LEAVENWORTH – Benedictine Women's Basketball opened the season on the road Monday night against 2023 NAIA National Qualifier University of St. Mary.
Benedictine (0-1) battled back from a first-quarter deficit to take the game into halftime locked up at 39, but the Spires where able to keep the Ravens at arm's length in the second half to earn an 87-74 win.
USM (1-0) hit 4 3-pointers in the first quarter that sparked a 13-point lead before Alleigh Kramer hit a layup in the final seconds to cut down Benedictine's deficit to 22-13. Two more 3-pointers in the second quarter pushed the Spires advantage to 14 points, 29-15, inside the first 3 minutes of the quarter before Benedictine mounted their run. Benedictine outscored USM 24-10 over the final 7 minutes of the quarter, holding the Spires scoreless from beyond the arc. Lauren Dubbert helped spark the run for the Ravens, scoring 11 points in the period. She connected on back-to-back 3-pointers in the final 90 seconds of the half to send the game into halftime tied.
USM was able to pull away from Benedictine in the third quarter, thanks in large part to their free throw efforts. The Spires hit 9 free throws, which proved to be the difference in the score, 63-54, headed into the fourth quarter. The Spires connected on 5 fourth-quarter 3-pointers that allowed them to pull away from the Ravens in the fourth quarter and earn the win.
The Ravens held a 45-20 advantage off the bench as Aaliyah Raines led the Ravens with 17 points. Dubbert added 13 while Kramer finished with 11. Benedictine also held a 10-point advantage in points in the paint, outscoring USM 28-18, while finishing with a 34-31 edge in rebounds. Defensively, the Ravens were able to score 10 points off 14 Spire turnovers.
Benedictine hosts the Holiday Inn Express Classic on Friday and Saturday inside the Ralph Nolan Gymnasium. Benedictine hosts Holy Cross of South Bend on Friday at 7:30 p.m and the University of Health & Pharmacy of St. Louis on Saturday at 3 p.m. Tickets for the Classic can be purchased at ravenathletics.com/tickets
www.ravenathletics.com | #UnleashGreatness | www.benedictine.edu
