After falling in overtime Saturday, the St. Catherine University basketball team needed to bounce back in a major way if it was going to knock off No. 2 University of St. Thomas. Despite another huge game from first-year Audra Clark (Kenyon, Minn./Kenyon-Wanamingo), the Wildcats couldn't overcome the balanced offense from the undefeated Tommies in a 73-56 loss Wednesday evening in Schoenecker Arena in St. Paul. 

Clark tallied a team-high 18 points to lead the Wildcats in scoring for the third time in the last four games, but collectively the Wildcats shot just 35.4 percent from the field as opposed to a 46.6 shooting night for the Tommies from the field. The Tommies also held a 38-24 rebounding advantage which is the Wildcats' lowest total in a single game this season. 

The Wildcats jumped out to the early lead, but allowed the Tommies to take over the lead less than five minutes and never looked back. The Tommies led by as many as 16 in the first half before taking a 38-25 advantage into the break. The continued to build their lead in the second half before collecting their 22nd win of the season and 15th in the MIAC. 

Clark collected her 18 points thanks to a 7-of-8 performance from the charity stripe. For the second game in a row, the rookie also made three buckets from beyond the arc.  LaShay Holt (Minneapolis, Minn./Humboldt) was just behind Clark with 17 points off the bench. She also collected a team-high five rebounds and added two steals. 

Shauna Horsch (Inver Grove Heights, Minn./Simley) added 11 points for her third double-digit scoring performance in a row. She went 4-for-9 from the field and shot 50 percent from 3-point range. The junior also had four rebounds, one assist and a steal. 

Meg Clark (Kenyon, Minn./Kenyon-Wanamingo) was 3-of-3 from the line and added a bucket to contribute five points. She also had a game-high three steals as well as three boards. Mari Lee (Dawson, Minn./Dawson-Boyd) and Annie Schoeben (Brooklyn Park, Minn./Osseo) each had three assists to lead the Wildcats in that category. 

Jenna Dockter led the five Tommies who reached double digits with 21 points, while Katie Stone and Hannah Hughes each collected 12 points to help the Tommies secure a share of the MIAC regular season championship. 

With the loss, the Wildcats fall to 7-15 on the season and 2-13 in the MIAC. They are scheduled to take on Macalester College Saturday across town for a 3 p.m. contest in the Leonard Center in St. Paul. 

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