WATERTOWN, Wis. – Host Maranatha Baptist University (9-10) defeated the Mount Mary University women's basketball team by a final score of 60-48. The loss moves the Blue Angels to 5-12 on the season with three games left on the schedule.
In the first quarter, the teams traded the lead and points consistently for the entire ten minutes. The Blue Angels shot 2-of-3 from the field in the quarter, with Jess Runge (Sr./Freedom, Wis.) making 1-of-1 from the field and also shooting 5-of-6 from the free throw line to in fact take the lead for MMU.
The two teams combined for 24 turnovers in the quarter. In that time Jess Runge had an outburst on defense and was responsible for forcing four of those Sabercat turnovers as she added four steals to her totals.
Starting the second quarter 9-8 in favor of MMU, the Blue Angels continued to shoot effectively from the field and the free throw line to keep the lead. As a team, MMU shot 5-of-7 from the field in the quarter while adding 7-of-8 from the free throw line on their way to scoring 20. The Sabercats hit 8-of-16 from the field making the score 29-27 at halftime with the Blue Angels ahead.
The Sabercats kept away from foul trouble in the third and fourth quarters, and were able to take the lead early in the second half before trading it back twice. Katie Bender knocked down a layup with 7:27 on the clock in the third, then added a free throw to tie the game at 32. Senior leader Jess Runge answered right back with a 3-pointer taking back the lead for MMU.
After the Sabercats took a 38-35 lead, Becky Onan (Jr./Grafton, Wis.) knocked down another 3-point field goal to tie things up for MMU. Over the next seven minutes, the Sabercats went on a 14-0 run taking the lead that they would not give back.
Hanna Glaze led the night scoring for the Sabercats. The senior forward went 7-of-14 from the field on her way to 18 points. Glaze pulled in three rebounds and had three steals on the evening.
Blue Angel Jess Runge led MMU in scoring with 16 points. Runge also set the bar high on defense leading the game with eight steals.
Teammate Rae Grubbs (Fr./Covington, Ind.) pitched in for 11 points as she went 2-of-5 from the field and 7-of-7 from the free throw line.
"Hard fought effort until late in the game where fatigue set in and some missed shots," said Mount Mary Assistant Basketball Coach Shandrieka Richardson. "We were the aggressor in the first half, but let their zone defense get to us in the second. Time to take the positives and move forward."
Following tonight's contest, the Blue Angels will get ready for their home contest against the Moody Bible Institute Archers (0-6). The Archers are coming off a two month hiatus when they travel to Milwaukee to take on MMU at the Bloechl Center. Tipoff is set for 2:00 pm on Sat. Feb. 11. Live coverage for Saturday's game can be found at mtmaryathletics.com.
