NEWBERRY, S.C. – Behind junior guard Payton Cronen's (Louisville, Ky.) 20 points and redshirt senior center Ericka Wiseley's (Mt. Pleasant, S.C.) 17 rebounds, the Newberry College women's basketball team (8-16, 4-10 South Atlantic Conference) defeated the Mars Hill Lions (7-15, 3-11 SAC) by a final score of 85-52.

Cronen was tied for the most points of any player in the game with 20 points. Senior guard Giulia Bongiorno (Rome, Italy) was the game's second leading scorer with 16 points. Wiseley led all players in the game in rebounding with her 17 rebounds. Wiseley also recorded eight points in the victory while Bongiorno tallied seven rebounds. All three players recorded a block against the Lions.

After over two minutes without a basket to start the game, Mars Hill opened the scoring with a three pointer but Cronen immediately responded with a make of her own from beyond the arc. Following the basket, three Wolves combined for seven points over the next three-and-a-half minutes to keep the game even with the Lions. After an almost two minute scoring drought from both teams, the Wolves kicked off a two-and-a-half minute 6-0 run to end the half with a pair of free throws from Bongiorno and field goals from redshirt senior center Tyla Stolberg (Brisbane, Queensland, Australia) and sophomore center April Rummery-Lamb (Darwin, NT, Australia). The Wolves' defense held the Lions to 0-5 shooting during that stretch. Newberry took a six-point, 16-10, lead into the second quarter and didn't look back.

Over the first four minutes of the second quarter, the Wolves began to pull away from the Lions as Cronen and senior guard Holly Davies (Camberley, Surrey, England) both sank three point shots. The Lions scored four points over that stretch but only managed three more the rest of the way in the quarter. The Wolves then went on to score the next 17 points in the contest before Mars Hill collected two points on a pair of free throws. Eight of those points came from Cronen while six came from junior guard Dyani Burke (Columbia, S.C.). Junior guard Faith Putz (Des Moines, Iowa) collected four of those points. Burke followed up the free throws with a jump shot of her own before Mars Hill made one final free throw attempt to close out the half. As they headed into the locker room, the Wolves led the Lions by 26 points, 43-17.

The Lions fared better in the third quarter and managed to cut the lead by quarter's end, but only by two points. The teams each had scored six points in the quarter through the first four minutes with Cronen collecting all six of the Wolves' points on two three-point shots. The Wolves further added to their lead as they allowed the Lions just two points while Cronen drained another shot from beyond the arc while Wiseley and Rummery-Lamb each added two points to their statlines. Over the final three-and-a-half minutes of the third quarter, the Lions began to cut into the Wolves' lead a bit, but with the cushion the Wolves had given in the second quarter, they led by 24 points, 60-36, heading into the final 10 minutes of play.

The Wolves further extended their lead in the final quarter as after starting the first four minutes on an even run with the Lions, the Wolves scored eight points over the next two minutes while only allowing the Lions three points. Six of those points came off the hands of Bongiorno while Davies contributed the other two. The final four minutes of the contest did not fare better for the Lions who managed just seven points over the final four minutes of the game. In that same time frame, the Wolves scored 11 points and extended the lead by another four points. Davies tallied five of those final 11 points while Bongiorno was responsible for four of them. The Wolves defense held the Lions to one of six from the field over the final four minutes and forced one turnover. When the final buzzer sounded, the Wolves had secured an 85-52 victory over Mars Hill.

The Wolves next two contests are on the road as they first head to Hartsville, S.C. to take on the Coker Cobras on Wednesday, Feb. 15. Tipoff is scheduled for 5:30 P.M.