ST. JOSEPH, Minn. – The Macalester College women's basketball team battled the College of Saint Benedict in a MIAC game, ultimately losing, 69-58 Wednesday night at Claire Lynch Hall. The Scots are now 10-12 overall and 5-10 in the conference, while the Bennies improve to 15-7 on the season and 10-5 in the MIAC.
The first half was close throughout, with 11 lead changes and four ties. Saint Benedict took a 13-7 edge before senior guard
Peyton Starks (St. Louis, Mo./John Burroughs School) tallied seven straight points to put Macalester on top, 14-13. Megan Morgan hit a three right before the end of the quarter for a 16-14 Bennies lead.
Sophomore guard
Kendall Bernbaum (Dallas, Texas/Shelton School) opened the second quarter with a three-pointer to briefly give the Scots a 17-16 lead. Saint Ben's regained the upper hand and led, 22-19 when Starks scored three points and sophomore guard
Sydnee Smith (Gainesville, Va./Patriot) had a steal and a layup to return the lead to the Scots, 24-22 with four minutes left in the half. A 9-6 run by the hosts to close out the second quarter gave the Bennies a 31-30 advantage heading into the halftime break. Starks scored 15 points on 5-of-7 shooting from the field in the first half.
On Macalester's first possession after halftime, Bernbaum answered a Bennies' basket with a three-pointer to tie the score at 33-33. After that, Saint Ben's took over, reeling off a game-changing 19-6 run over the rest of the quarter to take a commanding 52-39 advantage into the fourth quarter. The Scots were held to just two field goals in the third.
Despite the struggles in the third quarter, Macalester fought to get back in the game. Baskets by Smith and Starks and a free throw from senior forward
Katherine Norquist (Chicago, Ill./Walter Payton College Prep) brought the Scots to within seven, 52-45 with eight minutes to play. After the Bennies pushed the lead back up to 10, back-to-back baskets from Smith made it a six-point game, 57-51 with 4:03 remaining. Again the lead expanded to 10 before Starks hit a three to make the score 66-56 with 1:29 left. Saint Ben's closed out the game with a 6-2 run to end the comeback attempt and clinch the win.
Macalester shot 50.0 percent (8-of-16) from the field in the fourth quarter, with Starks scoring six of her game-high 24 points in the final 10 minutes. She also had seven rebounds and shot 8-of-17 from the floor. Smith scored six points in the fourth quarter and finished with 10 points and six boards. Norquist contributed nine points and eight rebounds, while sophomore guard
Mary Daley (Cumberland, R.I./Bishop Feehan) grabbed a team-leading 10 rebounds to go with eight points. Sophia Jonas scored 23 points to lead Saint Benedict.
The Scots return to action on Saturday, Feb. 15 with a home game against St. Olaf. Macalester will honor its seniors prior to the game, which begins at 1:00 p.m. in the Leonard Center.
