NOTRE DAME, Ind. - The shots were there in the second half but just did not fall for Saint Mary's as the Belles shouldered a 70-60 loss against Defiance on Sunday afternoon.

 

A quick-tempoed start by both teams saw Nikki Murphy, Julia Schutz, and Athena Samson all get into the scoring column  over the opening three-plus minutes of action. Julia Schutz drained a three-pointer to knot the game at 9-9 with 5:42 on the clock before giving the Belles a 10-9 lead with a free throw a minute-and-a-half later. An Elle Deardorff triple saw the lead change hands again as Saint Mary's went up 13-11 with under three minutes to go in the opening stanza. Another bucket by Schutz kept the Belles ahead, and Maddie Rzepka hit a jumper just before the final buzzer of the quarter for a 17-13 lead.

 

The teams traded buckets over the opening six-plus minutes of the second period as Saint Mary's maintained a 23-19 lead with just over three minutes remaining on the clock. Anne Goralczyk converted a second-chance jumper in the paint for a 25-19 lead, and Maddie Rzepka sunk a three-pointer for a 28-21 advantage. With the Belles leading 30-23 a minute later, the Yellow Jackets shifted some of the momentum late in the half with a pair of buckets over the final 1:20 of the quarter to make it a 30-28 score at the break.

 

After Defiance tied the game to open the third period, Elle Deardorff hit a trey for a 33-30 lead. The Yellow Jackets responded to tie the score at 23-23, but Athena Samson was not to be denied over the next stretch of play as the junior forward scored on four consecutive chances to put the Belles up 42-36 with 5:24 on the clock.  Saint Mary's, however, could not get the bounces to go their way over the next five minutes of action as a scoreless stretch allowed Defiance to take a 46-42 lead with under a minute to go. Julia Schutz broke up the drought with a driving layup, but the Yellow Jackets added a late bucket for a 48-44 lead.

 

Defiance pushed ahead by nine points at 54-45 before another three-pointer by Rzepka re-energized the Saint Mary's efforts. Each time the Belles got a bucket, the Yellow Jackets had an answer in the fourth quarter. Free throws by Nicole Connolly and Anne Goralczyk cut the deficit to five points with under three minutes remaining as Saint Mary's worked toward a late comeback, but the Belles were unable to edge any closer in the 70-60 final. Saint Mary's was held to 16.7 percent (3-of-18) shooting in the fourth quarter.

 

Julia Schutz led all players with 18 points and pulled down 12 rebounds for her third double-double of the season all while blocking three shots. Athena Samson had 14 points on a 6-of-7 shooting effort from the floor and added a game-best 13 rebounds for her second-consecutive double-double of the year. Maddie Rzepka chipped in 10 points with four rebounds. Elle Deardorff registered a career-best five assists to go along with eight points. Anne Goralczyk tallied seven rebounds with four points, and Nicole Connolly posted three assists and four points.

 

The Belles (3-2) are set to host Anderson on Tuesday night at 7:00 p.m.