Montclair, NJ – Sophomore forward Katie Sire registered a double-double of 18 points and 10 rebounds as No. 11/13 Montclair State registered its third straight win, knocking off William Paterson 76-54 at the Panzer Athletic Center on Wednesday evening.

Kayla Ceballos added 17 points and four assists for the Red Hawks, who improved to 7-1 overall while staying perfect in NJAC play at 5-0. MSU also picked up its ninth straight win against its local rival.

Montclair State never trailed in the contest and stormed out to an 11-0 lead in the first 2:21 of the opening period. Sage Bennett got the first basket with 9:26 remaining before Sire drained a three-pointer less than a minute later for a 5-0 lead. Rachael Krauss added back-to-back baskets from behind the arc for the 11-point lead as the Red Hawks led 16-9 after one quarter.

William Paterson's Ashley Castillo opened the second with a three cutting the lead to 16-12 however Montclair put together another 11-point run. Tiarra Dillard bookended the run with free throws while Krauss connected on a three that led to a 27-15 MSU lead with 4:38 left before halftime. Two free throws from Faith Ashby gave Montclair its largest lead of the half at 30-14 before the Red Hawks settled for a 32-20 lead at the break.

In the third, the Pioneers (4-4, 2-2 NJAC) were able to get within five points twice, the last coming with 5:19 remaining as Brittany Harden made two free throws for a 38-33 Red Hawk lead. Ceballos quickly pushed that to eight points with a three on the next possession and Sire basket got it back to double digits as MSU outscored William Paterson 16-8 over the final five minutes for a 54-41 advantage after three quarters.

MSU would lead by no less than 13 points the rest of the way.

Krauss finished with 11 points, three rebounds and three steals for the Red Hawks with Bennett posting totals of nine points, six rebounds and three blocked shots.

Montclair State goes on the road for its next contest on Saturday, December 12. The Red Hawks will be at the Canavan Arena in Hoboken, NJ for a 1:00 pm matchup with Stevens.