ST. JOSEPH, Minn.— The Wildcats suffered a heart-breaker on Valentine's Day, losing to St. Ben's in the final seconds. The Wildcats are now 6-15 for the season, while the Bennies are 14-9.
The first quarter was closely contested, as the teams traded several layups. Neither team built a lead of more than 2 points, and as the period ended that was the margin of the Bennies' advantage.
Both teams heated up in the 2
nd quarter, making more than half of their shots. St. Ben's shot well from beyond the arc, and their third 3-pointer of the period put them up by 4 points with 13 seconds left. But St. Kate's answered with a three of their own to make the score 30-31 at the half.
The Wildcats came out with great energy in the third and started the quarter with a 14-5 run to take an 8-point lead. The Bennies climbed back into the game with a couple of three-pointers, while St.Kate's struggled to hit from outside. When the quarter ended the Wildcats' advantage was down to one point.
The fourth quarter saw more lead changes and ties. A free throw by
Katie Benjamin (her 19th point of the night, leading all scorers) made the score 55-all with 1:20 left. The score stayed there until Carla Meyer of St. Ben's took an inbounds pass with 21 seconds remaining, worked the clock down, and hit a jumper while leaving only 2 seconds left. After advancing the ball with a timeout, St. Kate's forced a quick, final shot to no avail.
Benjamin's stellar outing came on shooting 9-of-13 from the floor.
Sam Orth contributed 9 points and 5 rebounds. St. Kate's finishes the regular season with Senior Day at home against St. Mary's on February 16
th at 7pm.