South Bend, Ind. - The Alma College women's basketball team fell to Saint Mary's 66-65 on Saturday afternoon. Alma continues to search for its first win at 0-7 and 0-4 in the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association while Saint Mary's is now 1-3 in the conference and 2-7 overall.

Emily Eldridge (Battle Creek, Mich. / Battle Creek Lakeview) led the Scots with a game- and career-high 17 points and added eight rebounds, while Chloee King (Standish, Mich. / Standish-Sterling Central) tallied 12 points, seven boards and six assists.

Erin Maloney was Saint Mary's leader in points with 15. She shot 5-of-11 from the field and 3-of-5 from deep. Olivia Lathers followed with 14 points on 5-of-8 shooting and 4-of-6 from deep.

How It Happened

• Alma trailed 30-18 after one quarter, thanks in part to an 11-2 run over a 1:15 span by the Belles. Saint Mary's made all three of its three-point attempts during the run. It also closed the quarter on a 10-4 run with Jeny Brandt (Escanaba, Mich. / Escanaba) getting both buckets for the Scots. Saint Mary's biggest lead in the quarter was 14, which was also its biggest lead of the game. In addition, the first quarter would be the only quarter the Belles would win.
• The Scots outscored Saint Mary's by seven in the second quarter to go into the half trailing by five, 45-40. The Belles maintained a double-digit lead for most of the quarter until an 8-2 run by Alma in the final 2:08. Eldridge scored Alma's final five points of the frame, including the first three-pointer of her career. Madeline Barnauskas (Livonia, Mich. / Dearborn Divine Child) played the entire second quarter and went 2-of-3 from the field including one three-pointer.
• The two teams shot a combined 7-of-29 in the third quarter, including going 0-of-6 from deep. However, Alma outrebounded the Belles 15-7, led by King who had four. The Scots opened the half on a 9-4 run to tie the game at 49, but Saint Mary's would score four of the game's next five points to take a ten point lead into the final ten minutes.
• Saint Mary's biggest lead in the fourth quarter was nine after an Olivia Lathers three-pointer at the 5:24 mark. The Scots went on an 8-2 run to tie the game at 65 with 1:59 remaining, but allowed three offensive rebounds on the next possession and turned it over on their next offensive trip which led to the game-winning free throw by Giavanna Paradiso with seven seconds remaining. Alma had two attempts to win the game at the buzzer, but the shots by King and Charley Hengesbach (Saginaw, Mich. / Nouvel Catholic Central) were off the mark.

Notables

• Seven of Emily Eldridge's 17 points came in the fourth quarter, where she shot 3-of-4 from the field.
• Following the game, Eldridge sits sixth in the MIAA with 6.9 rebounds per game.
• Chloee King's seven rebounds are a career-high. Her six assists ties her season-high, set on Dec. 2 against Trine.
• Jeny Brandt tied her season-high with nine points and added nine rebounds, three steals and two blocks. Four of her rebounds were offensive.
• Alma outrebounded Saint Mary's 48-36, but the two teams were tied with 17 offensive boards.
• Alma's 48 rebounds are tied for the most it has had in a game all season.
• The Belles shot 10-of-23 (43.5-percent) from three-point range.
• Alma went 17-of-26 from the free throw line.

Up Next

Alma travels to Defiance College for its next game on Tuesday, Dec. 19 at 6 p.m.

Contact: Zach Russo, Assistant Sports Information Director