NOTRE DAME, Ind. - Saint Mary's College Basketball defeated Concordia University Chicago, 78-69 in their first game of The Inn at Saint Mary's Classic. The Belles improve to 1-1 on the year while the Cougars fall to 0-3.
 
Both teams battled back and forth early in the first quarter, but neither team earned more than a two-possession lead. Saint Mary's led for the majority of the quarter, trailing by two after a Concordia three early, but freshman Caroline Langworthy (Cincinnati, OH) drained a three to put the Belles back up. Saint Mary's finished the first 10 minutes ahead 17-16. Junior Kate Restovich (St. Louis, MO) led the Belles with five points in the quarter.
 
The Belles kept their momentum going into the second quarter, extending their lead to as much as nine points early. While the Cougars tried to fight back, Saint Mary's kept them at a distance, outscoring them 17-13 in the quarter to head into halftime with a 34-29 lead. Senior Hannah Outlaw (Jones, MI) made her first appearance for the Belles and led the team with seven points in the half. Junior Annie Restovich (St. Louis, MO) and sophomore Ella Notaro (Crystal Lake, IL) tallied six. The Belles finished the half shooting 52.% from the field.
 
While Saint Mary's kept their lead throughout the majority to open the second half, Concordia would go on a 12-3 run in the final five minutes of the quarter to take their first lead of the game, 50-49 heading into the final quarter. Annie Restovich jumped to 13 points on the night while Outlaw moved to 10.
 
The two teams battled hard throughout the first half of the fourth quarter before Saint Mary's was able to go on a 10-0 run to take the lead back. The teams traded points back and forth as the Cougars tried to knock the deficit down. Every time Concordia found the bottom of the net, Annie Restovich followed with a three pointer of her own while Kate Restovich used her craftiness to keep the Belles ahead with Kate knocking down four clutch free throws to seal the first win of the season for the Belles.
 
Kate and Annie Restovich both finished with a team high 16 points each while Outlaw and Notaro finished with 14 and 11 each. Outlaw grabbed a game high eight rebounds while senior Nicole Connolly (Mokena, IL) and freshman Liv Fry (Fort Wayne, IN) both grabbed seven. Fry also dished out a team high six assists.
 
As a team, the Belles shot 52.1% from the field while shooting 34.8% from three-point. They forced 17 turnovers as Outlaw led the team with two steals.
 
UP NEXT FOR THE BELLES
Saint Mary's continues The Inn at Saint Mary's Classic tomorrow as they take on Hiram College in the classic finale at 3pm.