Stingy Defense Not Enough for Belles Against Eagles
- Krista Knapked scored 12 points and tallied six rebounds.
- Maddie Kohler added seven points, four assists, and four rebounds.
- Erin Maloney and Gabby Diamond each scored six points.
LISLE, Ill. - The Saint Mary's basketball team held Benedictine to just 48 points and a 36.2 field goal percentage, but the Belles had a tough time getting offense at the other end of the floor in a 48-36 final.
Through the first six minutes of the opening quarter, the Belles and the Eagles played neck and neck. Erin Maloney netted Saint Mary's first six points of the game, and Krista Knapke hit a jump shot just under the four-minute mark to make it an 8-8 game with 3:55 on the clock. The Eagles, however, closed out the quarter with nine of the next 11 points to hold a 17-10 lead at the first break.
The Belles opened up the second quarter with a 7-2 scoring spurt to get right back into contention. Knapke had a jumper and a pair of free throws while Maddie Kohler sunk a three-pointer to make it a 19-17 contest with 5:30 to go before halftime. Benedictine responded with an 11-2 spurt of their own to take a 30-19 lead into the half.
Saint Mary's had a tough time finding offense in the third quarter as the Eagles outscored the Belles 11-4 during the period. The Belles continued to fight down the stretch and held a 13-7 scoring edge in the fourth quarter - including a 10-0 run. The deficit, however, proved to be too much to overcome in the final period of play as the Eagles held on for a 48-36 decision.
The Belles hit all six of their free throws and committed a season-low 10 turnovers against the Eagles.
Krista Knapke led the Belles with 12 points while pulling down six rebounds. Maddie Kohler added seven points, four assists, and four rebounds. Erin Maloney and Gabby Diamond each scored six points, and Eleni Shea paced the Belles with seven rebounds.
The Belles (0-7) travel to Calvin on Saturday for a 3:00 p.m. conference game against the No. 11 ranked Knights.
