STANDISH, Maine -- The Bates women's basketball team dominated the second half Tuesday on their way to a 74-49 win over Saint Joseph's College of Maine.
Three Bobcats finished in double figures scoring and senior captain Morgan Kennedy (Oklahoma City, Okla.) led the way with 19 points on 6-11 shooting, knocking down 5-10 from three-point range. 16 of Kennedy's 19 points came in the second half.
Reigning NESCAC and Maine Player of the Week sophomore Elsa Daulerio (Harpswell, Maine) poured in 18 points on 9-16 shooting and grabbed 10 rebounds for her fourth double-double of the season.
Junior Alexandra Long (Newtown, Pa.) nearly tallied a double-double, scoring nine points on 5-8 shooting and securing a career-high 12 rebounds. She also dished out six assists, blocked two shots, and recorded a steal. Long has the best assist/turnover ratio (2.7) in the conference and is tied with Daulerio for the NESCAC lead in blocks, averaging 1.9 per game.
First-year Sarah Hughes (Rumson, N.J.) finished in double figures scoring with 12 points, four rebounds, and three assists. Meanwhile, senior captain Davina Kabantu (Portland, Maine) grabbed 11 rebounds to go along with five points and a game-high four steals.
The Bobcats (15-2) took the lead for good at the end of the first half. Sophomore Sophie Spolter (Blacklick, Ohio) drilled a three from the corner on an assist from Hughes with five seconds remaining until halftime, giving the Bobcats a 31-28 lead at the intermission.
Bates started the second half on a 12-5 run, taking a 10-point lead at 43-33 on a Hughes free throw with 3:55 left in the third quarter. The Monks (9-7) trimmed the lead to nine heading into the fourth quarter on a pair of Nina Howe free throws.
But the fourth quarter was all Bobcats, as they outscored the Monks 21-5 down the stretch. Saint Joseph's picked up the first two points of the fourth quarter before the Bobcats went on an 11-0 run to put the game away, culminating with a Kennedy three-pointer with six minutes left in regulation, which put Bates ahead 64-46.
Angelica Hurley paced the hosts with 18 points on 6-14 shooting. Grace Ramsdell added 12 points and 11 rebounds.
The Bobcats were off and running from the start, tallying 21 fastbreak points on the evening, while the Monks netted just seven fastbreak points.
Bates shot 41.8 percent from the floor and held the Monks to 25% shooting. The Bobcats dominated points in the paint (36-16) and bench points (22-0).
The Bobcats return home Saturday to host the Tufts University Jumbos in NESCAC action at 3pm.