BOX SCORE

PHOTO GALLERY

By Steve Janik, Sports Information Assistant
 
The Saint Vincent College women's basketball team defeated Bethany College 114-56 on Senior Day for the Bearcats.
 
SVC started strong and got off to an early four-point lead off Mara Benvenuti's breakaway layup to gain the 6-2 advantage. Shortly after, at the 17:29 mark, Benvenuti would start a 10-4 run with two free throws while Taylor Mathers, Ally Schmidt, and Jessica Welch added two as well.
 
Welch would get the hot hand from beyond the arc after two Bison turnovers and hit two consecutive treys to put the hosts up 22-6 with 13:27 to go.
 
Up 31-18, the Bearcats were sparked by a 13-2 run started by Mathers' spinning layup followed by a Jasmine Weems jumper. Elle Collins added four points in the scoring stretch, which ended with SVC leading 44-20.
 
With 4:05 left in the first and Saint Vincent leading by 22, a Mathers layup started a 15-2 run for SVC. Weems and Zajac would add four and three respectively to end out the half with the hosts leading 61-25; they're largest point total at half time of the season. Leading scorers for Saint Vincent were Mathers and Welch 13 and 12 respectively. The Bearcats as a team put up 61 points in the first half, their highest first half output of the season.
 
Enjoying a 36 point lead at the break, SVC continued its dominance into the second-half. Collins got the scoring started in the second with a three at the 17:36 mark. Schmidt would follow suit with back-to-back fast break layups to put SVC up 70-29.
 
Starting at the 15 minute mark through the 12 minute mark, Mathers scored eight consecutive points on three fast break layups and a jumper. 
 
With at least a 40-point lead through the final 10 minutes, Saint Vincent got help putting points up from the entire team. Susie Ellis got hot with a three at the 8:28 point of the second half followed by a driving layup. Drew Meeker and Jill Kegg would add four and five points through the final four minutes.
 
SVC would push its lead to over 50 with just over four minutes to play from a Brianna Zajac layup. With Saint Vincent closing in on the school record for points in a game (115) the final buzzer would sound and the Bearcats fell one point short of the record.
 
Leading Saint Vincent were seniors Mathers with 23 points and seven boards and Collins with 15 points and three assists. Also in double-figures was Welch with a career-high 15 points as well as Susie Ellis with 10.
 
The win improves the Bearcats record to 16-6 (13-2, Presidents' Athletic Conference). On Wednesday, SVC travels to Waynesburg to take on the Yellow Jackets with tip set for 5:30.