ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Macalester women's basketball team took a short trip down the road this evening to take on the Wildcats of St. Catherine. It was a close matchup, but the Scots fell short 74-63. Macalester is now 9-14 (6-12 MIAC) while St. Catherine is now 16-6 (12-5 MIAC).
The Wildcats took a 5-0 lead before first year guard
Sydnee Smith (Gainesville, Va./Patriot) successfully completed an and-one and put Macalester's first three points on the board. The Wildcats would try again to build a lead but junior guard/forwards
Peyton Starks (St. Louis, Mo./John Burroughs School) and
Katherine Norquist (Chicago, Ill./Walter Payton College Prep) denied St. Catherine's attempts to pull ahead. First year guard
Mary Daley (Cumberland, R.I./Bishop Feehan) tied the game at 11 with 2:30 left in the quarter. First year guard
Acacia Edmond (Houston, Texas/Shadow Creek) and Starks then led the Scots to a 15-13 lead at the whistle.
Senior guard
Andrea Palmen (Kenosha, Wis./The Prairie School) set the tone in the second quarter, opening it up by blocking the Wildcats' three-point attempt, and then sinking one from beyond the arc at the other end for Macalester. Smith sank her own three to build on the lead, but the Wildcats came back to tie the game at 23-23 with 5:02 on the clock. The Wildcats would take the lead for the next few minutes, but the Scots' determination and a pair of successful free throws from junior guard
Nicole Norton (Brussels, Wis./Southern Door) gave the Scots a 34-33 lead at halftime.
Palmen and Smith once again hit back-to-back threes to open the third quarter. Edmond's successful and-one half way through the quarter helped the Scots maintain a 43-39 lead. However, the Wildcats would have a surge and lead 54-46, heading into the fourth. The Scots continued to battle in the fourth, led by Norquist and Starks. The Scots shot 7-for-9 from the line in the final quarter, but couldn't overcome St. Catherine's lead and fell 74-63.
Starks totaled 21 points, four blocks, and six rebounds. She also went 5-for-5 from the line. Norquist, Smith, and Edmond all secured 10 points tonight. The Scots shot 41.5% from the field and 30.8% from beyond the arc.
Macalester's next game will be Saturday Feb 10. The Scots take on Hamline at 1:00 p.m. on the road.
