HOLLAND, Mich. - The Saint Mary's basketball team held their ground in a 79-51 setback against No. 4 (WBCA Top 25) Hope on Wednesday night.
The Belles stopped Hope on the first possession of the game and had two good looks on their first offensive set of the game as neither team converted an early chance. The Flying Dutch scored on back-to-back chances to claim a 4-0 lead before Annie Restovich got the Belles on the scoreboard with a three-pointer to make it 4-3. Hope hit a layup at the other end, but Nicole Connolly kept Saint Mary's close with a free throw to make it a two-point game. Athena Samson then connected on a hook shot in the lane on the next possession to tie things up at 6-6. Both teams had their next two possessions come up empty-handed before Hope used a layup with under five minutes to go to take an 8-6 advantage. Hope then had a pair of layups to go up 12-6 lead. Annie Restovich got the Belles back on track with another triple, but Hope responded at the other end with a three of their own to make it a 15-9 game. Saint Mary's came right back with a pair of free throws by Lauren Gumma to make it a 15-11 score with a minute and a half to go in the period. The Belles got a pair of stops on the defensive end, but a late bucket by Hope gave the Flying Dutch a 17-11 lead after ten minutes of play.
The Flying Dutch connected on a three-pointer to start the second quarter and used a jumper to make it a 22-11 score. Saint Mary's got into the scoring column with a deep two-pointer by Alyssa Matuza, but the Flying Dutch hit a three at the other end to push the score to 26-13 as the Belles called a timeout. Kate Restovich hit a tough shot just outside the lane. A scoreless stretch by Saint Mary's was put to a stop with a layup by Nyah Porter, and Annie Restovich connected on her third three-pointer of the game as the Belles trailed 31-20 with under five minutes to go in the half. Hope put the next eight points on the scoreboard before Kate Restovich buried a three-pointer with under 30 seconds on the clock to put the Belles within 39-23. Hope used a quick bucket at the other end to hold a 41-23 lead at the halftime break.
The Belles had a defensive stop to open the third quarter, and Kate Restovich knocked down a three-pointer and a tough layup to ignite the offense. A free throw by Nicole Connolly edged the Belles within 41-29. Hope hit a three-pointer and added a put-back shot for a 46-29 lead, but Kate Restovich threaded the needle to a cutting Connolly for a close-range jumper to make it 46-31. The Flying Dutch hit four free throws over the next stretch of play to gain a 50-31 lead, but Caroline Roecker sunk a three-pointer in front of the team bench for the Belles to make it 50-34 with four minutes to go in the quarter. Hope, however, responded with an 11-0 run before Nicole Connolly hit a pair of free throws. The Flying Dutch hit a bucket in the final seconds of the quarter to carry a 63-36 lead into the fourth.
Annie Restovich opened the scoring in the fourth quarter with a three-pointer before hitting another three in front of the Belles' bench as Saint Mary's made a trio of stops defensively. After another stop, Athena Samson hit the put-back jumper in the paint to give the Belles the first eight points of the period. Saint Mary's continued to battle and got two more defensive stops, but the Belles were unable to make a bigger run to open the quarter as Hope eventually got into the scoring column three minutes into the stanza. Another offensive rebound and put-back by Samson made it a 67-46 game with just under six minutes to play. The Belles had several solid looks on the offensive end bounce off the rim or off the mark over the next four minutes of action. Lauren Gumma sunk a three-pointer to get Saint Mary's back on the scoreboard with 1:50 to go. Mary Kate Gareau hit a tough driving layup with under a minute to play as the scoring came to a close in a 79-51 final.
The Belles hit 9-of-24 (37.5 percent) of their three-pointers in the game to Hope's 6-of-25 (24.0 percent) effort from behind the arc. The Flying Dutch, meanwhile, shot 28-of-68 (41.2 percent) from the floor while Saint Mary's posted an 18-of-56 (32.1 percent) shooting night.
Annie Restovich led the Belles with 15 points as she connected on five three-pointers on the night as she has established the program record for most made three-pointers by a freshman this season. Kate Restovich added 10 points and three assists. Athena Samson had six points, three assists, and a game-high 14 rebounds, and Nicole Connolly added six points and five rebounds. Lauren Gumma put up five points, Caroline Roecker posted three, and Mary Kate Gareau, Nyah Porter, and Alyssa Matuza each chipped in two points.