College of Saint Benedict Athletics

ST. JOSEPH, Minn. - The College of Saint Benedict basketball team polished off a perfect opening weekend with a 65-46 win over Loras College Saturday, Nov. 7. The win boosts CSB to 2-0 on the season, while Loras drops to 0-2.

A stellar weekend landed two Bennies on the all-tournament team. Junior Drew Buslee (Eagan, Minn./Eagan) earned MVP honors, while sophomore Emma Theisen (Rosemount, Minn./Rosemount) earned a sport on the all-tournament squad.

Buslee finished with 23 points to lead Saint Benedict, two shy of her career-high. Juniors Lauren Arnold (Chanhassen, Minn./Chanhassen) and Alyssa Sadlovsky (Pierz, Minn./Pierz Healy), along with first-year Sophia Amundson (St. Paul, Minn./Two Rivers), all joined Buslee with double-digit points. Arnold notched 11, while Sadlovsky and Amundson each chipped in 10. Arnold recorded a double-double performance with a career-high 11 assists, the first double-double of her career. It marked the most assists in a game since Ashley Brown recorded 12 against Concordia College Dec. 8, 2003. First-year Liz Vitt (Edina, Minn./Edina) added in a pair. 

The trio of Buskee, Sadlovsky and Theisen led the defense, as all three Bennies hauled in seven rebounds. Amundson registered a pair of blocks in the contest, while Theisen tallied four steals. 

As a team, CSB finished with a 22-of-60 showing from the field (36.7 percent), going 8-of-26 from deep (30.8 percent). The Bennies knocked down 13-of-26 attempts at the free throw line (50 percent). Saint Ben's limited the Duhawks to a 14-of-52 showing (26.9 percent), and did not allow a three-pointer, as Loras finished 0-for-13 from deep. The Duhawks did win the battle at the free throw line, making 18 of their 22 attempts (81.8 percent). Saint Benedict boasted the advantage in points in the paint (28-24), points off turnovers (37-10), and assists (15-3).

Loras made the first basket of the day to go up 2-0 with 7:58 to play in the opening quarter, but the Bennies responded and never relinquished the lead. Vitt swiped a pass from the Duhawks and hit Buslee for a three, sparking a nine-point run for the home team. Arnold picked LC's pockets for an easy layup, followed by a Sadlovsky score on the next possession to put CSB up 7-2 at the six-minute mark. 

Saint Ben's saw its first double-digit lead with 1:36 remaining in the first quarter, as Goodman splashed a pass from Arnold to bring the score to 16-6. The Duhawks clawed back to keep it close, but two made free throws from Arnold closed out the opening quarter at 19-11 in favor of CSB. 

Loras opened the second quarter on a run, narrowing its deficit to one, 19-18, with 8:55 to go in the first half. Buslee made a free throw to stop the streak, beginning a scoring stretch for the Bennies. After a LC turnover, Anderson fed Amundson for a three, and a Buslee layup followed to make it a seven-point cushion. Buslee stayed hot, drilling a trey to bring the gap back to 10, 28-18 nearing the halfway point of the quarter.

Arnold beat the buzzer to give Saint Ben's a nine-point lead, 35-26, into halftime. 

Saint Benedict pushed its gap to 17 in the third behind a Sadlovsky three followed by a Vitt layup with 3:35 to go in the third. The cushion proved to be enough, as the Bennies controlled the rest of the contest, taking it 65-46. 

CSB remains home to host its second home tournament next weekend, Nov. 13-14. The Bennies welcome Central College, Simpson College and Concordia College for the MN vs. IA Clash. Saint Ben's will begin with an 8:15 p.m. bout with Central Friday night, Nov. 13.