Saint Mary's College

NOTRE DAME, Ind. - Saint Mary's College Basketball took down North Park University, 59-51, to close out their early homestand to open the season. The Belles improve to 2-0 on the year while the Vikings drop to 2-1.
 
Both teams traded baskets early to stay in a back-and-forth battle in the early portion of the first quarter. Saint Mary's used a seven point stretch to get out to a strong lead before heading into the first break up five, 17-12. Junior Ella Notaro (Crystal Lake, IL) led the team with six points in the quarter after knocking down three close shots. The Belles forced the Vikings into nine turnovers in the quarter while grabbing five steals.
 
While the two teams bounced points off each other early in the second, Saint Mary's continued to control the game. North Park then ripped off a seven-point run of their own, thanks to five made free throws, to take the lead midway through the second. The two went back to trading baskets throughout the remainder of the half before the Belles went into halftime with a 31-29 lead. Junior Ella Andree (Spring Lake, MI) put up seven points in the quarter to jump into double figures with 11 at the break. Freshman MacKenzi Duthie (Brighton, MI) put up four points in the quarter while grabbing an impressive five boards.
 
The Vikings started the second half strong as they used a 9-0 run to take a lead midway through the third quarter. The two teams went back and forth but North Park continued to hold on to their lead. Saint Mary's added four points in the final minute to cut the deficit to one, 44-43, heading into the fourth quarter. Junior Kate Passinault (Grand Rapids, MI) added six points in the quarter to join Andree in double figures with 10 of her own.
 
The Belles kicked off the fourth quarter with a strong 8-3 run to retake their lead with just over seven minutes to play. The Vikings cut into the Belles lead, bringing it down to just two with four minutes to play. Saint Mary's would hold strong, scoring the last six points of the game while forcing North Park to go 0-6 from the field to close out their 59-51 victory.
 
Andree led the team with 13 points while Passinault added 12 and senior Kate Restovich (St. Louis, MO) added 10 of her own. Notaro and Duthie would each chip in nine points as well. Duthie also grabbed a game high 10 rebounds on the night while Notaro added seven and Passinault grabbed five. Sophomore Liv Fry (Fort Wayne, IN) led with six assists on the night while Restovich added three.
 
The Saint Mary's defense forced North Park into 23 turnovers while they grabbed 13 steals as a team, Restovich, Andree, and Notaro each snagged three. As a team the Belles outshot the Vikings 40.7% to 37.8% from the field and outrebounded them 36-32.
 
UP NEXT FOR THE BELLES
Saint Mary's will hit the road for the first time on Wednesday, November 18, as they make a trip to Concordia University Chicago for a midweek matchup. The Belles return home on Saturday, November 21, to host Webster University at 1pm.