Saint Mary’s basketball faced off against two teams at the Hyatt Tournament, Augustana and Washington University in St. Louis (WashU). They won the first but were unable to win the second.
Augustana
In their first game, the Belles defeated the Augustana Vikings, taking a close 54-41 win.
The first quarter was back and forth for both teams. Neither team scored until the middle of the quarter when sophomore guard Annie Restovich added the first three points for the Belles. After a few possessions each, Augustana scored their first points of the night. A layup from freshman guard Ella Notaro gave the Belles the lead back. Senior forward Julia Schutz rounded out the first quarter with a free throw to make the score 7-3.
The Vikings scored first in the second quarter. Restovich responded with a jump shot to make the score 9-6. Two layups from Schutz and a three-pointer from Restovich, her first of the quarter, continued to build on the Belles’ lead. The Vikings mounted a run of their own, narrowing the gap as the Belles held a slim 5-point lead heading into halftime.
The Vikings struck first after halftime but the Belles kept sharp. Junior guard Nicole Connolly added her first two points of the night, a three-point shot from Restovich and two free throws from Schutz made the score 27-16. The Vikings made a bit of a comeback, scoring five more points to close the gap to six. A combined effort of a layup from Connolly, three free throws from Notaro and one free throw from Schutz made the score 33-26. The Vikings made the last two points of the quarter to make the score 33-28.
Restovich started the fourth quarter strong for the Belles, scoring two more three-pointers. After an 8-0 run from the Vikings, a free throw from Schutz made the score 40-36. The two teams continued to take turns scoring but the Belles were able to leave the court with a win.
Restovich led the Belles on the court, finishing with 21 points. Schutz scored 12 points and led the team with 12 rebounds.
Washington University-St. Louis
After the win against the Vikings, the Belles took on the Bears in the championship game.
Washington scored the first eight points of the game until the Belles responded with two free throws and a three-pointer from Schutz. Restovich hit two threes but the Bears continued to score and ended the quarter with an 12-point lead.
The Belles couldn't contain Washington in the opening minutes of the second quarter, letting them score four points. While neither team scored in the next few minutes, Restovich put up a layup to bring the score to 29-15 but nine more points from the Bears added to their lead. The quarter finished with the Bears up 47-19.
The Bears continued to do whatever they wanted on offense. Freshman guard Kate Passinault made a free throw but Washington scored four points quickly in response. The Belles continued to score layups and free throws but could not contain the Bears or score at the same rate. Despite two free throws from Passinault and a three-point shot from senior guard Lauren Gumma, the Bears had nearly a 40-point lead.
Saint Mary's tried to contain the Washington offense but the Bears struck first as they put up the first four points in the final quarter. Junior guard Alyssa Matuza added her first two points of the night to make the score 72-34. The Bears then went on a 19-0 run, making the score 91-34. Each team had a few more buckets before the game ended with a final score of 99-40.
Schutz led the team on both offense and defense, finishing the game with a total of 11 points and five rebounds.
The Belles' next game is against Franklin College on Nov. 20 at 7 p.m.
