NOTRE DAME 79, ST. BONAVENTURE 35
How St. Bonaventure lost: They played Notre Dame, a team with a national championship and three Final Four apperances under its belt. The Bonnies played good defense for a stretch of five minutes but failed to score in that time to keep the game interesting. Lack of offense doomed the Bonnies. Jessica Jenkins got off only six shots and was held scoreless. Megan Van Tatenhove managed just three points from the free throw line. The Bonnies had 21 turnovers. They could not find their way against a deep, solid, experienced Notre Dame defense.
Player of the Game: Brittany Mallory. She had the defensive assignment on Jenkins most of the game and made life miserable for the Bona senior.
Stat Check: The Bonnies shot just 18.8 percent (9 of 48) from the field for the game and were just 1 of 12 from three-point range.
Stat Check II: Sophomores Doris Ortega and CeCe Dixon combined for 25 of Bona's 35 points, which was the lowest point total in Sweet 16 history.
Stat Check III: With an enrollment of around 2,000, St. Bonaventure is the smallest school ever to advance to the Sweet 16.
Play of the Game: There really wasn't one "play" of the game, but Notre Dame had a 13-2 run to open the game and that pretty much set the tone for the rest of the afternoon.
She said it: "No one knew what we were. Half these people didn't even know we had a women's basketball team." -- junior guard Chelsea Bowker.
She said it II: "When we grew up that's all we thought about. We watched March Madness. Who ever thought St. Bonaventure would be part of it? I've got tears going because it was a tough loss, but I have a smile on my face because some people never get the chance to come." -- Bowker.
In the House: 3,108 at the PNC Arena in Raleigh, N.C.
What It Means: St. Bonaventure season ends with a 31-4 record.
What's Next: Rest. Then conditioning. Then summer ball.
---Amy Moritz
