On Saturday at Knights Hall, the 15th-ranked Bellarmine University women’s basketball team delivered uncharacteristic but much-welcomed dominance in the first quarter en route to a 78-66 victory over Missouri S&T in Great Lakes Valley Conference action.
Senior forward Sarah Galvin amassed a game-high 22 points and had five rebounds for Bellarmine (18-4, 10-3 GLVC), which has posted consecutive 10-win GLVC seasons for the first time since the 2006-07 and 2007-08 campaigns. Junior guard Raven Merriweather knocked down 6-of-11 shots and all six of her free throws in adding 20 points and a game-best six steals against Missouri S&T (8-13, 3-10), while junior forward Beth Bowers chipped in 11 points and sophomore center Ally Mayhaus had seven rebounds.
Bellarmine has frequently been hamstrung by slow starts this season, never more evident than in Thursday’s loss to No. 9 Drury in which the Knights trailed 29-10 after one period. Wearing pink uniforms in honor of cancer victims, the Knights played an inspired first quarter against the Miners, exploding out to a 23-8 lead.
Bellarmine putting together one of the best quarters of the season right from the get-go proved pivotal because Missouri S&T surged back in the third quarter and trailed by as few as five points in the fourth. The Knights managed to absorb that push and seal the victory by finishing strong over the final five minutes.
But it was the opening 10 minutes that was the story for Bellarmine.
After a turnover on their first possession, the Knights scored on their next six. Senior guard Whitney Hartlage spotted Galvin for a layup, senior guard Destony Curry found Bowers for a jumper and followed with a successful drive, and Merriweather sank a jumper. Bowers and senior guard Serena Sandusky followed with baskets for a 12-6 lead.
That sequence set the stage for a period in which Bellarmine shot 64.7 percent (11 of 17) and had a 14-4 advantage in points in the paint. Merriweather followed her steal and layup with a 3-pointer as the Knights closed the quarter on an 11-2 run for a 23-8 lead.
Bellarmine’s press was active and the Knights scored 26 points on 22 Miners turnovers. Bellarmine also had a 36-32 rebounding advantage, including 15 offensive boards, to own a 15-6 superiority in second-chance points.
Maddie Raley nailed six of her seven 3-point attempts in scoring 20 points for Missouri S&T while Janie Arand added 19. After her team trailed 45-23 at halftime, Raley stroked all three of her shots from deep in the third quarter as the Miners charged back after outscoring the Knights 28-12 in the period.
Bellarmine led by just six with 5:14 left after Raley sank a 3-pointer, but Curry converted a drive and the Knights capitalized on an S&T turnover with two free throws from Galvin for a 69-59 lead with 2:53 left. The Miners never got closer than eight the rest of the way, and Bellarmine’s advantage swelled to 14 with less than a minute left.
Bellarmine plays Thursday at Maryville and Saturday at Missouri-St. Louis.
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by Adam Pruiett