SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. – The Shippensburg University women's basketball team raced out to a 12-0 lead on Wednesday night from Heiges Field House and never looked back, shooting 60 percent in the first half and never trailing en route to a 75-44 victory over West Virginia Wesleyan, a squad picked No. 3 in the WVIAC preseason poll.

Shippensburg (2-3) was on fire from the get-go, making four straight shots to start the game while forcing two turnovers on defense. SU needed five buckets to build its early 12-point advantage, and each of the team's starters contributed one of the field goals during the important run.

The Lady Raiders shot the lights out from three-point range, making 6-of-10 attempts in the first half and finishing the contest 11-of-19 from beyond the arc. Freshman Ashley Giedemann was 4-of-4 from three-point range and led all players with 18 points and eight rebounds.

Senior Kasey Gardner had a first half to remember, scoring five points, grabbing seven rebounds and dishing out five of SU's 10 first-half assists. Gardner finished with 15 points, and the Lady Raiders finished the game with 17 assists compared to just 15 turnovers.

Junior Lindsay Howard made the first start of her career and took full advantage of the opportunity. Howard played a career-high 29 minutes and matched her career-high with eight points while setting a new career high with six rebounds. Most impressive was her performance on the defensive end of the floor. Among that work was an impressive four blocks, the most in one game since Shanna Oaddams had four on Feb. 19, 2007 in a victory over Cal.

West Virginia Wesleyan (5-1) entered the game with a 4-0 record in conference play and an unblemished record. The Bobcats were stymied by the Lady Raider defense, shooting just 34 percent from the field while committing 20 turnovers. None of their players scored more than eight points.

The Bobcats got within six points of the lead, 16-10, with 11:40 remaining in the first half. Shippensburg answered with a 26-10 run and entered halftime with a 22-point lead, 42-20.

Sophomore guard Dana Wert was perfect from the floor on Wednesday, shooting 5-of-5 and finishing with 13 points. She also contributed three assists and a steal.

The Lady Raiders will return to the floor on Saturday and Sunday at IUP's annual Susan G. Komen Shoot for the Cure Classic. SU will take on host IUP at 3 p.m. Saturday before facing California (Pa.) in a neutral-site clash on Sunday at 1 p.m.