DOYLESTOWN (PA) – Delaware Valley College ran out to a 39-19 halftime lead and cruised to a 77-56 triumph over visiting King's College in the Freedom Conference opener for both teams.
The Aggies, who had not played in 14 days, won their second straight game as they improved to 2-2 overall. The Lady Monarchs, who are just two years removed from a run to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Division III playoffs, fell to 3-4 overall.
It was all Delaware Valley as it trailed for just 17 seconds in the game and that was the opening bucket of the evening. The Aggies built the 20-point, first-half advantage despite shooting just 14.3 percent (2-for-14) from 3-point land and 41.7 percent (5-for-12) from the foul line. Defense was the reason why as they forced King's into 21, first-half turnovers (13 on steals) and, as a result, took 27 more shots than the Monarchs in the opening 20 minutes.
After giving up that first basket, Delaware Valley ran off 10 straight points, including four each by Shannon Barlow and Brenna Coll. The Lady Monarchs pulled to within four twice, including at 12-8, but an 8-0 run upped the advantage to 12 midway through the half. The lead ballooned to as many as 23 in the stanza as Barlow, Brenna Coll and Eireann Anastasi combined for 26 points.
The Aggies were up by as many as 34 in the second half and head coach Laura Hogan was able to get 12 of her players in the game with 10 recording double digits in minutes. They added four more steals for a game total of 17 as King's had seven more turnovers for 28 on the evening.
Coll finished 8-for-12 from the field, en route to a team-high, 16-point performance. She also added six rebounds and four steals. Barlow had 13 points and five boards while Kelsey Kilpatrick came off the bench to hit a trio of 3-pointers and ended the evening with 12 points. Anastasi had nine points while Agatha Drozd notched nine points, six steals and five rebounds.
Kayla Feairheller had 11 points to pace the Lady Monarchs. Jennifer Fabian added eight points and a game-high 13 rebounds.