ANNVILLE (PA)--- The Delaware Valley women's basketball team led 19-3 after one quarter and held off multiple runs from PSU-Schuylkill to secure a 63-58 victory, earning their first win of the season. Sophomore Taylor Richardson was named to the Rinso Marquette Invitational all-tournament team after averaging 16 points (60% shooting) and eight rebounds per game.
After the teams exchanged baskets over the first 1:33, DelVal took control of the first quarter, scoring the next eight points to extend their lead to 10-2. Kyarra Williams and Haley Keenan each knocked down a free throw to begin the run and the Aggies connected on each of their next three field goal attempts. PSU- Schuylkill (0-3) hit one free throw to briefly stop the DelVal scoring burst midway through the quarter, but Haley Keenan responded on the next possession with a three pointer. No points were scored for a 3:18 stretch before Scarlett King knocked down a jumper for the Aggies. Kyarra Williams and Taylor Richardson each made layups to finish out the 19-3 quarter for DelVal.
After shooting 1-17 in the first quarter, the Nittany Lions opened the second quarter on an 8-2 run to close the deficit to 21-11. Haley Keenan dished out an assist on a Taylor Richardson basket to extend the lead back to 12 with 5:32 left in the second quarter. PSU-Schuylkill answered that bucket with an 11-5 burst in the final 4:02 to trim the Aggie lead to 28-22 at halftime.
The teams went back and forth for the first four minutes of the third quarter. A Lauren Moretti layup after a Haley Keenan steal gave the Aggies a 40-31 lead with 5:08 left in the third quarter. The next two minutes however, belonged to the Nittany Lions, as they put together a 9-0 run to knot up the score at 40-40, the first tie since 2-2 early in the game.
Kyarra Williams connected from beyond the arc to end the PSU-Schuylkill run, giving DelVal the lead, 43-40, with 2:29 left in the third quarter. Just under a minute later, Haley Keenan came up with one of her six steals and took it to the other end for a layup. Two Lauren Moretti free throws, followed by a Kyarra Williams three pointer and foul shot, capped off an 11-0 run in the final 2:29 of the quarter for the Aggies, as they took a 51-40 cushion into the final stanza.
DelVal briefly extended their lead to 13 with a Taylor Richardson layup, but PSU-Schuylkill would not go away, as they rattled off a 13-3 run over a 5:23 span, bringing the Aggie lead to 56-54 with 3:22 remaining. Haley Keenan knocked down the biggest shot of the night for DelVal, as the sophomore hit a three pointer with 2:46 left to make it 59-54. After neither team scored on each of their next four possessions, Scarlett King hit a jump shot, making the score 61-54 with 55 seconds left. The Nittany Lions made one final push, closing the gap to 61-58 with 20 seconds left, but Lauren Moretti would ice the game with a layup in the final seconds to secure the 63-58 victory.
The Aggies had a balanced scoring attack, with Kyarra Williams finishing with a team high 15 points, including 3-4 from three point range and three steals.
Taylor Richardson, who was named to the all-tournament team, shot 7-8 from the field, finishing with 14 points, eight rebounds, two assists and two steals.
Haley Keenan stuffed the stat sheet, as she ended with 14 points, four rebounds, four assists, six steals and two blocks.
Scarlett King was the fourth Aggie in double figures, finishing with 11 points on 5-7 shooting. She also added four assists.
Lauren Moretti added nine points for DelVal to go along with a game-high 14 rebounds. The senior also had a team-high five assists and came away with three of the Aggies' 14 steals in the game.
Delaware Valley assisted on 16 of 25 made field goals and shot 5-12 (42%) from three point range. Their defense came up big, holding PSU-Schuylkill to 22-63 shooting (35%).
The Aggies return to action on Friday, November 19th as they take on Ohio Northern in the Juniata Holiday Tournament.
