Paige Montrose recorded her first collegiate double-double, but it wasn't enough as the Bearcats fell to Grove City in conference play, 60-49.
Montrose tallied 10 points and 11 rebounds on the evening.
The teams traded baskets throughout the early portion of the game. A jumper by Montrose gave SVC a 7-5 lead at the 4:55 mark, but the Wolverines quickly tied the game 20 seconds later.
Mara Benvenuti then hit a three from the corner to give the hosts a 3-point edge, but GCC answered once again. After a Montrose score in transition made it 12-9 in favor of Saint Vincent, the visitors called a timeout to regroup. The game's next four points then went to Grove City as they took a 13-12 lead with less than two minutes remaining in the first quarter.
Babette Sanmartin and
Kiara Arnold then provided a spark, scoring on back to back possessions for the Bearcats to return the lead to the hosts' side, 16-13. After Grove City hit a pair of free throws, the Bearcats had the final chance to score for the quarter, and Sanmartin made the most of it, hitting a jumper at the buzzer to make it 18-15 after ten minutes of play.
Both teams struggled early in the second quarter, with the first field goal coming at the 6:09 mark, on a layup by Montrose that made the score 20-16. After Grove City scored four points in the next minute to tie the game, the Bearcats got a three from Benvenuti, then after neither team scored for more than two minutes,
Maria Morgan hit a three to make it 26-20 with 2:48 remaining. The Bearcats eventually took a 28-22 advantage into the halftime break.
The Wolverines had the hot hand to start the second half, scoring eight straight points to take a 30-28 lead at the 7:29 mark, prompting a Bearcat time out. Neither team scored for more than two minutes, but it was again Grove City that found the basket, this time on a traditional three-point play by Laura Buchanan that extended the run to 11.
Kayla Slovenec hit a three from the right corner at the 5:12 mark for the Bearcats' first points of the second half, cutting the Grove City lead to two, 33-31. However, the visitors responded with eight more points, taking a 41-31 lead with 3:05 remaining in the third quarter.
Down 43-31, the Bearcats came back to end the quarter with a pair of baskets, a three from
Taylor Boring and a layup from
Bri Van Volkenburg, as Grove City took a 43-36 lead into the start of the fourth.
The deficit was reduced to just five after a pair of free throws by
Stephanie Vaughn to start the quarter, but a give-and-go by Lexie Arkwright, followed by a drive to the hoop by Kate Balcom made it a 47-38 game with seven minutes remaining.
A steal and fast break score by Arkwright ran the lead to eleven (49-38) near the six minute mark, but a free throw by Jenna Lakfo and a drive through the lane by Montrose made the score 49-41 at the 3:42 mark.
After four points from Grove City, a three by Lafko with 2:30 remaining cut the gap back to nine, 53-44, but the Wolverines again answered with a bucket, running the lead back to 11 with just two minutes remaining.
After two more free throws by the visitors, Morgan made a three at the 1:23 mark to make it 57-47, and the Bearcats were unable to close the gap.
Morgan led the Bearcats with 12 points, followed by Montrose with 10. Benvenuti added 7. Slovenec and Benvenuti each had six rebounds, while Benvenuti added three steals.
For the Wolverines, Balcom had a game-high 16 points, while Arkwright added 15.
With the loss, SVC drops to 4-2 in the Presidents' Athletic Conference, 7-6 overall. Grove City improves to 3-3 in the PAC, 7-5 overall.
