The road to a Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) win wasn't going to get any easier for the St. Catherine University basketball team after a tough overtime loss on Saturday. With a looming four-game losing streak, the Wildcats knew they would have to put everything they had forward if they wanted to pull off another upset over a Bethel University squad that has won five-straight games. Unfortunately, the Wildcats couldn't find an answer for the Royals in the second half of a 90-77 MIAC loss Wednesday evening in Arden Hills, Minnesota.

In the opening half, the Royals built a small lead early, but the Wildcats managed to keep their opponent close pulling within one with 6:36 to play. The Royals went on a 18-6 run over the next four minutes to build their lead to 11 before taking a 39-33 lead into halftime. The Wildcats shot just 30.3 percent from the field in the opening 20 but stayed close with the Royals thanks to a 10-of-12 team performance at the line. 

Despite shooting 47.1 percent in the second half, the Wildcats allowed the Royals even better at 58.6 percent. The Royals also took the advantage in rebounds 21-13. The Wildcats came out strong from the breaking going on a 8-2 run less than three minutes in to tie the game at 41-41. The Wildcats eventually built a five-point lead before allowing the Royals to regain momentum and start to pull away with less than 10 to play en route to their sixth-straight win. 

LaShay Holt (Minneapolis, Minn./Humboldt) was just shy of her career-best performance and a double-double finishing with a game-high 26 points and a team-best nine rebounds. She finished with a strong night at the line going 13-of-15 with 11 of her first half points coming at the line. Not only did she lead the team offensively, but she helped set up the offense with five assists and contributed defensively with three steals. 

Audra Clark (Kenyon, Minn./Kenyon-Wanamingo) came up big for the Wildcats as she tied her career-best point total with 19 going 7-of-17 from the field and 4-for-4 from the charity stripe. She also collected a game-high four steals, as well as three rebounds and three assists. 

Coming off a career-high performance Saturday, Shauna Horsch (Inver Grove Heights, Minn./Simley) was a strong contributor Wednesday with her third-consecutive double-digit scoring performance recording 18 points thanks to a 3-for-5 mark from beyond the arc. The junior also added four rebounds, two steals and two assists. 

Mari Lee (Dawson, Minn./Dawson-Boyd) went 3-for-4 from the field for seven points and added three rebounds and a block, while Meg Clark (Kenyon, Minn./Kenyon-Wanamingo) added four points, an assist and a steal. Mary Neumann (Duluth, Minn./Hermantown) came off the bench for three points, six rebounds and a block. 

Leading the way for the Royals was Hannah Niewald who was 6-of-9 from the field and 10-of-11 from the line for 22 points, while Sydney Schultz also had 22 points. Kalli Zimmermann and Rachel Parupsky broke double-digits scoring 16 and 15 points, respectively, while Lindy Parker grabbed a game-high 16 boards. 

With the loss, the Wildcats fall to 7-11 overall and 2-9 in the MIAC. The Wildcats return to action Saturday when they travel north to face the College of Saint Benedict. Tip off is set for 3 p.m. in St. Joseph. 

Wildcat Basketball on Twitter
Wildcat Basketball on Facebook
Wildcats on Twitter
Wildcats on Facebook