CHICAGO – Four players finished in double-figures for the Saint Xavier University women's basketball team (0-1, 0-0 CCAC) in a 61-58 setback in their 2023-24 season-opener to Bethany College (Kan.) Friday afternoon on Bob Hallberg Court at the Shannon Center in Chicago, Ill. Sophomore center Eleanor Harris (Downers Grove, Ill./Downers Grove North) led the Cougars with a career-high 14 points on 50.0 percent shooting (6-for-12) and a career-best five steals. She also had a game-high tying nine rebounds, a game-best two blocks and an assist in her first collegiate start.

• Junior forward Alyssa Crenshaw (Algonquin, Ill./Dundee-Crown) also shot 50.0 percent from the field (6-for-12) with 13 points, nine rebounds and three steals.
• Junior guard Hayley Macdonald (Canberra, Australia/Williston State/Lake Ginninderra) made her SXU debut and scored 11 points with eight rebounds and a pair of assists.
• Sophomore guard Jaidn Green (Evansville, Ind./Evansville North) tallied 10 points, three rebounds, an assist and a block in 31 minutes of action.
• Senior guard Bethany Baldwin (Watersmeet, Mich./Finlandia/Triton/Watersmeet) chipped in four points, two steals, an assist and a rebound in 14 minutes off the bench in her Saint Xavier debut.
• The Swedes carried a 7-2 lead early in the contest and Green tied the game, 7-7, with a three-pointer midway through the opening quarter. SXU would go up 13-8 after a layup by Crenshaw after she grabbed an offensive rebound at the 3:43 mark. The Cougars held a 17-16 lead at the end of the frame, shooting 53.3 percent (8-for-15) from the field and coming away with five steals.
• SXU started the second period on a 12-0 run over four minutes to build a 28-16 advantage, capped by a Green rebound and a layup with 6:18 to play in the half. They would push their lead to 15, 36-21, on a fastbreak three-pointer by junior guard Aaliyahna Derrell (Colorado Springs, Colo./Sand Creek) with an assist from Macdonald with 4:01 to go. Bethany responded with three consecutive threes over their next three possessions to quickly cut the deficit to 36-30 with 2:36 remaining. SXU closed out the half with a 39-35 lead heading into the halftime break.
• The third quarter saw Saint Xavier shoot just 2-for-14 from the field (14.3 percent) and BC was able to square the game at 47-47 at the end of the third frame, despite shooting just 35.7 percent (5-for-14) from the field and SXU forcing 10 turnovers and collecting four steals.
• Harris corralled an offensive board and scored a basket to put the Cougars back on top, 49-47 to start the fourth quarter. The Swedes would tie the game on their next possession and hold the lead for good after a fastbreak layup set up by an outlet pass at the 8:05 mark. Saint Xavier stayed close down the stretch, with their largest deficit being four points, 55-51, after a jumper with 6:58 left in regulation. SXU had a chance to tie the game at the buzzer after Baldwin grabbed a rebound on a missed foul shot with five seconds left. A time out moved the ball to midcourt and Green had a good look, but her shot hit the iron as the clock expired.

Saint Xavier (0-1/0-0 CCAC) travels to Southfield, Mich. to take on Lawrence Tech University (Mich.) in non-conference action of Saturday, November 4. The game is scheduled for a 5:00 pm central tipoff.