The Belles took a solid lead into halftime Wednesday night, but Adrian College dominated the second half and Saint Mary's suffered a disappointing 67-51 loss.At the end of the first half, the Belles (6-16) had a 30-26 lead, but an quick start to the second half by Adrian (8-13) quickly shifted the momentum.The fast pace of the game favored Adrian. The Belles gave up 41 points in the second half, while their offense was held to 21 points.The loss gives the Belles a 1-10 record in the MIAA and puts them in last place in the league. With the loss, the Belles now have a three-game losing streak.The leading scorer for the Belles was forward Emily Creachbaum, who dropped in 17 points on 8-of-15 shooting. Guard Bridget Boyce was the second-leading scorer for the Belles with 12 points. Boyce also added three steals.In last week's games against Olivet and Calvin, the Belles relied heavily on their bench to provide a strong effort. Against Adrian, the bench proved not to be a factor. Justine Mullen scored eight points to account for all of the Belles' bench points. In last Monday's home victory over Olivet, the Belles had six different players come off the bench to score a combined 32 points.Four different Adrian players reached double figures.Guard Corrie Helldobler led Adrian with 15 points and six rebounds. Mandi Lemmons also put in a strong effort with 12 points and five assists in the comeback.Both teams had trouble from the free throw line with the Belles shooting 8-for-20 and Adrian making only 13-of-25.In the end, the two teams were even in most statistics, but Adrian capitalized on a rebounding advantage and superior shooting to open up a big lead.This is not the first time the Belles have had trouble maintaining their stamina in the second half. In previous games this season, the Belles have lost their edge after a strong first half.The Belles have only three games left this season and only one more home game. On Saturday, the team goes on the road to face Alma College.
