ST. PETER, Minn. – The St. Olaf College women's basketball team was outlasted, 65-56, by No. 21-ranked Gustavus Adolphus College in a Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) contest on Saturday afternoon at Gus Young Court.

St. Olaf (5-6, 2-4 MIAC) trailed Gustavus (10-1, 6-0 MIAC) by just two points through three quarters before the Gusties gradually pulled away late in the final quarter. Caitlin Rorman, Paige Richert and Ava Gonsorowski combined to score 44 of Gustavus' 65 points to keep the nationally-ranked Gusties unbeaten in MIAC play.

First year Sophie Olmen scored a career-high 16 points on 6-for-8 shooting off the bench to lead the way for St. Olaf. Olmen scored eight of her 16 in the final 3:48 of the contest and was joined in double figures by senior Ella Skrien with 10 points.

Rorman matched Olmen with 16 points for Gustavus on a 6-for-9 shooting performance, while Richert added 14 points, 10 rebounds and four steals. Gonsorowski chipped in with 14 points and five assists despite shooting just 4-for-15 from the field.

The Gusties held the Oles scoreless for the first 3:25 of the game as part of a 5-0 start and led 13-11 after 10 minutes despite shooting just 4-for-18 (22.2 percent) from the field. St. Olaf trailed 12-7 with 2:29 to go in the quarter before senior Britta Koenen made back-to-back layups to help close the gap.

Early in the second, the Oles tied the game on three occasions, including on a three-pointer by sophomore K'Lynn Lewis with 6:33 to go that tied it at 19-19. Gustavus countered with a 7-0 run over the next three minutes before St. Olaf closed the half on a 7-2 run to get within two, 28-26, at the half.

The Oles claimed their first lead of the second half, 36-34, on putback by first-year Rachel Kelly with 5:40 remaining in the third quarter. A layup by Kelly and a jumper by Skrien on consecutive possessions less than two minutes later put St. Olaf ahead by three, 40-37, until the Gusties finished the quarter on a 7-2 run to lead 44-42 entering the fourth.

A Skrien three-pointer 13 seconds into the fourth quarter swung the lead back to the Oles, only for Gustavus to score the next six points to take the lead for good. The Gusties led by between three and eight points for the final 9:09 of the game despite Olmen's eight points down the stretch.

After shooting just 29.4 percent (10-for-34) from the field in the opening half, the Gusties heated up to 43.3 percent (13-for-30) in the second to finish at 35.9 percent (23-for-64) for the game. St. Olaf shot at a 38.9 percent clip (21-for-54) but could not overcome 24 turnovers that turned into 26 Gustavus points. The Gusties also held a 20-0 advantage in fast-break points in the contest.

St. Olaf takes on its second consecutive nationally-ranked opponent with St. Thomas visits Skoglund Center on Wednesday, Jan. 8 at 7 p.m.