Rindge, N.H. – The Le Moyne College women's basketball team delivered a great bounce-back performance on the road against Franklin Pierce University on Wednesday evening, defeating the Ravens by a score of 77-57 to improve to 2-1 in Northeast-10 Conference play.

After falling to the Adelphi University Panthers 70-64 in Garden City last Tuesday, the 'Phins looked energized and focused against the Ravens inside the FPU Fieldhouse, establishing a 62-42 lead after three quarters before cruising to the finish line.

Senior guard Lytoya Baker (Rochester, N.Y./Bishop Kearney), freshman guard Kaia Goode (Rochester, N.Y./Bishop Kearney) and redshirt-freshman guard Sydney Lusher (Oneida, N.Y./Oneida) each scored in double-figures for Le Moyne on Wednesday.

Baker grabbed over 10 rebounds for the sixth consecutive game to begin the 2022-23 season. Against Franklin Pierce, Le Moyne's 5'9" guard pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds, including five offensive boards, to go along with 12 points and five assists. Lusher and Goode both contributed a game-high four steals.

The Dolphins recorded a season-high 25 bench points against the Ravens. All five available reserve players contributed during the victory, with each scoring at least two points.

Sierra Linnin (Valley Cottage, N.Y./Albertus Magnus) led all Le Moyne reserves with nine points, while Emily Florvil (Brooklyn, N.Y./Nazareth) tallied seven points, three rebounds, three assists and three steals in 18 minutes of action.

Erin Lofaro (Marlboro, N.Y./Marlboro/UMass Lowell) and Tamiya Turner (Howell, N.J./Howell) both recorded their first career points as Dolphins during the conference victory, while Michelina Lombardi (Wynantskill, N.Y./Averill Park) tallied five points on 2-2 from the field to go along with two rebounds and an assist in 16 minutes played.

The Dolphins have been excellent on the defensive end all-season long, but Head Coach Mary Grimes wanted the team to more consistently take advantage of the turnovers they cause.

"We just focused on creating turnovers, and focused on our defense in general a little bit more over Thanksgiving break. We talked about it, we're getting steals – Kaia Goode had seven steals last game against Adelphi – but what are we doing with those? So we said when we get those steals, let's create something out of them and I think they answered the call today," said Coach Grimes following the win.

The Le Moyne zone defense was active and disruptive as usual against the Ravens, and the 'Phins were decisive and aggressive in transition on offense.

Le Moyne shot 10-30 from beyond the three-point line on Wednesday, while the Ravens went just 3-14 from long distance.

"Franklin Pierce came in pretty hot off their win against Saint Michael's (on November 22), but we just talked about playing four quarters together, and I think we did that today. It was good to see our team put the pedal to the metal and really take it to them…. During our layover (between Tuesday's game and tonight) we really focused on identifying and closing out on three-point shooters. We did a good job of communicating – that was something that we stressed – talking to each other and having each other's backs. Our defense is looking pretty good, so kudos to the team for adjusting and understanding what we needed to do," Coach Grimes added.

The Dolphins got off to a strong shooting start to begin the NE10 battle, as Lusher knocked down three of the team's four made first quarter three-point field goals to establish an 18-11 advantage with 58 seconds remaining in the opening frame.

Franklin Pierce scored the final four points of the first period to trim their deficit to 18-15 after 10 minutes of action, then FPU's Ines Gimenez Monserrat scored five points early in the second frame to tie the game at 20-20.

The 'Phins responded with a 15-0 run between the 7:20 and 1:58 marks of the second quarter.

At the 6:52 mark, Linnin hit nothing but net on a three-point attempt from the right wing to put Le Moyne in front, then with 5:37 left in the frame, Baker grabbed a defensive rebound and pushed the ball up the middle of the court.

With a defender on her hip, Baker got all the way to the opposite paint before using a euro step to get around her defender. Baker's contested layup missed off the front of the rim, but Baker used her quickness and athleticism to quickly jump back up and grab the offensive rebound. Surrounded by four FPU players in the paint, Baker spotted Linnin near the right corner and fired a pass to the freshman sharpshooter.

Linnin shot the ball in rhythm and drilled the long distance jumper to make it a six-point game.

With 3:27 left in the first half, the Ravens tried to move the Le Moyne defense with a pass from the left wing to the right wing, but Emily Florvil jumped into the passing lane, recorded a steal, and pushed the ball towards Le Moyne's goal.

With a defender between her and the basket, Florvil drove the ball under control and made a jump stop at the left block. The sophomore guard then spun towards her left shoulder and dropped off a nice pass to Baker, who ran the floor hard. Baker caught the pass, maneuvered her body around an FPU defender and finished a left-handed layup on the left block to give the Dolphins a 28-20 lead.

Le Moyne continued to put pressure on the Ravens' defense and scored their next seven points on free throws to open up a 35-20 lead.

Le Moyne finished the contest a near-perfect 17-18 from the free-throw line.

The Dolphins established their 35-24 halftime lead almost entirely without redshirt-sophomore forward Haedyn Roberts (Holland Patent, N.Y./Holland Patent), who picked up two quick fouls during the first quarter.

With Roberts back in the game to begin the third quarter, Le Moyne got the ball to their talented forward during the very first possession of the half.

Lusher threw an entry pass over the defense from the high post, Roberts established good position near the right block, caught the pass in traffic, drew a shooting foul and converted both free throws to get the 'Phins going in the second half.

Goode drilled a three-point field goal during the next Le Moyne possession, then Le Moyne's active 3-2 zone defense caused a FPU turnover at the other end of the floor.

During the subsequent Le Moyne possession, Lusher caught the ball on the right wing, and Roberts set an inside screen for the 5'11" guard.

Lusher jabbed towards her left, dribbled away from the screen to her right, then stopped and let go of a midrange jump shot that fell through the net to put Le Moyne on a 7-0 run to begin the second half, which forced a Franklin Pierce timeout.

Senior guard Lexi Gruss (Binghamton, N.Y./Binghamton) knocked down a corner three with 8:10 left in the third quarter to make it 45-26 in favor of the Dolphins. Then with 3:35 left in the period, Gruss caught a pass in transition on the left wing and took a quick dribble towards the left block. Just as she crossed the three-point line, Gruss stopped and let go of a smooth pull up jumper that fell through the net to once again make it a 20-point game.

With 2:30 remaining in the penultimate period, Lusher caught the ball on the right wing as the shot clock dwindled to nine seconds.

Le Moyne's lead guard put the ball on the floor to her left, dribbled at her defender with a skip hesitation move, took another hard dribble towards the paint, then stepped back and drained a contested midrange jumper to put the 'Phins up 59-37.

The Dolphins were able to prevent an FPU run during the final quarter to claim a 77-57 conference victory on the road.

Wednesday's 20-point win is the largest margin of victory for the Dolphins so far this season, but it is the third time that they have beaten an opponent by at least 10 points.

The Le Moyne College women's basketball team will remain in New Hampshire as they are set to play another NE10 Conference game on Friday at Saint Anselm College.

Tip off for Friday's matchup between the Dolphins and the Hawks is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.