DALLAS, Pa. – Behind a 7-0 run to start the game and 38 combined points from the Lucy Alberici-Olivia Schubiger tandem, the Stevens Institute of Technology women's basketball team went to Misericordia Saturday afternoon and came out with a wire-to-wire 65-45 win in Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) Freedom action.

Alberici finished with 13 in the first half and 22 for the game; Schubiger dropped eight in each half for a 16-point day; Leyla Castro finished with 11 (notching three steals on the defensive end), and Dorothy Loffredo added eight plus six boards.

HOW IT HAPPENED
An Alberici layup and three-pointer had the Ducks up 5-0 less than two minutes in, and a steal-to-jumper from Castro made it 7-0 the following possession. Loffredo answered a Misericordia layup with another jumper, keeping the Ducks up seven at the 7:18 mark.

Stevens (13-8, 7-3 MACF) did not score again until the 5:14 mark, but limited Misericordia to three free throws during that stretch, maintaining an 11-5 lead after the first of Schubiger's eight field goals on the day made it 11-5. After the two sides traded baskets on consecutive possessions, layups from Schubiger and Loffredo put the Red and Gray up 10, 17-7 at the end of the first quarter.

The Ducks' lead fluctuated between eight and 12 points throughout much of the second quarter, Alberici accounting for the team's first eight points of the frame via four free throws, a layup, and a jumper. Schubiger made it 27-16 with a jumper before Misericordia reeled off seven straight and 10 of the final 12 of the quarter, closing to within 29-26 at the half; Sugar Williams provided Stevens' final points of the half with a pair of free throws in the final 30 seconds.

Just as she did to open the game, Alberici opened the scoring in the second half with a layup, putting the Ducks back up five, but Misericordia closed to within a single point with the next four. Audrey Kehoe provided some critical breathing room with a three-pointer (her first of the season and second of her collegiate career), Alberici adding a free throw, pushing the lead back to five, 35-30.

After each side added two field goals over a 90-second stretch – Schubiger and Alberici scoring for the Ducks --, two more Schubiger jumpers put Stsvens up 43-34. Castro, Alberici, and Isabella Duval (from beyond the arc) helped open a game-high 13-point cushion, 50-37, through three.

Another 7-0 run to open the fourth (10-0 extending back to the third) erased any thoughts of a Cougars' comeback. Loffredo bookended it with a jumper and a layup, with Castro adding an old-fashioned three-point play between the two buckets.

Misericordia did not draw closed than 16 points the rest of the way, with Schubiger, Alberici, and Castro combining for Stevens' final eight points.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Saturday was Stevens' fifth straight over Misericordia, and the 20-point margin set a new mark as the team's biggest win over the Cougars since joining the MAC Freedom prior to the 2019-20 season.
• Alberici dropped at least 20 for the fourth time this season, one more than her total of 20-point games over the previous three seasons combined.
• Schubiger matched two season highs with eight made field goals and a .727 clip from the field, both marks most recently set at DeSales on January 22.
• Castro reached double figures for the seventh straight game.

UP NEXT
The Ducks return to Canavan Arena for a 7:00 tip Wednesday night against DeSales, the reigning six-time conference champion.