ST. JOSEPH, Minn. - Sophomore guard Lauren Arnold scored 13 points and came up with three rebounds and three steals to help the College of Saint Benedict basketball team rally past Bethany Lutheran, 51–50, and capture the CSB Tipoff Tournament title Saturday night at Claire Lynch Hall.

With the victory, the Bennies opened their season 2–0, following up Friday's 91–57 rout of Minnesota-Morris with a nail-biter that came down to the final seconds. Drew Buslee, who added 10 points in Saturday's win and finished with 32 points across both games, was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player. She was joined on the All-Tournament Team by Arnold, Arinn McGee of Bethany Lutheran, Kloe Lind of St. Scholastica, and Maddy Grove of Minnesota-Morris.

Arnold (Chanhassen, Minn.) had a stat line that reflected her all-around impact: six field goals, a free throw, three rebounds, three assists, and a steal. Senior Kira Young (Hudson, Wis.) contributed 12 points, six rebounds, and three steals, while senior Megan Morgan (Winona, Minn.) chipped in 10 points and five boards. First-year forward Emma Theisen (Rosemount, Minn.) was a force on the glass with nine rebounds—five of them offensive—along with four points, including two crucial offensive boards in the closing seconds that sealed the win.

Bethany Lutheran came out strong, jumping to an 18–8 lead after the first quarter. CSB struggled early, shooting just 20 percent from the field in the opening quarter and missing all four of its three-point attempts.

But the Bennies settled in during the second quarter, hitting 53.8 percent of their shots to cut the deficit to 30–26 at halftime. Arnold led the way with 10 first-half points, while Young and Buslee added key buckets to keep CSB within striking distance.

The defensive intensity ramped up after halftime. CSB outscored Bethany Lutheran, 15–13, in the third quarter despite hitting only 26 percent of its shots, holding the Vikings to just 25 percent from the field. Both teams continued to grind through a cold-shooting fourth quarter, but Saint Benedict's persistence on the boards—and clutch free-throw shooting (15-for-18 for the game)—made the difference.

Leading 51–50 with 34 seconds to play, Theisen twice snatched offensive rebounds in the final 34 seconds, allowing the Bennies to run out the clock and secure the one-point victory.

Saint Benedict finished 18-for-61 (29.5 percent) from the field and, remarkably, went 0-for-15 from three-point range. But their resilience proved decisive.

The Bennies now turn their attention to their next home matchup—a nonconference test against UW–Eau Claire at 7 p.m. Wednesday at Claire Lynch Hall.