CENTER VALLEY, Pa. – On Tuesday evening, the Messiah University women's basketball team cruised in the 2024-25 season opener with a 61-46 win over the Bulldogs of DeSales University. The Falcons started right out of the gate strong taking a 15-9 lead after the first quarter. The Bulldogs battled in the second quarter and the Falcons took a 33-25 lead entering the half. The Falcons broke the game open in the third quarter outscoring the Bulldogs, 15-9 to extend their lead to 48-34 entering the final quarter. The Falcons outscored the Bulldogs by one in the final quarter, to win the season opener 61-46.
Hope Cook led the Falcons with a career-high 13 points.
Liv Monturo added a double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds.
Reese Harden totaled 11 points, three rebounds, and three assists.
Up next, the Falcons host the Messiah Tip-Off Tournament starting on Friday Nov. 15 with the Falcons taking on the Shorewomen of Washington College (Md.) at 7:00 p.m. for the Falcons 2024-25 home opener.
First Quarter
The Falcons opened the first quarter strong with a 11-4 run to open the game.
Reese Harden,
Chloe Milanesi, and
Hope Cook each totaled three points during the run. The Falcon and Bulldogs traded baskets to end the first quarter with
Raegan Fogarty and Harden scoring the baskets for the Falcons to give Messiah a 15-9 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Second Quarter
The Falcons started the second quarter with a 9-4 run to extend their lead to 24-13.
Liv Monturo started the run with a layup and
Hope Cook finished the run with her second three in the first half. The Bulldogs though responded with a 9-4 run of their own to reduce the Falcons lead to six with just under a minute to go in the half.
Charlotte Milanesi added a three and
Sydney Hoffman also added a layup in the final minute, but the Bulldogs hit a buzzer beater three to reduce the Falcons lead to 33-25 headed into the break.
Third Quarter
The scoring slowed down after the break with the Falcons opening the second half with a 7-2 run in the first five minutes.
Charlotte Milanesi opened the scoring for the Falcons in the second half with a layup and
Hope Cook added a three to highlight the Falcons run. The Falcons and Bulldogs then traded free throws midway through the third with
Raegan Fogarty and
Ainsley Bell making two free throws each. The Falcons ended the quarter with four straight points from
Hope Cook to give the Falcons a 48-34 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
Fourth Quarter
The Falcons and Bulldogs traded baskets to open the fourth with
Liv Monturo and
Sydney Hoffman each scoring on a layup to give the Falcons a 53-40 lead midway through the fourth. The Falcons capped off the game outscoring the Bulldogs 8-6 in the final five minutes.
Chloe Milanesi highlighted the final five minutes with a three to give the Falcons a 61-46 win in the season opener.
Stats
Hope Cook led the Falcons with a career-high 13 points.
Liv Monturo added a double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds.
Reese Harden totaled 11 points, three rebounds, and three assists. The Falcons shot 39.2 percent from the field and 33.3 percent from three. DeSales shot 42.9 percent from the field and 30 percent from three.
Next
The Falcons host the Messiah Tip-Off Tournament starting on Friday Nov. 15 with the Falcons taking on the Shorewomen of Washington College (Md.) at 7:00 p.m. for the Falcons 2024-25 home opener.