Benedictine Breaks into the NAIA Tournament with a Win
By: Matthew Tritten
Updated: March 15, 2013
(FRANKFORT, Ky.) Benedictine wasted no time making an impact in its first-ever NAIA Division I Tournament appearance.
The Lady Ravens (28-5) knocked Bethel (Tenn.) out of the tournament Thursday night in a 81-74 win.
The victory advances Benedictine into the round of 16 teams with another 8:45 game against Cumberland University Friday night.
A solid shooting performance in the opening half boosted the Lady Ravens to a ten point halftime lead. BC shot 48-percent from the field and 60-percent beyond the arc in the first frame.
Bethel managed to win the battle on the boards pulling down 45 rebounds, including 17 offensively, but Benedictine countered with an efficient offense that did a good job of distributing the basketball.
Nine different Ravens had an assist in the contest, led by Kelsey Anselmi with eight.
Anselmi was also the second leading scorer for Benedictine with 15 points.
Liz Stinson paced them with 17 on 8-15 shooting.
Thursday night's win for Benedictine made them the first 3-seed in the NAIA D-I Women's Tournament to pick up a win. All three previous 3-seeds, including fellow HAAC team Mid-America Nazarene, lost in the first round to a 6-seed.
