Box Score
After a tough loss to Augsburg College on Wednesday evening, the St. Catherine University basketball team was searching for a much-need Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) win against an always-good College of Saint Benedict squad.
The Wildcats gave everything they had in the second half to keep it close before the Blazers used an 18-10 run in the game's final eight minutes to hand the Wildcats a 65-52 loss Saturday afternoon in St. Joseph, Minn.
Mary Neumann (Duluth, Minn.) recorded her first collegiate double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds to give the Wildcats a fighting chance against a Blazer squad that was 5-2 in MIAC play heading into Saturday's matchup. The sophomore was 3-for-4 from 3-point range and also came up with two steals defensively.
The Wildcats opened the game with a four-point lead at the 13:57 mark before the Blazers went on a 14-2 run to go up 19-10 with 7:06 to play in the first.
The Blazers appeared as if they might run away with the game as they pushed their lead to 11 at the half, but Neumann scored five in the opening three minutes of the second to cut the Blazer lead to five.
Again, the Blazers would push their lead to 11, but the Wildcats kept fighting to keep it close and pulled within four at the midpoint of the half.
But that's as close as the Wildcats would come to victory as the Blazers used a solid run in the final minutes of the game to hand St. Catherine its seventh MIAC loss of the season.
Sarina Baker (Plymouth, Minn.) led the Wildcats in points (12) and steals (5), while
Jenna Mistler (Austin, Texas) led the team in assists (4). The sophomore guard also contributed 11 points and seven boards to the Wildcat effort.
Brianna Barrett came up big for the Blazers with a game-high 17 points to lift her team to victory.
With the loss, the Wildcats fall to 1-9 on the season and 0-7 in the MIAC. The Wildcats will travel across town to take on Hamline University, Monday at 7:30 p.m.
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