CINCINNATI, Ohio - The Mount St. Joseph Lions powered past the Manchester Spartans 82-58 in women's basketball action on Saturday, January 7. 

The Lions jumped out to an early lead, scoring seven unanswered points during the first two minutes of play. The Spartans fought back, cutting Mount St. Joseph's lead to just six points to close out the first quarter. MU went on an 8-0 run to start the second quarter before the Lions scored to tie the game at 26 with 7:44 left on the clock. MSJ took the lead 41-35 at halftime. 

Mount St. Joseph outscored the Spartans 14-20 in the third quarter to take a 12-point lead entering the final quarter. MSJ grew their lead to 26 points with 1:19 left to play, taking Saturday's contest by a score of 82-58. 

Karlee Mills led the Lions with 25 points. Anyiah Murphy added 10 points for MSJ, and Carlee Daulton pulled down 9 rebounds and had 6 steals during Saturday's game. As a team, Mount St. Joseph shot 44.4% from the field and 57.9% from the free throw line. The Lions improved to 5-7, 2-3 HCAC. 

Bridget Nash (Carmel, Ind., Bishop Chatard) led the Spartans with 14 points, shooting 6-10 from the field. Jessie Ringen (Rensselaer, Ind., Rensselaer Central) chipped in 12 points for the Black and Gold during Saturday's contest while Nash and Bailey Keim (Denver, Ind., North Miami) pulled down 5 rebounds apiece. As a team, Manchester shot 33.9% from the field with 34 points in the paint and 72.2% from the free throw line. The Spartans fall to 6-7, 2-4 HCAC following Saturday's loss at MSJ. 

Up next, Manchester will head to Hanover College on January 14 to take on the Panthers for another HCAC matchup. Tip-off is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. in Hanover, Ind.