Belles Bounced by Bulldogs
Saint Mary's Stories
ADRIAN, Mich. - The Saint Mary's basketball team fell victim to a tough shooting performance to open 2012 as the Belles lost 62-52 to Adrian on Wednesday evening.
The Belles jumped out of the gate on fire. Saint Mary's hit four of their first six shots along with a pair of free throws to score the first ten points of the game just 5:05 into the game. The baskets did not come as easily throughout the final 14:55 of the first half for Saint Marys, however. The Belles made just four of their next 21 attempts over the remainder of the opening half. Over that same span, the host Bulldogs out-scored Saint Mary's 27-8 to lead by nine at the break.
The second half saw Adrian make 53.8 percent (14-of-26) of their shots while Saint Mary's made just 33.3 (12-of-36). The Belles got within seven points of the Bulldog lead early in the half. But Adrian pushed their lead to 18 as late as 7:10 in the half. The Belles continued to battle and chipped away at the deficit to get with eight by scoring 10 consecutive points, but the comeback bid ran out of time as Adrian emerged with the decision.
The Bulldogs held a 49 to 35 advantage on rebounds while the Adrian bench accounted for 40 of the team's 62 points.
Pasty Mahoney led the Belles with 11 points and a game-high three steals. Jessica Centa added her first double-double of the season with 10 points and 11 rebounds. Kelley Murphy, Shanlynn Bias, and Ariana Paul rounded out the scoring with nine, eight, and seven points, respectively.
The Belles (5-8, 1-3 MIAA) will look to get back into the win column when they return to Angela Athletic Facility this Saturday as they host MIAA foe Olivet at 3:00 p.m.