FREDERICK, Md. - For the fifth time in as many games, the Messiah women's basketball team has held their opponents under 50 points after a 65-37 victory over the Hood Blazers on Wednesday night. The Falcons used a huge, 24-4 margin in the second quarter to run away from the Blazers in the MAC Commonwealth tilt.
 
Eight Falcons found the bottom of the cup on Wednesday night with Jayneisha Davis (18 points, 12 rebounds) and Leah Springer (17 points, 10 rebounds) led the way, both recording double-doubles. Davis was even on triple-double watch for part of the game as she finished the night with seven steals as well.
 
Springer now has 12 double-doubles on the season, while Davis picks up her first as a Falcon. Freshman Sidney Stutzman also scored a career-high 12 points in the win.
 
Messiah will be back in action on Friday when they host the Widener Pride at 6:00 p.m. on Jordan Court in Hitchcock Arena.
 
Huge Second Quarter
After taking a 15-9 lead through the first 10 minutes of play, Messiah extended their lead to 29-13 at the break, thanks to a massive second quarter. The Falcons outscored the Knights 24-4 in the quarter going 9-15 from the floor. Leah Springer led a half dozen scorers for Messiah with nine points in the quarter.
 
Sidney Stutzman dropped six in the period thanks to a pair of three-pointers. Stutzman went for a career-high 12 points in the game, going 3-5 from beyond the arc and adding three more free throws.
 
During the period, Messiah held the Blazers to a 2-15 effort from the field while forcing five turnovers.
 
Defense Stands Tall
After their stellar second quarter, Messiah was able to take the foot off the accelerator and cruise to a 65-37 victory. The Falcons forced a total of 20 turnovers, thanks to 14 steals. Messiah also held a 50-37 advantage on the glass while holding the Blazers to just a 15-60 effort from the field (25.0%).
 
After holding Hood to just a 25.0% mark from the field, Messiah has held 11 of their opponents under a 30.0% clip, including their last four.
 
In the Box Score
- Despite taking just one shot and not scoring, Grace Cryan grabbed a career-high 11 rebounds on Wednesday. Her previous career high of eight came earlier this season against UMass Boston on Dec. 29.
- Jayneisha Davis was on triple-double watch after picking up her seventh steal with five minutes remaining in the third quarter. She finished with seven on the night, a new high for the Falcons this season.
- With 17 points tonight, Leah Springer has now gone for double-digits in 20 of Messiah's 21 games. She also grabbed 10 rebounds for her 12 double-double of the season.
 
What's Up Next
With their 65-37 victory, Messiah improves to 17-4 on the season and 11-1 in the MAC Commonwealth. In other conference action, the Albright Lions were defeated 55-53 on a last-second jumper by the Stevenson Mustangs. With Albright's loss, Messiah now sits alone in first-place in the conference with an 11-1 record.
 
The Falcons will be back in action on Friday night when they host the Widener Pride at 6:00 p.m. on Jordan Court in Hitchcock Arena.