Nov. 15, 1999
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Freshman Alicia Ratay scored a game-high 25 points to lead three Irish players in double figures as Notre Dame, which moved up to seventh in this week’s Associated Press rankings released today, defeated EOS Malbas 76-51 in its final exhibition tuneup before Saturday’s (November 20) season opener at Toledo.
Ratay was seven-of-12 from the field, including a five-for-seven performance from three-point range. The freshman standout also was a perfect eight-for-eight from the free throw line.
She was joined in double figures by Niele Ivey who has 15 points, six assists and four steals and sophomore Ericka Haney who finished with 10 points.
Junior All-America center Ruth Riley missed the game after sustaining a sprained ankle in practice last week. She is listed as probable for the season opener against the Rockets.
EOS Malbas was led by Annette Mollerstrom who finished with 17 points, the only player from her team in double figures.
Notre Dame dominated the contest from the start and only trailed (2-0) at the start of the game. The Irish led by as many as 18 in the first half, holding a 16-point halftime advantage (40-24). Ratay had 12 points at intermission, while Ivey chipped in 11.
The Irish broke open the game in the second half by starting out with a 22-12. Notre Dame had its largest lead (29 points) with 2:53 remaining in the game.
Notre Dame’s tenacious defense forced 16 EOS Malbas’ first-half turnovers, while the Irish committed just six in the first 20 minutes.
Junior Kelley Siemon led all rebounders in the game with nine as the Irish owned a 39-38 advantage on the boards.
Notre Dame shot 43.8 percent from the field for the game and was six-of-12 from three-point range.
“This was a good game for us because it gave us a chance to see where we had improved since our last game,” Irish head coach Muffet McGraw says. “We got better in a lot of areas tonight. Our transition game on defense was better and I felt we improved on cutting down on a our turnovers. We still have some things to work on before Saturday’s season opener, but overall I’m happy with the performance of our players this evening.”