Belles Out-Dueled by Stormy Petrels
Saint Mary's Stories
- Gabby Diamond was named to the all-tournament team and led the Belles with 17 points and six rebounds.
- Ally Steve added 16 points, five rebounds, and four assists.
- Kelsey Ronan, Olivia Lathers, and Megan Will each scored eight points.
NORTH MANCHESTER, Ind. - In a game which saw the two sides combine to score 169 points, the Saint Mary's basketball team fell 96-73 to Oglethorpe on day two of the Manchester University Main View Tipoff Classic.
After falling behind 8-0 through the first 1:08 of play, the Belles kept their composure and chipped away at the deficit steadily. Saint Mary's pulled within three points at 12-9, but the Stormy Petrels knocked down a pair of free throws and a three-pointer to regain an eight-point lead at 17-9. The Belles came right back as Ally Steve and Megan Will drained back-to-back three-pointers to make it a 17-15 game. Steve pulled the Belles even with a two free throws to knot the score at 17-17. A minute later, Gabby Diamond gave Saint Mary's their first lead of the game at 20-19 with a jump shot off a pass from Erin Maloney. Three possessions later, Diamond completed a three-point play to tie the score at 23-23. Play continued back and forth with both teams continuing to get shots to fall. Aspen Davis closed out the first quarter with a three-pointer of her own to tie the game for the fourth time at 28-28 heading into the first break.
The Stormy Petrels gained some momentum in the second quarter and used an 11-0 run over the span of 2:19 to go up 40-31. Again, the Belles held their resolve and fought their way back into the game. Diamond completed another three-point play and Ally Steve had an acrobatic three-point play of her own to make it a 40-37 game with 5:58 left on the clock. Oglethorpe continued to hold the lead and pushed their advantage to eight points twice over the next 2:20 of play. Saint Mary's continued to find a way to keep close. Megan Will and Olivia Lathers slashed the deficit to four points with a pair of layups, and Steve made two more free throws to make it a 49-47 game with 1:38 left in the half. Delaney Rohlman pulled the Belles within a point on Saint Mary's next possession. The Stormy Petrels, however, responded with four free throws over the final 1:01 of the quarter to take a 53-48 lead at the half.
Aspen Davis put the Belles on the scoreboard first in the third quarter and made it a 53-50 game with a good jump shot. Oglethorpe outscored Saint Mary's by an 11-4 margin over the next 4:31 to take a 64-54 lead. The Belles countered with three-pointers by Gabby Crown, Steve, and Kelsey Ronan as Saint Mary's halved the deficit at 68-63. The Stormy Petrels continued to click on offense while the Belles hit a bit of scoring drought over the final two and a half minutes of the quarter. Oglethorpe outscored Saint Mary's 9-3 over that stretch to take a 77-66 lead heading into the final ten minutes of play.
Unfortunately for the Belles, that difficulty getting shots to fall carried over into the fourth quarter. Saint Mary's was able to hold Oglethorpe to their lowest-scoring quarter of the game, but the Belles were held to their lowest-scoring quarter over the same span as the Stormy Petrels outscored Saint Mary's 19-7 over the final ten minutes for the 96-73 final.
Oglethorpe held a 39-38 edge in rebounds as both teams connected on eight three-pointers in the game. The big stat lines of the game were that the Stormy Petrels outscored the Belles 40-14 in the paint and 39-9 in points off of turnovers.
Gabby Diamond was one of six players to be named to the all-tournament team at the conclusion of the day.
Gabby Diamond led the Belles with 17 points and six rebounds. Ally Steve added 16 points, five rebounds, and four assists. Kelsey Ronan, Olivia Lathers, and Megan Will each scored eight points. Aspen Davis chipped in seven points in the game.
The Belles (1-2) travel to Anderson University on Tuesday, November 22 for a 7:30 p.m. contest against the Ravens.