By Sydney Windell, Special Writer
Short scoring spurts helped the Bellarmine University women’s basketball team defeat St. Joseph College 85-65 Thursday night in Knights Hall.
The Knights held the Pumas scoreless for a few minutes at a time, while going on 4-0 and 5-0 scoring runs themselves. SJC worked its way within four points at the beginning of the second quarter, but Bellarmine took off, going on a 10-0 run and gaining the largest lead of the half.
Junior forward Sarah Galvin knocked down two free throws and a layup, which forced Pumas head coach Steve Harold to call a timeout with 5:46 to play in the half and the Knights leading 32-18.
Harold said that he told his team that they were giving up far too many points.
“We build our team on defense, but you can’t tell it from our effort tonight,” Harold said.
The Pumas fought their way back into the game just before halftime, outscoring the Knights 14-8.
But Bellarmine took control in the third quarter and never let up. A 5-0 run late in the third quarter gave the Knights a 13-point lead.
SJC also went on short runs, such as the 4-0 run with just under six minutes to go in the third quarter that brought the Pumas within eight points of the Knights.
However, Bellarmine never let the Pumas get within six points in the second half and sealed the win late in the fourth quarter.
Galvin finished the game with 24 points, shooting 87.5 percent from the field and tallying 10 free throws. She and freshman center Ally Mayhaus, who had 14 points and five rebounds, worked together in a high-low offensive to put the game out of reach.
Although Galvin has been the leading scorer for the Knights 12 games this season, more players are getting involved in the scoring in recent games.
“It definitely gives us balance out there on the court to where they aren’t double- teaming just one person. It just gives us more opportunities as a whole,” Galvin said.
Bellarmine head coach Chancellor Dugan said that Galvin and Mayhaus did a great job looking for each other in the paint.
“I thought that the guards also did a great job penetrating and then, at the last minute, hitting them for some nice shots,” Dugan said.
Whitney Hartlage scored 14 points and five assists, including a 3-pointer that sparked the Knights’ 10-0 run to end the game.
The Knights are on track to have one of the best seasons in program history. But that is not what is on Dugan’s mind.
“A great season without a championship is just a great season. We want to stay focused on what we are doing, and just make sure that we are fixing things when they become a problem,” she said.
One thing that was not a problem for the Knights was rebounding. Bellarmine collected 46 total rebounds to St. Joe’s 22, which led to 42 points in the paint and 15 second-chance points.
Harold said that the game was lost on the boards.
“They killed us on the boards. Boards take effort and desire, and we didn’t have it tonight,” Harold said.
Bellarmine collected 46 total rebounds to St. Joe’s 22, which led to 42 points in the paint and 15 second-chance points.