GRANTHAM, Pa. – On Saturday afternoon, the Messiah University Women's basketball team used a strong second-half effort to defeat the Blazers of Hood College, 70-43. The Falcons opened the game with a 16-11 lead after the first quarter. The Blazers took control in the second quarter, outscoring the Falcons by seven to take a 26-24 into the half. The Falcons dominated in the third, outscoring the Blazers by 15 to take a 47-34 lead into the final quarter. The Falcons continued their second-half dominance outscoring the Blazers by 14 to earn the 70-43 win. Reese Harden led the Falcons with 19 points, seven assists, two rebounds, and a steal. Liv Monturo totaled 11 points, three rebounds, two assists, a block, and a steal. Chloe Milanesi and Hope Cook each added 10 points.
 
Up next, the Falcons travel to Reading, Pa. to take on the Golden Wolves of Alvernia University on Wednesday, Feb. 5 at 6:00 p.m.

First Quarter
The Falcons opened the game strong with a 9-2 run in the first four minutes. Reese Harden led the Falcons during the run with seven points and Liv Monturo added two points. The Blazers quickly bounded back with a 7-2 run, reducing the Falcons lead to two with four minutes remaining in the first quarter. The Falcons ended the first with a 5-2 run to give the Falcons a 16-11 lead at the end of the first. Reese Harden started the run with a jumper and Ainsley Bell ended the run with a jumper.
 
Second Quarter
The scoring slowed down to start the second quarter, with the Falcons outscoring the Blazers, 6-5 to increase their lead to six with five minutes remaining in the half. EmmyFaith Wood highlighted the stretch for the Falcons with a three. The Blazers ended the half with a 10-2 run to take a 26-24 lead into the break. Charlotte Milanesi scored the lone basket for the Falcons during the Blazers run. With the Blazers lead at the half, it is just the third time this season that the Falcons have trailed at half and the second time against Hood.
 
Third Quarter
After the two teams traded a basket, the Falcons went on an 8-2 run to give the Falcons a 34-30 lead. Chloe Milanesi led the Falcons with four points during the run and Reese Harden and Charlotte Milanesi each added a basket. After a pair of Hood free throws, the Falcons offense started to click from behind the arc. The Falcons drained three triples in a 13-2 run to push their lead to 47-34 entering the final quarter. Hope Cook, Chloe Milanesi, and EmmyFaith Wood each made a three during the run for the Falcons.
 
Fourth Quarter
The Falcons kept the momentum going into the fourth with a 17-2 run to extend the Falcons lead to 64-36 with 4:33 remaining in the game. Hope Cook scored six points and Reese Harden scored four during the run for the Falcons. The two teams traded baskets to end the game with the Falcons earning a 70-43 win. Brooke Fenchel and Justine Forbes ended the scoring for the Falcons on the afternoon with two points each.
 
Stats
Reese Harden led the Falcons with 19 points, seven assists, two rebounds, and a steal. Liv Monturo totaled 11 points, three rebounds, two assists, a block, and a steal. Chloe Milanesi added 10 points, three rebounds, two assists, and two steals. Hope Cook also tallied 10 points and two rebounds. EmmyFaith Wood added eight points, three rebounds, two assists, and two steals. Charlotte Milanesi also totaled four points, six rebounds, and four assists. The Falcons shot 46.7 percent from the field and 57.1 percent from three. The Blazers shot 30.2 percent from the field and 11.1 percent from three.
 
Next
The Falcons travel to Reading, Pa. to take on the Golden Wolves of Alvernia University on Wednesday, Feb. 5 at 6:00 p.m.