A road game against ranked opposition always looked to be a difficult place to earn a first conference victory of the season, and Saint Mary’s was unable to pull off the feat, falling 84-49 to No. 25 Calvin despite junior forward Gabby Diamond’s 19 points.
For the first five minutes, the Belles (1-18, 0-11 MIAA) kept pace with the Knights (18-2, 9-2 MIAA), but a 12-2 Calvin run soon put Saint Mary’s behind by double-digits. A late jumper from Belles sophomore forward Caroline Macius brought the quarter to an end with the Knights leading 18-10.
The Belles cut the lead to just five points in the second quarter, but a 20-4 run by the Knights put the Belles behind by more than 20 points, 41-20, at the half.
The Knights continued to extend their lead through the third quarter, opening up a 57-26 lead at one point. Diamond led Saint Mary’s offensive effort in the period, scoring eight points while adding a block on the defensive side.
The fourth quarter was the most competitive of the game, as the Belles kept within six points of the Knights. A Diamond 3-pointer with 12 seconds remaining was the final score of the game, closing out a 84-49 victory by the Knights.
Diamond recorded eight rebounds and two blocks in addition to her game-leading 19 points on 9-of-18 shooting, while freshman guard Ally Steve added eight points and five rebounds. The Belles were out rebounded 38-29 and turned the ball over 25 times while notching just eight assists.
Saint Mary’s next takes the court when it hosts Adrian on Wednesday. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m.
