Elmira, NY – Elmira College used a 29-7 run over and eight minute span in the second half to pull away from Keystone College in non-conference women's basketball action on Saturday afternoon as the Soaring Eagles went on to record a 78-55 victory at Elmira's Speidel Gymnasium.  The Soaring Eagles level their record at 2-2 on the season while handing the Giants (2-1) their first loss of the season.
 
Chantel Blake (Piscataway, NJ/Piscataway) scored the game's first basket to give Keystone their only lead of the game as Elmira went ahead at the 16:15 minute mark and was able to build a lead as large as eight points, 22-14, with 6:46 remaining in the first half.  Keystone responded with a 9-1 run to tie the score at 23-apiece following a steal and layup by AAliya Hayes (New Rochelle, NY/New Rochelle) with 4:42 showing on the clock.  The Soaring Eagles went back in front on the ensuing possession and, after leading 29-28 with 1:07 remaining, scored the final seven points of the half to hold a 36-28 advantage at halftime.
 
Jessica Zoltowski led Elmira with 10 first half points to go along with four rebounds and three assists while Meghan Loya added seven points and four boards for the Soaring Eagles, who shot 34.4 percent from the field in the opening 20 minutes of play. 
 
Hayes paced Keystone's offense in the opening stanza with 11 points while Ashley Evans (Wooster, OH/Wooster) and Chelsey Hropovich (Seward, PA/Ligonier Valley) pulled down five rebounds apiece in the period to lead the Giants, who connected on 31.0 percent of their field goal attempts.
 
After Alyssa Cuomo (Odessa, DE/Hodgson Vo-tech) scored on a layup to cut Keystone's deficit to 40-33 three and a half minutes into the second half, Elmira went on a 29-7 run to open up a commanding, 69-40 lead with 8:34 remaining in regulation.  The Soaring Eagles would lead by as many as 33 points before Keystone coming as close as 22 points in the final minutes of the game.
 
Zoltowski led all scorers with 28 points and 12 rebounds to carry Elmira to the win with the double-double.  Loya added 14 points and Maria Thannhauser netted 11 points for the Soaring Eagles.  Alex Balara dished out a game-high five assists for Elmira, who finished the game shooting 42.6 percent from the floor including a 6-14 (42.9 percent) effort from three-point range while going 14-22 (63.9 percent) from the free throw line.
 
Hayes just missed out on her second double-double in as many games after leading Keystone with 14 points and nine rebounds.  Cuomo added eight points and Evans contributed seven points, nine boards, and a team-leading four assists in the loss.  For the game, Keystone shots 26.6 from the field on the afternoon while going just 4-22 (18.2 percent) from beyond the arc.  The Giants connected on 17 of 24 free throw opportunities (70.8 percent).
 
Keystone returns to the court on Tuesday evening when they visit Drew University for a non-conference matchup scheduled to tipoff at 5:00 p.m. in Madison, NJ.