ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Macalester women's basketball team earned its third straight victory tonight, against Saint Benedict (16-7, 13-7 MIAC), who is currently ranked fourth in the MIAC. The Scots came out strong, taking the lead and never giving it up, defeating the Bennies 63-60. The Scots improve to 7-17 (6-15 MIAC).

Sophomore guard/forwards Peyton Starks (St. Louis, Mo./John Burroughs School) and Katherine Norquist (Chicago, Ill./Walter Payton College Prep) combined to start Macalester off with a 7-0 lead. The Bennies tied it back up, but sophomore guard Camille Samuel (Tampa, Fla./Tampa Preparatory) regained the lead for the Scots, 9-7, with 3:13 on the clock. This sparked a 6-0 run for Macalester. Senior guard Solana Cushing (Minneapolis, Minn./South) sank an important three, and Starks' last second layup gave the Scots an 18-13 lead after the first quarter.
Junior guard Caitlin Panos (North Andover, Mass./Andover) opened the second quarter with one from beyond the arc. Starks, Norquist and Cushing combined to increase Macalester's lead to as much as 10, 30-20, with 2:43 on the clock. Cushing hit the last bucket of the half. The Scots led 32-24 at half.

The Bennies had a 6-0 run to begin the third quarter, but Norquist ended that run, with 3:47 on the clock, leading 34-30. Saint Benedict would come as close as one point, 36-35, with 40 seconds left in the quarter, but once again, the Scots remained in the lead, with sophomore guard Nicole Norton (Brussels, Wis./Southern Door) putting in a layup, assisted by junior guard Maia Pedrosa (South San Francisco, Calif./Urban School of San Francisco). The Scots led 38-37 at the end of the third.

Macalester came out on fire in the fourth, with Starks, Panos, Norquist, and junior guard Andrea Palmen (Kenosha, Wis./The Prairie School) all knocking in buckets for an 8-0 run, to take a nine-point lead, 46-37, with 6:38 left in the game. Panos sank a three to increase the lead to 12, 51-39. With just under two minutes left, the Scots knocked in 10-of-16 free throws to secure the 63-60 victory.

The Scots shot 42.1% from the field, and made five three-pointers. Starks led the team, registering another double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds. Norquist totaled 14 points, eight rebounds, five assists, and one steal. Cushing followed with 12 points. Samuel went 4-for-4 from the line, helping to secure the victory. 

Macalester will play its final game of the season on Saturday Feb 18. The Scots play Augsburg in Minneapolis Tip off is at 3:00 p.m.