ST. PAUL – The St. Thomas women's basketball team shot 37.9-percent (22-58) from the field and just 18.8-percent (3-16) from three-point range in an 80-60 loss to Bethel on Saturday afternoon at Schoenecker Arena. 

The loss snaps a 13-game winning streak against the Royals, who last beat the Tommies on January 7, 2009.  St. Thomas drops to 10-3 overall and 4-2 in the MIAC, while Bethel improves to 8-5 overall and 4-2 in league play.

The Tommies jumped out to an early 7-4 lead on a Katie Stone three-pointer just over two minutes into the game, but neither would be a sign of things to come. 

The three-point lead proved to be the largest of the day for the Purple, as the Royals went on to finish the opening quarter on a 16-4 run that gave them a 20-11 advantage headed to the second.

Bethel extended its lead to 16 points (42-26) heading in to halftime.  Eight was as close as St. Thomas would get in the second quarter, a number that increased to 15 points in the second half as the Royals pulled away for the 20-point victory.

To couple with the cold shooting for the Tommies, Bethel shot 50.9-percent (28-55) from the field, 50-percent (5-10) from three, and 90.5-percent (19-21) from the free throw line. 

The Royals also controlled the rebound count (39-26), but St. Thomas won turnover battle (12-11). 

Kaitlin Langer and Paige Gernes each scored a team-high 11 points.  Langer was 4-of-6 from the floor to go along with four rebounds, while Gernes was 4-of-7 and caused havoc on the defensive end with four steals.  She also added three assists.

Rachel Parupsky led four Royals in double figures with 17 points.  Abby Miller chipped in 16 points off the bench, while Shanni Moorse added 13 and Hannah Niewald scored 11 points to go along with a game-high seven rebounds.

St. Thomas will be back in action on Wednesday night when they host Saint Benedict at 7:00 pm.