DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – No. 18 Messiah women's basketball picked up their first win at the Land of Magic Classic in the Sunshine State on Thursday evening. The Falcons soared past the Golden Bears of Western New England University, 70 to 40. With this victory, Messiah moved to 10-1 on the season and will prepare to take on Wellesley College in game two of the Land of Magic Basketball Classic.
Messiah dominated on both ends of the floor in their win over Western New England University. The Falcons shot 31-of-76 (40.8%) from the field, 4-of-4 (100%) from the free-throw line. However, the Falcons struggled from deep and only scored 4-of-15 (26.7%) from behind the arc. Messiah took care of business on the glass and out-rebounded the Golden Bears 46 to 38. Defensively, the Falcons collected 13 steals and caused 20 Golden Bear turnovers. Messiah on the other hand did a great job handling the ball and only turned it over eight times. The Golden Bears struggled to find any rhythm offensively and only shot 28.8% (15-of-52) from the field, 50% (9-of-18) from the free-throw line, and 7.1% (1-of-14) from three-point range.
Alecia Rohrer had an outstanding game for the Falcons. She picked up her second double-double of the season by scoring 15 points and ripping down 10 rebounds.
Kaitlyn Hoff contributed 13 points (6-of-9 from the field) for the Falcons and delivered four assists.
Leah Springer was the third Falcon to score double figures, she added 12 points and nine boards.
Kristen Smoluk and
Hannah Brown each scored eight points and
Maci Thornton collected seven.
Messiah opened up the first quarter with a 17-to-2 run over the Golden Bears.
Alecia Rohrer started things off with back-to-back baskets and a free throw to give Messiah an early 5-2 lead.
Maci Thornton then came down and cashed in a three-pointer to continue to build upon the Falcons lead. Messiah closed out the quarter with a 21-8 advantage over Western New England.
The Falcons continued to extend their advantage in the second quarter and at one point they were leading by as many as 23 points. Messiah went into the half-time break with a 39-18 advantage. Messiah's defensive effort was very impressive. In the first half they collected 25 rebounds, five steals, and three blocks. They also held the Golden Bears to only 18 points in the first 20 minutes of play.
Messiah remained consistent throughout the second half, they controlled the tempo offensively and took care of business defensively. They outscored Western New England 31-22 which led to a 70-40 victory. This was the fifth game this season in which Messiah has defeated their opponent by a margin of 30 points or more. The Golden Bears came into Thursday's match-up averaging 57.3 points per game but the Falcons were able to hold them to 40. The Golden Bears moved to 6-3 on the season after falling to Messiah.
Up Next
The Falcons will have a quick turn-around and will be back in action tomorrow, Friday Dec. 29, when they take on Wellesley College at 1:00 p.m.