ERIE, Pa. – The Millersville women's basketball team opened the scoring with a solid 3-pointer from senior Olivia Mottern, but it was Gannon who capitalized throughout the following 39 minutes to defeat the Marauders 87-69.
 
Millersville's record now stands at 1-4 overall and 0-2 in the PSAC. Gannon clenched its first conference win over the Marauders for a 1-0 record. The Golden Knights are 4-1 in the season.
 
Lauren Lister led the pack once again with 20 points. Mottern saw another double-digit scoring game with 14 points. She went 4-of-6 from beyond the arch for a .666 3-point percentage.
 
MATCH HIGHLIGHTS
• Millersville went toe-to-toe with Gannon through the first eight minutes of the opening quarter. Mottern started the scoring, sinking her first of four 3-pointers in the game. Gannon's Boston McKinney sank a three immediately following to tie the game. The teams traded points over the next six minutes until a layup, free throw and two threes by the Golden Knights gave them the ultimate lead.
• The Marauders continued to trail throughout the second quarter giving up 25 points and trailed by no fewer than six points. Two Gannon free throws in the final seconds gave the team an eight-point lead going into the half, 46-33.
• Trailing by 11 just one minute into the third quarter, Mottern sank another 3-pointer to put the Marauders back within an eight-point reach. The Golden Knights opened the gap, but a Lister jumper and layup brought Millersville back to just an eight-point deficit. Gannon went on a 13-7 run to end the quarter and create a 16-point gap.
• Gannon added 19 points in the fourth and held the Marauders to just 13, their lowest scoring quarter of the game, to take the 87-69 victory.
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
• Samantha Brusha went 4-of-9 from the field and tallied two 3-pointers to reach her first double-digit scoring effort with 13 points.
• Mottern and Courtney Dimoff tallied three steals each in the game. Lister, Brusha and Ty Taylor contributed two each.
• Chandera Jones-Aryeh, Brusha and Lister all went 3-for-3 from the charity stripe
• The Marauders shot 42.6 percent from the field and went 10-for-10 on free throws.
• Gannon led Millersville in points in the paint (38-30) and bench points (27-24). Millersville led Gannon in points off turnovers (15-13) and second chance points (10-6).
 
HEAD COACH MARY FLEIG QUOTES
• "It's really important that people step up. We need more than just the starting five to be the scorers. We need to have better balance scoring. We're not playing great defense right now."
• "Olivia Mottern did a really nice job shooting threes consistently in both games. Being able to knock down threes is always a big lift and being able to have her as one of our scoring weapons is key."
• "People key in on Lauren Lister. People start their defensive scheme with how to guard her. When she gets 20 points in games, she is getting a lot of that on her own by getting to the rim and getting to line. It's great to have her consistently scoring."
 
NOTES
• This was the 13th meeting between the two teams with Gannon leading the series 9-4. The Golden Knights fell to Millersville last season, but have now reclaimed a single-game win streak
• This was the fifth double-digit and 20-point scoring effort for Lister. Mottern recorded her second game in double-digits while Brusha notched her first.
 
NOTES
The Marauders will have a 12-day break before returning to the court in Pucillo Gymnasium for their first home match in the season against Edinboro. Tip off is at 1 p.m.