DUDLEY, Mass. -- Sophomore guard Lauren Rousseau (Biddeford, Maine) got her first start of the season and made the most of it, tossing in a season-high 21 points to help the University of New England women's basketball team run away to a 65-35 Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) win over Nichols College on Saturday afternoon.

Big Blue downed the Bison for the fourth straight meeting between the teams, improving to 9-3 overall (4-1 CCC). Nichols drops to 3-10 on the season with the loss (2-4 CCC).

Rousseau hit five three-pointers in the game, and added five rebounds as well as four steals to her performance. Senior Margo Russell (Madison, Maine) had 11 points, and junior Beth Suggs (Bath, Maine) chipped in with 10 and six rebounds -- helping the Nor'easters to a 45-27 edge on the boards.

First-year Kendra Dawless contributed a season-best seven points off the bench, and classmate Kelly Coleman (Portland, Conn.) finished with six points and a contest-high eight caroms.

UNE surged out from the opening tip, establishing a 17-2 cushion after 6:38. Nichols struggled to hold onto the ball early on, with 14 of the its initial 16 possessions ending in turnovers.

The Nor'easters led 31-19 at the break, and were well on their way (13) to the highest steal total of the season (19). Rousseau and senior Kelley Paradis (Newport, Maine) each picked up four in the first half, and Paradis also had six of her seven rebounds in the period.

Both offenses were slow to start in the second, and Big Blue maintained a 13-points lead (38-25) midway through the frame. Over a span of 5:42 that followed, UNE went off on a 22-2 spurt to put the match out-of-reach at 60-27. Rousseau canned three shots from deep during the stretch.

For the Bison, Hayley Zophin was the lone player in double figures with 10 points. Chelsea Shaughnessy controlled a game-high eight steals.

UNE next heads to Eastern Nazarene College on Tuesday (6 p.m.), while Nichols pays a visit to Roger Williams University the same day (6 p.m.).