Grantham, PA – The Falcons came away with a convincing win against Commonwealth Conference opponent Hood College Wednesday night, 69-46. The win pushes the Falcons' conference record to 5-3 (9-8 overall). 
 
The Falcons jumped to an early 6-0 lead at the start, only to see the Blazers go on a six point run of their own. After swapping baskets for much of the first half, Messiah widened the gap for good, going on a 30-10 run started by an and-one basket by Gillian Glackin, followed by a Sienna Wisse three-pointer. The run lasted 13:32 for the Falcons and covered parts of both halves.
 
"We had trouble handling their pressure initially", said head coach Mike Miller, "I had to make some adjustments to counter their strategy."
 
The Falcons did exactly that, as they opened up their largest lead of the game on a Jen Fairbanks layup, putting them up by 26 with just 3:59 left in the game.
 
Messiah flexed their muscles on defense as well, allowing Hood to shoot just 26.5% from the field. "We showed improvement in defensive concepts and communication, both things we worked on in practice this week", said coach Miller.
 
Kaitlyn Hoff scored a career high, and game high, 17 points in just 23 minutes. Of her 17 points, 10 came by way of the charity stripe, converting on 10-11 chances. Gillian Glackin continued to show her consistency on the boards and her ability to score, contributing 13 points of her own, as well as nine rebounds. Sienna Wisse and Jen Fairbanks chipped in 12 and eight points respectively. The Falcons shot 43.9% from the field, marking their second highest percentage of the season.
 
Taylor McGaughey led the charge for the Blazers finishing with 10 points, Rachel Wiley added eight of her own.
 
The Falcons will next take the floor, this time away, against conference rival Lebanon Valley College. They will meet this Saturday at 1:00 p.m. in Annville, PA.