DEFIANCE, Ohio – Albion College threw a haymaker in the form of a 24-4 first half run and it coasted from there to post a 78-58 victory over Defiance College in non-league women's basketball action.

It was the third win in a row for Albion (4-5 overall) who will have an opportunity to move to .500 on the season at 5:30 p.m. Monday when it squares off against the College of Wooster inside Kresge Gymnasium.

Albion scored on its first three possessions as it surged to a 9-4 lead. Nicole Dennis knocked down a three-point shot on the Britons' first possession, and Brett De Bear contributed six points.

Albion was able to run in transition as steals led to layups by Dennis and Patty Rewa. The margin reached double figures just 4:13 into the game when de Bear knocked down a jumper to make the score 16-6.

Albion maintained a double-digit lead for almost the rest of the way. An Emily King layup gave Albion its largest lead of the first half at 27-9 with 9:53 to play. The Britons settled got a 38-21 bulge at halftime.

Rachel Ciminillo and Erica King dialed from long distance at the start of the second half – they combined to make three shots from three-point range – to bring Defiance within 10. King's third three-point basket whittled the Albion lead down to eight, 43-35, with 14 ½ minutes to play.

Defiance had an opportunity to trim the margin further, but a Lauren Epple steal led to Rewa's fastbreak layup and the start of another Albion run. Taylor Nugent buried a three-point shot and Epple tacked on a basket and a free throw to push the Briton lead to 51-35 and Defiance never mounted a challenge from there.

Dennis enjoyed one of the finest games of her career, posting 20 points, six steals and four assists. It was her first 20-point game since scoring 21 against Saint Mary's on Feb. 14-2009. Four Britons joined Dennis in double figures as de Bear finished with 12 and Epple and Rewa contributed 11 apiece.