Over this past week, Saint Mary’s basketball faced off against two teams, No. 22 Trine and Alma. After falling to both teams, Saint Mary's moved to 7-16 overall on the season and 2-12 in the MIAA.
Saint Mary’s vs. Trine
In a conference game against the No. 22 ranked Trine Thunder, Saint Mary’s fell in a devastating 88-40 loss. Both teams struggled in the first quarter, but Trine found its bearings and took advantage of a 10-3 run to finish the first quarter with a 16-10 lead. The Thunder continued the scoring trend leading 39-18 at the half, taking advantage of the struggling Saint Mary's offense.
The third quarter looked similar as the Belles found it difficult to score on the Trine defense. Trine continued the offensive barrage, zipping by Saint Mary’s as the Thunder offense appeared nearly unstoppable. Trine got out to an even larger 61-26 lead after three quarters. Offensively, the fourth quarter would be the best quarter for the Belles as they went 5 for 16 from the field and knocked down four three-pointers. However, it would not be enough to comeback against Trine who won 88-40.
Overall, it was both the Belles’ offense and defense that struggled mightily in the loss. Saint Mary’s was only able to grab 24 rebounds while Trine brought down 47, many of which were critical offensive rebounds for second chance points. Defensively, junior guard Kate Restovich led on the court with four rebounds.
On offense, the Belles struggled with the protection of the ball, as Trine forced 13 steals and 19 turnovers. Saint Mary’s only went only 12 for 49 from the field, 6 for 32 from the arc and 10 for 14 from the free throw line. Overall, sophomore guard Kate Passinault led the Belles with 13 points followed by sophomore guard Ella Notaro, who finished with nine points. The belligerent pressure was an essential part of the Thunder attack to win comfortably.
Saint Mary’s vs. Alma
In the second conference game of the week, Saint Mary’s faced off against the Alma Scots and fell in another loss, 80-50. The Belles found trouble early on as they continued to struggle shooting in the first quarter. On the other hand, Alma’s offense was a major strength as it aided an early 22-11 lead at the first break. The Scots continued in a scoring groove, using an 11-0 run to stay ahead. Despite the Belles managing a 9-2 run nearing the end of the quarter, Alma maintained a 43-28 lead at the half. The Scots proved they had no intention of stopping there.
Alma capitalized on a 12-0 run to open the second half, making easy work of the Belles defense. This attack was a catalyst for the 64-39 score at the end of the third quarter. The scoring slowed down in the fourth, but the Scots hung on to the large lead to triumph over Saint Mary's.
Overall, senior forward Hannah Outlaw led the team on the court with a total of 16 points going 5 for 8 from field. She put in six from the charity stripe, added three assists and finished with three additional steals. Passinault also contributed defensively as she snagged four rebounds for the Belles.
After these two losses, the Belles’ next matchup is set to be against Kalamazoo at home on Feb. 18 starting at 7 p.m.
