In the opening round of the 2019 Dakota Valley Conference tournament, the Dell Rapids St Mary Cardinal girls basketball team fell to the Arlington Cardinals 50-42 on Monday, January 14th at Deubrook High School in White.
St Mary ended the first quarter with a slim two-point lead at 11-9. Arlington, however, held St Mary to just four second-quarter points and took an 18-15 lead into the locker room at halftime. That lead grew for Arlington to 11 points at 28-17 with 4:20 to go in the third quarter. St Mary shaved a point off that lead by the end of the third quarter and trailed 36-26 heading into the final quarter.
Arlington was able to maintain a 10-point lead over the first minute and a half in the fourth quarter and led 40-30. The lead grew to 11 points again by the midway point of the fourth quarter at 46-35. St Mary then went on a 7-0 run in just under two minutes to cut the lead to 46-42 with 2:12 to play. Neither team would score until the final minute. Arlington knocked down four free throws in that final minute to seal the victory.
Ella Heinitz finished the game with 21 points for St Mary. Maddie Schwebach added 10 points, and Ella Griffin had six points.
St Mary (3-7) will play in the consolation round of the DVC tournament on Thursday, January 17th against the Elkton-Lake Benton Elks. Tip-off is at 6:00 p.m. at Deubrook High School in White.