HARRISBURG, Pa. – The Delaware Valley women's basketball team put together a huge 23-7 first quarter to take an early lead over Penn State Harrisburg that it wouldn't relinquish, defeating the Nittany Lions 78-68 on the road. The Aggies improve to 8-2 on the season and 3-2 when visiting their opponent.
 
DelVal was led in the first frame by senior Haley Keenan with an impressive 12 points on 5-of-8 shooting and 2-of-2 from the line. The Aggies held the Nittany Lions scoreless through the seventh minute mounting a huge 19-0 run when a layup from Penn State finally stopped the bleeding with 2:25 on the clock. Kendra Rigo answered back with two points to maintain the Aggies 19-point lead, 21-2, when Penn State gained some momentum with a short 4-0 spurt to cut the deficit to 14, 21-7. Keenan ended the frame with a layup from Aubrey Ennis to give DelVal the 23-7 lead heading into the second quarter.
 
The Aggies held an early advantage again with a 9-1 run through the first five minutes for the 23-point lead, 32-9. A layup finally put the Nittany Lions in double-figures and started an 11-2 run through the remainder of the frame to bring the deficit to 15, 35-20, at the end of the half.
 
The Nittany Lions held the overall advantage coming out of the half outscoring the Aggies by four, 19-15. Penn State started strong with a short 5-2 run to bring the gap down to 12 points, 37-25, for the first time since the first frame. A 4-0 response from DelVal built the lead back up to 16, 41-25, with seven minutes on the clock. Penn State put together a 7-2 run to bring the gap down to 11, 43-32, but six unanswered points form the Aggies brought their lead back up to 17, 49-32. Penn State held strong with the 7-1 edge through the end of the quarter to bring the gap back down to 11, 50-39, heading into the final 10 minutes of the game.
 
The teams battled through the fourth quarter with Penn State beginning to mount a comeback starting the frame with the 9-4 advantage bringing the deficit down to six, 54-48. Keenan converted the three to begin an 8-0 run for the Aggies to regain a double-digit lead, 62-48. The Nittany Lions continued to fight back with the 12-5 advantage over four-minute span to bring the gap back down to seven, 67-60. DelVal held the ultimate 11-8 edge through the rest of the frame to secure the 10-point margin of victory, 78-68.  
 
Both Keenan and Alexis Wright recorded double-double performances. Keenan tallied 24 points and 12 rebounds while Wright totaled 18 points and 11 boards. Ciana Feliciano also recorded double-digit scoring with 14 points joined by Ennis with 10 points.
 
DelVal takes a week break before returning to action at home on Saturday, Dec. 16 against Wilkes at 1 p.m.