The Belles extended their win streak to three this weekend as they defeated North Central College 75-56 in the Holiday Inn Select Tip-Off Tournament title game.
The Belles (3-0) took an early lead over the Cardinals (1-3) when they scored the first five points of the game within the first minute. They never trailed North Central, heading into the locker room leading 32-22 at the half.
Junior Maggie Ronan scored the first shot for Saint Mary's. After a defensive rebound from senior Liz Wade on the other end, junior Patsy Mahoney took the ball and scored a three-pointer for the Belles.
Freshman Shanlynn Bias, sophomore Annie Doyle and junior captain Kelley Murphy also contributed to the offensive output by Saint Mary's. Though the Cardinals had defeated Webster University the day before, the Belles had also trounced Aurora 84-59 in a semifinals match.
This is the first tournament championship for the Belles since they won the Knox College Classic during the 2004-2005 season.
Murphy led the squad on offense with 17 points. She finished 7 of 10 from the field to go along with three free throws. Murphy was named to the all-tournament team alongside Ronan, who was the tournament MVP. Ronan scored 12 points in the title game.
The Belles look to go 4-0 when they face Anderson University Tuesday night at 7:30 p.m.
