13-10, 11-8 MIAC) dropped a 76-68 decision on the road to Bethel (14-10, 12-7 MIAC) in MIAC play on Wednesday (Feb. 14).

With one game left in the regular-season, the Bennies now sit fifth in the MIAC with an 11-8 record and are 13-10 overall. Bethel moved into fourth in the league with the win at 12-7 and improved to 14-10 overall. CSB, which has clinched a berth in the MIAC playoffs, host St. Catherine on Saturday, Feb. 17 at 1 p.m., at Claire Lynch Hall. When the regular season draws to a close, the top two seeds in the MIAC standings earn first-round byes with the No. 3 seed hosting No. 6 and No. 4 seed hosting No. 5 in that opening round at 7 p.m., on Tuesday, Feb. 20. The winners advance to the semifinals at 7 p.m., on Thursday, Feb. 22 with the championship set on Saturday at 3 p.m., at the home of the highest remaining seed.

Meyer, who had her 10^th career 20-point game, now has 1,177 points as she hit 9-of-22 field goals, including a pair of three-pointers. The senior standout, who now has 153 three-pointers for fifth all-time at CSB, also had a team-high seven rebounds and four assists.

Joining Meyer in double digits was sophomore forward Kira Young with 14 points and four rebounds while junior guard Sophia Jonas had 11 points, three steals and six rebounds. Sophomore guard Megan Morgan added 10 points, three rebounds and two assists. Young now has 13 double-digits games in her career while Morgan had her 12^th and Jonas recorded her 42^nd. Jonas had a pair of three-pointers, which moved her all-time career school record to 190.

CSB led after each of the first three quarters before Bethel rallied with a 26-to-13 margin in the fourth quarter to earn the win and sweep the regular season series. The Bennies, which twice led by 10 points in the game, held a 19-to-14 advantage after the first quarter; before leading 38-to-32 at halftime and 55-to-50 after three quarters of play.

Key to Bethel's late rally and win was its strong inside game, which led to a 46-to-32 edge in points in the paint. With a 44-to-34 edge in rebounds, the Royals had an 18-to-10 margin in second chance points. While CSB had a 7-to-4 edge in three-pointers, Bethel had an 18-to-13 margin in free throws. The Royals also outshot the Bennies, 46.6 percent (27-of-58) to 38.1 percent (24-of-63). Leading the way for Bethel was Ella Schmitz, who had a double-double of 18 points and 11 rebounds.

In the 26-13 fourth quarter run, the Royals hit 10-of-17 shots for 58.8 percent while CSB was just 5-of-17 for 29.4 percent. A game that had just one lead change (fourth quarter) and three tied games, was controlled by CSB until the fourth quarter. The Bennies led for 30:17 to just 8:04 but the fourth quarter was the difference.

GAME SUMMARY
CSB jumped to a first quarter lead by hitting 8-of-17 field goals for 47.1 percent for a 19-14 lead. CSB used a 7-0 run for a 14-4 lead as Meyer scored seven points. Then, Bethel rallied with 11 straight points across 4:04 to draw even on Laura Johnson's free throw. Lydia Hay's basket with 1:09 to play helped CSB to a 16-14 lead and stopped the run. Then Jonas hit a triple at the end of the quarter for a 19-14 lead.

With 10 second-quarter points from Young, who had 14 in the first half on 5-of-6 shooting from the field, CSB took a 38-32 lead at halftime. Young scored the first five points of the quarter for a 24-14 lead (9:08). Bethel responded with a 10-4 run, including a hook shot by Alli Born (5:11) to cut the deficit to 28-24. Young's three gave the Bennies a 33-26 lead (4:05). Bethel answered with six straight points to draw close at 33-32 with 2:50 to play. With two free throws by Lydia Hay, who finished with nine points and six rebounds in the game, the Bennies took a 38-32 lead to halftime. Through the opening two periods, CSB was 14-of-31 from the field for 45.2 percent, including 5-of-14 from three-point range and had a 19-to-16 rebound edge.

In the third quarter, Bethel outscored, CSB, 18-17, but the Bennies held a 55-50 lead at the break. CSB, which had seven points from Morgan, hit 5-of-15 field goals for 33.3 percent and made 7-of-9 three throws. After a lay-up and two foul shots by Morgan, CSB led, 42-32. (9:18). Bethel scored seven straight points to draw within 42-39 at the 7:37 mark. Morgan had another lay-up (4:59) and, with the and one, gave CSB a 49-42 lead as she had seven points in opening 5:04 of the quarter. Bethel scored five straight points to cut the lead to 49-47. Meyer scored four points in the final minutes to help CSB maintain the lead at the break.

In the fourth quarter, Bethel shot 58 percent from the field and used a 26-13 advantage to earn the win. The Royals grabbed the momentum at the start of the quarter. With nine straight points, Bethel took a 59-55 lead before Hay's jumper helped CSB draw within 59-57 with 7:19 to play. With 3:10 to play, Meyer hit a three to draw within 66-65. Then, Jonas hit a lay-up at 2:28 to cut lead to 68-67. But Bethel closed on an 8-1 run to capture its 30th win in 83 games in the series.