After a promising start to the 2018-2019 season, recording wins against Earlham and Illinois Tech in the first week of a season, Saint Mary’s remainder of the season was marked by ups and downs. The Belles (11-16, 7-9 MIAA) showed significant promise as they competed with strong programs, including No. 5 Trine College, No. 10 Hope College, and several other prominent programs. While they played a tough schedule, their signature wins came against conference opponents Olivet, Kalamazoo and Calvin.
The Belles season came to an end with a disappointing 75-36 loss to Hope in the MIAA tournament semifinal, which represented a hopeful yet rough ending to their 2018 season. However, the season was highlighted by several notable individual performances. Sophomore forward Giavanna Paradiso finished the season averaging 16.4 points per game, while junior swingman Jade Mosier finished the year averaging 9.8 points per game. Paradiso and Mosier were Saint Mary’s leading scorers, and as they both return next year, their outlook for the future is promising. Paradiso was named a second team All-MIAA player, representative of how she controlled play for the Belles this season. Mosier was named player of the week for the week of January 14-20, during which she averaged 20.5 points per game and nine rebounds per game, including a career-high 31 points in a road win over Calvin.
Head coach Melissa Makielski has definitive reason to remain positive about their outlook for next year with their returning players. They only have two seniors graduating in forward Caroline Macius and guard Erin Maloney, and their roster features six freshman who will look to contribute next season, in addition to four sophomores and three juniors. The Belles will look to improve on their 2018-2019 record next season behind their young team’s continued development.
