SHEPHERDSTOWN, W.Va. — The Marauders traveled to Shepherdstown to take on the Rams looking for a victory to climb the PSAC East Division's standings once more. They did just that, defeating the hosts 77-48. Both Sophie Elstone and Jabria Ingram topped the 20-point mark for the first time in their careers. 

The Marauders showed new life immediately, jumping out to a seven-nothing advantage in the first two minutes. Brenna Ortwein was responsible for three of these points, the final two of which came on a layup after an offensive rebound. The early advantage was due to their offense as much as their defense, as Shepherd was held to one of four from the field over the first four minutes. The visitors forced three turnovers as well. 

They continued their dominance into the middle of the period, first pushing the lead to double digits and then 13 by the six-minute mark. It was a 15-2 run at that point, the final basket of which was scored by Ortwein as well. The Marauders' largest lead of the quarter was 23-6 with a hair under two minutes remaining. All told, they scored 25 points in the first quarter with four players tallying five or more. The Rams turned the ball over seven times to Millersville's two. 

The second held much of the same, as the visitors entered halftime with a 46-25 advantage, their largest in any PSAC contest this season. The scoring was spread throughout the lineup in his period as well, as five different Marauders chipped in three or more points. Ingram had six in both the first and the second totaling a team-best 12 at the half. She would finish with a career-high 21, breaking her previous best set on Jan. 3, 2024 against Seton Hill. 

The third quarter was the only 10 minutes that the Marauders didn't win, instead matching the 15 points that the Rams put up. They salted the game away in the fourth, however, with  16-8 mark resulting in the 77-48 victory. Elstone led the Marauders in scoring in that final period with six, giving her 20 for the game as well as a new career-high. Her high-water mark prior to this contest was 16 points, coming against Goldey-Beacom on Dec. 14, 2023. 

GAME NOTES:

• The Marauders' all-time record against the Rams improves to 13-5 after the victory. They complete the season sweep after downing Shepherd 57-51 on Jan. 17. In addition, their winning streak over the West Virginians moves to four games. 
• Millersville's conference record improves to 7-10 with the victory while Shepherd falls to 4-14. The Marauders remain in fifth place, a half game back of Mansfield. 

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:

• As mentioned previously, Ingram both led all scorers with her 21 points as well as set a new career-best. The graduate student was dominant in all other phases of the game as well, recording seven assists without a giveaway (a new career best without a turnover), grabbing five rebounds and tallying five steals. The steal and assist marks both paced the Marauders.
• Elstone was Millersville's second-leading scorer. She had her best game as a Marauder with 20 points on 67% from the field as well as eight rebounds while committing just one turnover. 

POSTGAME REACTION FROM HEAD COACH KIRA MOWEN:

• On the key to the fast start: "We were ready and dialed in so we were able to push past them defensively and get what we wanted to offensively. We also had some really good team culture talks this week."
• On the difference between last and this week: "I believe this goes back to the culture talks and who we want to be; it's a matter of actions, not words."

UP NEXT:

• The Marauders return home to Pucillo Gymnasium for a Saturday afternoon matinee against the Mansfield Mountaineers beginning at 1 p.m.