WHEATON, Ill. - The Saint Mary's basketball team was unable to overcome a deficit late in the contest as the Belles suffered a 76-68 setback against Wheaton on Tuesday night.
Elle Deardorff got the Belles on the scoreboard with a driving layup and the and-one on the first possession for Saint Mary's. A Deardorff three-pointer followed by a turnaround jumper by Julia Schutz put the Belles up 10-8 a few minutes later. The Thunder put the next seven points on the scoreboard for a 15-10 advantage as the Belles called a timeout. Deardorff drained another triple to get Saint Mary's back on track before the sophomore connected on her third trey a minute later gave the Belles a 17-15 lead. The two sides continued to battle with Mary Kate Gareau connecting on all four of her free throw chances down the stretch. Julia Schutz had a big blocked shot on a fastbreak chance for the Thunder late in the quarter, but the Belles trailed 26-21 after ten minutes of play.
After a high-scoring first period, both sides had some trouble getting shots to fall over the first several minutes of the second stanza. Maddie Rzepka opened the second quarter with a bucket to make it a 26-23 game. Both sides hit a scoreless stretch before the Thunder took a 28-24 lead. With 4:31 still remaining, Wheaton called a timeout and got a bucket off of a turnover for a 31-24 advantage. A Christina Shadid free throw got the Belles within six at 31-25, but the Thunder capitalized on their next two possessions for a 36-25 lead. Athena Samson connected on a hook shot in the lane and added a put-back jumper just before the buzzer as Saint Mary's trailed 38-29 at the half.
Athena Samson got the Belles started in the third quarter with a bucket in the paint on the first possession to make it 38-31. Wheaton countered with three consecutive buckets for a 44-31 advantage as the Belles called a timeout. Nikki Murphy used a strong drive to the basket and put Saint Mary's back on the scoreboard, and Maddie Rzepka hit a tough shot to make it 44-35 with 6:36 on the clock. Wheaton pushed their lead to 13 before Rzepka drained a three to make it 50-40. A Julia Schutz three pointer cut the deficit to seven, but the Thunder came right back with a three-pointer of their own. A free throw by Schutz and another Rzepka triple made it a 53-47 score with under two minutes remaining in the third. The two sides traded points but the Belles closed the gap to four points going into the final quarter at 56-52.
Back-to-back baskets by Wheaton pushed the Thunder lead to 63-53 three-and-a-half minutes into the fourth period. Julia Schutz connected a bounce pass to Athena Samson for a layup to cut it to an eight-point game, but the Thunder put six quick points on the scoreboard for a 69-55 advantage with just over four minutes to go. Two free throws by Maddie Rzepka and a steal followed by a tough layup by Nikki Murphy got the Belles right back in business with three minutes to go as Saint Mary's edged within eight at 69-61. Deardorff, Rzepka, and Samson hit a stretch of free throws to cut the deficit to five with under two minutes to play as the Belles continued to battle late. Saint Mary's, however, was unable to close the gap in the 76-68 final.
Wheaton held a 21-9 advantage in points off of turnovers and a 34-24 edge in points in the paint. The Belles earned more trips to the charity stripe and hit 24-of-31 attempts to the Thunder's 11-of-23 showing.
Maddie Rzepka led all players with 19 points and added seven rebounds and an assist. Elle Deardorff chipped in 14 points with a pair of assists. Athena Samson tallied her second-consecutive double-digit scoring effort with 10 points as the junior had a team-high three blocked shots. Julia Schutz registered eight points and a team-high eight rebounds. Nikki Murphy scored six points with four assists while Mary Kate Gareau and Jasmyne Townsend each had five points.
The Belles (2-1) return home for a three-game stint starting on Thursday when Saint Mary's hosts Illinois Tech at 7:00 p.m.