SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. – The Shippensburg University women's basketball team again used a fast start to establish momentum, building an 18-point halftime lead on Sunday to ultimately defeat visiting Clarion, 72-56, in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) crossover matchup inside Heiges Field House.
 
Shippensburg (11-2, 7-2 PSAC), winners of six-in-a-row, led wire-to-wire on Sunday. SU has established its best start to a season in 15 years – the 2000-01 team (NCAA national finalists) began the year 18-2. The Raiders outscored Clarion (5-10, 5-4) by a 20-9 margin in the second quarter and doubled up the Golden Eagles in the paint, 36-18.
 
Junior Colleen Young led a group of four Raiders in double figures with 18 points, one short of her career high. Young added four rebounds and two assists. Fellow junior Haley Scullion returned to action and provided 10 points, four assists and two steals.
 
Junior Logan Snyder had another outstanding effort, scoring 14 points on 4-of-6 shooting to complement five assists and two rebounds. Fellow junior Lauren Gold had 12 points, four rebounds, two assists and two steals.
 
Junior Morgan Griffith was limited to six points but managed a game-high 14 rebounds. Griffith had three assists and two steals.
 
Clarion entered Sunday's game ranked eighth in Division II for three-point attempts, averaging 21 per contest. The Golden Eagles were limited to just seven three-point attempts in the first half but finished the game making 8-of-22 from distance – matching an SU opponent season high.
 
Golden Eagle senior Tania Holmes was one of three visitors with double figures in scoring, totaling 11 points. Her three-pointer just before the intermission put her over 1,000 points for her career.
 
SU is now 7-1 this season when it finishes with a positive assist-to-turnover ratio; the Raiders totaled 17 assists and 15 turnovers on Sunday. The Raiders have now won eight times this season by double digits.
 
Shippensburg now embarks upon a three-game road trip, beginning at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday from Pittsburgh-Johnstown. Live audio of the game will be available at www.mixlr.com/shipraiders.