St. Louis – The Maryville women's basketball team dropped its season opener to Parkside 75-60 Friday afternoon in Moloney Arena. Claire Rake led the Saints with 14 points, while Olivia Hahn drained three 3-pointer and finished with 10 points. Faith Hawthorne led the Saints on the glass with 10 rebounds, and Gracie Stugart dished out 11 assists.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
Annika Pluemer hit a triple to give the Saints the early 3-0 lead. The Rangers rallied with eight straight points until Madyson Rigdon sank a shot from deep. Two free throws by Gracie Stugart tied the game at 8-8. Early in the second quarter, Parkside went on a 9-0 to push its margin to 22-10. Rake and Rigdon had consecutive buckets as the Saints pulled to within 22-14. Rake hit a deep triple to draw Maryville to within 28-21 but Parkside grabbed a 30-21 lead at halftime.
 
Stugart opened the third with a jumper, and Olivia Hahn drilled a 3-pointer as the Saints closed to 30-26. Faith Hawthorne found the range from the top of the key and her trey chopped the Parkside led to just 32-29. Hahn heated up from distance and splashed back-to-back 3-pointers as the Saints got as close at 40-37. The Rangers used a 9-0 burst and retook a 52-39 margin. A Rake layup and two at the line from Pluemer drew the Saints to within 56-45 heading into the fourth.
 
Alicia Burgos sank a turnaround jumper to cut the leas to 56-47 The Ranger pushed out their advantage before the Saints closed the gap. Another 3-pointer from Rake made it 69-60 with under two minutes to go but the Saints never got any closer. Maryville forced 20 Parkside turnovers but struggled from the field and shot just 28 percent.
 
STATISTICAL LEADERS
Points: Claire Rake - 14
Rebounds: Faith Hawthorne - 10
Assists: Gracie Stugart - 11
3-Pointers: Olivia Hahn - 3
Steals: Gracie Stugart - 4
Blocked Shots: none
 
WHAT'S NEXT?
The Saints are right back in action Saturday as they host Roosevelt for a 2 p.m. tilt in Moloney Arena.   Read Full Article