FRANKLIN, Ind. - The Saint Mary's basketball team fell in an 85-56 final at Franklin on Wednesday night in the season opener for both squads.

 

The teams traded buckets back-and-forth early on in the contest. Elle Deardorff drained a three-pointer on the Belles' first possession of the contest. Saint Mary's responded to a Grizzlies three with a good pull up jumper by Kate Restovich for the 5-3 advantage. A minute later, it was Julia Schutz who hit a jumper to keep the Belles ahead by a 7-4 margin. Franklin responded with seven quick points to gain an 11-7 advantage before Schutz broke up the run with a free throw with 5:27 on the clock. Schutz connected on another free throw a short while later, but the shots from the floor were not falling for Saint Mary's as the Grizzlies built a 17-9 lead with three minutes remaining in the period. Athena Samson got the Belles back on track with a layup, and Mary Kate Gareau added a layup and the and-one free throw to pull Saint Mary's within three at 17-14. Carly Sherfield connected on a layup to make it a two-point game with 1:43 on the clock, but back-to-back buckets by the Grizzlies saw Franklin go up 21-15. Jasmyne Townsend added to the spread scoring effort in the quarter with a three-pointer late to make it 21-18. The Grizzlies tallied two late free throws to hold a 23-18 lead at the quarter break.

 

Kate Restovich opened the second period with a pair of free throws, and Nicole Connolly hit a jump shot a short while later to cut the deficit to one at 23-22. The Grizzlies responded with a three-pointer to make it a two-possession lead. Both sides hit a scoreless stretch until a layup by Franklin made it 28-22. Kate Restovich got back in the scoring column with two more free throws, but the home side posted the next six points over a minute-and-a-half span for a 34-24 advantage. Elle Deardorff and Athena Samson each put points on the scoreboard while the Grizzlies continued to have a response to the Belles throughout the period. Annie Restovich tallied her first collegiate bucket as Saint Mary's continued to battle. Trailing 45-30 with under a minute to go before halftime, Nicole Connolly gave the Belles a big boost late. The sophomore hit a jumper and the and-one free throw before cutting up the right side of the floor and hitting a turnaround jumper just before the buzzer to make it 46-35 at the half.

 

Early buckets by Franklin made it a 54-37 difference three minutes into the quarter. Connolly continued to find a way offensively with a layup, and Lauren Gumma added a layup of her own a minute later. The Grizzlies, however, continued to counter with multiple points in response to the start of any attempt at a run by the Belles and gained a 60-41 lead. Athena Samson tried to get the offense going with a layup and an old-fashioned three-point play late, but three buckets by the Grizzlies gave Franklin a 68-46 edge heading into the final period.

 

The Belles got stops early in the fourth on the defensive side of the ball and held the Grizzlies without a field goal for more than four minutes. Saint Mary's, however, continued to have trouble getting shots to fall despite getting several good looks at the rim. Lauren Gumma connected on a put-back bucket, Carly Sherfield and Alyssa Matuza each had a free throw, and Annie Restovich sunk a late three-pointer, but the Belles fell short in an 85-56 final on the road.

 

The Belles out-rebounded the Grizzlies 44-40 on the night with a 16-9 edge in offensive rebounds. That translated to a 18-13 advantage in second-chance points for Saint Mary's. Franklin took advantage of 22 turnovers while turning the ball over nine times on the night for a 22-9 edge in points off of giveaways. 

 

Nicole Connolly and Athena Samson led the Belles with nine points each on the night. Samson pulled down a game-high 15 rebounds with nine of those boards coming on the defensive end. Kate Restovich and Julia Schutz each tallied six points, and Elle Deardorff, Carly Sherfield, and Annie Restovich chipped in five points apiece. Lauren Gumma added four points while Jasmyne Townsend and Mary Kate Gareau had three points each. Alyssa Matuza rounded out the scoring with a point. Schutz and Gumma each came down with five rebounds as that mark set a new career-best for Gumma. Schutz paced the team with three assists, and Samson, Kate Restovich, and Caroline Roecker each had a steal.

The Belles (0-1) look to bounce back when they host Dominican for the Belles' home opener on Saturday starting at 2:00 p.m.