LEWISTON, Maine -- Senior captain Morgan Kennedy scored a game-high 22 points and the Bates women's basketball team pulled away in the second half to defeat the Maine Maritime Academy Mariners by a final score of 77-67 Wednesday evening at Alumni Gym. 

Kennedy (Oklahoma City, Okla.) drained a three-pointer with 9:39 left in the third quarter to put the Bobcats (10-2) ahead for good. She matched her season-high in points while shooting 9-18 from the floor and 4-9 from three-point range. Sophomore Elsa Daulerio (Harpswell, Maine) added 16 points on 6-12 shooting, grabbed six rebounds, and blocked three shots. Senior captain Davina Kabantu (Portland, Maine) rounded out the trio of the Bobcats in double figures scoring with 10 points on 5-8 shooting, a team-high seven rebounds, and three assists. 

Kennedy's three started a 9-0 run for Bates, as the Bobcats took a 40-32 lead on a Kennedy jumper with 7:30 left in the third quarter.

The Mariners (6-4) inched to within three points at 42-39 on a Evelyn Dagan three-pointer with 5:24 left in the third. But Kennedy had the answer with a three of her own. MMA got no closer than within five points after that, as the Bobcats took a 54-47 lead into the fourth quarter. Kennedy scored 10 of her 22 points in the third quarter and added five more points in the fourth.

Daulerio knocked down a jumper with 4:06 left in regulation, giving the Bobcats their biggest lead of the game at 70-53. 

MMA pulled to within eight on a Hailey Blanchard three with 1:30 remaining. The Bobcats held on down the stretch to win by 10.

Bates improved their shooting each quarter on Wednesday, starting the first quarter 5-17 from the floor. Then they shot 6-17 in the second quarter before catching fire down the stretch, shooting 10-21 in the third quarter and 9-14 in the fourth. 

The Mariners led by as many as eight points in the first quarter, going up 12-4 on an Erianna Moore three-pointer with 4:57 left. The Bobcats answered with an 8-0 run, capped off by a three-pointer from first-year Mya Hicks (Ann Arbor, Michigan), tying the game at 12. A Moore layup put MMA up 14-12 before Daulerio converted an old-fashioned three-point play, giving Bates a 15-14 lead with 1:42 to go in the opening stanza. Bates ended up taking a 17-15 lead when the buzzer sounded to end the quarter.

The second quarter proved to be as close as the first one, with the Mariners tying the game at 26 on a Makenzie Monzon layup with 4:36 left until halftime.

Bates led 31-30 at the intermission. MMA briefly went up 32-31 on a Moore jumper to start the third quarter before Kennedy's three got the Bobcats rolling.

Maria Barela led the Mariners with 15 points on 4-11 shooting. Moore finished with 14 points and eight rebounds. Monzon added 13 points for the visitors. 

The Bobcats scored 15 points off turnovers while MMA tallied eight. Bates held the advantage in second-chance points (10-4) and points in the paint (42-20). Bates finished 30-69 (.435) from the floor, their best shooting percentage since the season-opener against UMaine-Farmington.

Bates is back in action Sunday when they visit Connecticut College for the NESCAC opener. Tip is set for 1pm.