NORTHFIELD, Minn. – The St. Olaf College women's basketball team fell to the No. 22-ranked University of St. Thomas, 77-55, in a Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) contest on Wednesday night at Skoglund Center.
Senior
Britta Koenen had a season-high 15 points to lead St. Olaf (5-7, 2-5 MIAC), but St. Thomas got a combined 47 points from Amber Darge and Macy Hatlestad, as the Tommies sank 17 three-pointers to pick up the victory.
First year
Sophie Olmen reached double figures with 10 points and first year
Rachel Kelly added nine points for the Oles.
After St. Thomas jumped out to an 11-2 lead midway through the first quarter, the Oles went on a 7-2 run to cut the deficit to four at 13-9 after Olmen sank a jumper with 2:38 left.
St. Olaf got within three points of the Tommies on back-to-back baskets from Olmen and Koenen with 1:02 remaining in the quarter, but a three-pointer from Darge put St. Thomas up nine, 24-15, heading into the second quarter.
The Tommies went on a 12-1 run to take a 20-point lead three minutes into the second period. Two baskets from Kelly brought St. Olaf back within 16, but a three-point play from the Tommies extended the lead to 23 to give St. Thomas a 46-23 lead heading into the half.
Both teams scored 16 points in the third quarter, as Koenen and Olmen combined for nine of St. Olaf's 16 points in the period, but the Tommies led by as many as 26 and kept a 23-point lead heading into the final period.
St. Olaf opened the fourth quarter with an 8-2 run that included three-pointers from senior
Kelsie Gerovac and Kelly in the first 2:18 of the period to make the score 64-47, but St. Thomas held a double-digit lead for the remainder of the contest.
The Oles recorded six blocks in the contest, including two apiece from Kelly and first year
Grace Hegland, and shot 52.2 percent from the floor in the second half, but St. Thomas outrebounded the Oles, 39-30, including 17 offensive boards.
St. Olaf continues MIAC play on Saturday, Jan. 11 against cross-town rival Carleton at 3 p.m. at Skoglund Center.