by Mikael DeSanto
Sports Assignment Editor
The St. Bonaventure University women’s basketball team continued conference play Saturday afternoon when they took on George Mason on the road. The Bonnies fell to the Patriots in a close one, 52-49.
The Bonnies (6-8, 1-1 A10) struggled with fouls in the game, committing 25 personal fouls through the four quarters. The Patriots (9-6, 2-0 A10) took advantage of their chances off fouls, going 21-31 from the free throw line.
The Bonnies also lost the bench point battle, as they were outscored 17-6 off the bench, although they did top the Patriots in points off turnovers, points in the paint and second chance points.
The game began slowly on offense, with the Bonnies and Patriots combining for 18 points in the first quarter. The period between the 6:56 and 3:47 marks of the first quarter saw a scoring drought, with neither team converting a basket during that time.
The second quarter saw the Bonnies jump out to a 17-12 lead roughly four minutes into the quarter. However the Patriots followed by going on a 13-0 run to take 25-17 lead going into the half.
Freshman guard Sarah Hart led the Bonnies at the half with six points, all scored in the second quarter, and freshman guard Alexsis Grate led the Patriots with seven points.
The Patriots continued their run to start the second half, scoring six points before the Bonnies got back on the board with a jumper from graduate forward Gabby Richmond at the 7:07 mark. The teams then traded stretches of scoring throughout the rest of the quarter and the Patriots entered the fourth quarter up 43-32.
The Patriots held a 51-39 lead with under four minutes to play when the Bonnies climbed back into the game with a 10-1 run, but the comeback fell short and the Patriots secured the win.
Junior guard Mariah Ruff scored 18 points to lead the Bonnies in scoring. The Bonnies also had a pair of four point, 10 rebound games from sophomore guard Mckenna Maycock and junior forward Matea Britvar.
Redshirt-junior guard/forward Kara Wright topped the Patriots with 20 points and eight rebounds. Grate added 11 points, three rebounds and two steals.
The Bonnies next game will be on Jan. 4 when they return home to take on the Dayton Flyers at 7 p.m.
desantmj13@bonaventure.edu
