No. 2 Bath Holds Off No. 4 Saint Patrick 49-44 in CMAC Showdown

It was a battle Tuesday night as No. 2 Bath defended against No. 4 Saint Patrick, pulling out a 49-44 win in a game that had momentum swings all night.

Saint Patrick came out hot, jumping to a 9-0 lead to start the first quarter. After a well-needed timeout, the Bees were able to recover, finishing the quarter down 11-7.

Bath slowly settled in during the second. With 3:20 left before halftime, the Bees took their first lead of the night after a jump shot from Eva Armbula to make the score 19-17. It stayed tight the rest of the half, with Bath carrying a 26-24 lead into the break.

The third quarter is where things shifted. Bath guard Anna Poppema caught fire, knocking down her 3rd, 4th, and 5th triple of the night to stretch the lead to 10. Once again, the Bees stayed consistent and held that 10-point lead to end the quarter up 44-34.

But Saint Patrick didn’t quit. The Shamrocks forced steals, got out in transition, and cut the lead to 3 with 2:45 remaining on the clock. They had their chance late, but Bath made enough plays down the stretch to secure the 49-44 win.

Saint Patrick showed a lot of fight, but Bath’s big third quarter ended up being the difference.

Player of the Game: Anna Poppema (20 points)

Point Leaders

St. Patrick

Gracelyn Rockey - 14

Macie Smith - 13

Lilly Sandborn - 8

Bath

Anna Poppema - 20

Africa Beltran - 14

Photo by Lindsey Cook.