OWINGS MILLS, Md. - A night after needing a late burst in the final minutes of play to defeat the Stevenson Mustangs by four points, the Messiah women's basketball team needed no late heroics on Saturday afternoon, disposing of the Mustangs by a 78-48 final. Messiah started Saturday's contest on a 15-0 run and never looked back, claiming the 30-point victory to move to 4-0 on the season.

Jayneisha Davis led the early charge with nine first-quarter points en route to 13 points in the game. Leah Springer finished the contest with a team-high 17 points and Megan Zimmerman added 10 points while a total of 11 different Falcons scored in the contest.

As mentioned, the win moves Messiah to 4-0 on the season and will next be in action next Thursday when they host the Alvernia Golden Wolves at 7:00 p.m. in HItchcock Arena.

Falcons On Fire In First Half
Messiah jumped all over the Mustangs in the first quarter of the game. They scored the first 15 points of the contest, with Jayneisha Davis scoring nine of their 15 points, as mentioned previously. The Falcons finished the first quarter with a 20-4 lead, shooting just over 64% from the field.
 
It was more of the same in the second quarter as the Mustangs never got any closer than 13 points. Leah Springer scored seven points in the quarter for Messiah while Eleana Eckley added four points to give the Falcons a 40-23 lead at the break.
 
Consistent Second Half
The Falcons continued to dominate in the third quarter, only allowing Stevenson to score four points in the quarter while they put up 21 to take a 61-27 lead into the final period.
 
In the fourth quarter, they led by as many as 37 points, and continued to hold the Mustangs at bay throughout the quarter. Messiah was led by six Faith Grula points in the final stanza as Messiah cruised to a 78-48 victory. The Falcons shot 47.8% from the field in the game, their best effort this season.
 
Swarming Defensive Effort
The Falcons held the Mustangs to just four points in the first and third quarters of the contest as their incredible defensive effort continued Saturday afternoon. They have outscored their opponents 268-178 while not allowing 50 or more points in a single game so far this season.
 
Messiah has also recorded 56 steals this season, with double-digit steals in all four games. Leading the way for the Falcons is Jayneisha Davis with a MAC Commonwealth leading 18 steals after leading the conference last season with 73.
 
What's Up Next
The Falcons look to continue their hot start to the season next week when they host the Alvernia University Golden Wolves Thursday afternoon inside Hitchcock Arena at 7:00 p.m.