CRETE, Neb. -- A slow start was too much for the Bellevue University women's basketball team to overcome as the Bruins fell to (RV) Hastings College, 59-44, on Friday afternoon in the first of two games for the Bruins at the Doane Classic.
Bellevue falls to 4-3 following their third-straight loss while the Broncos improve to 3-1 following the victory.
Hastings raced to a 15-4 lead after a quarter of play but the Bruins seemed to settle in from there, playing a much closer second quarter as they went into halftime trailing the Broncos 31-19.
Bellevue got off to a strong start in the third quarter, using a 13-6 run over 3:13 to trim the Bronco lead to just seven at 40-33 with 3:54 to play in the period. The run was bookended with three-pointers from Ryleigh McCartney and Taylor Cormier. Despite that spurt of momentum, Hastings was able to stretch their lead to 12, 46-34, by the end of the quarter.
The fourth quarter was played to a virtual stalemate as the score for the period was just 10-9 before Hastings scored the game's final four points, all by free throw.
Caletria Curtis led the Bruins with 13 points on 4-of-9 shooting and four rebounds. Christen Voyles chipped in a season-high tying nine points and grabbed three rebounds off the bench.
Beth Walker had another strong game on the stat sheet, finishing with nine points on 4-of-7 shooting to go along with a team-best nine rebounds. She blocked a game-best three shots, swiped two steals, and dished out a pair of assists.
Rachel Jelden led the Broncos with a game-high 14 points and teammate MacKenzie Willicott joined her in double-figures with 13 points.
Willicott also pulled down nine boards for Hastings, who enjoyed a 43-36 advantage on the glass, including 19 offensive rebounds which contributed to 11 second chance points for the Broncos.
Free throws and turnovers played a big role in this one. Bellevue scored 13 points off 20 turnovers by Hastings while the Broncos converted 30 BU turnovers into 21 points. Hastings reached the charity stripe for 38 attempts, hitting on 21 tries while the Bruins reached the line just 26 times, making 14 attempts.
Bellevue will take on host Doane tomorrow at 4 p.m. as they play their fifth – and final non-exhibition – road game before returning home to the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center for the Bruins Thanksgiving Classic.
