The Fairfield University women's basketball team had three players score in double figures as it earned its third consecutive victory, a 64-51 triumph over visiting Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) foe Rider University Sunday afternoon. The Stags improve to 14-6 overall and 7-3 in league play, while the Broncs fall to 2-19 on the season and 2-8in conference play.

Katelyn Linney (Freehold, N.J.) led all scorers with 17 points, knocking down 5-8 from behind the arc. Taryn Johnson (Brockton, Mass.), who played 28 minutes, finished with 16 points, on 5-10 shooting, and pulled down five boards, while Desiree Pina (Plainville, Conn.) netted 12 points and handed out four assists.

Sarah Homan gave Rider a 2-0 lead 46 seconds into the game, but it would be the only field goal Rider would convert for nearly eight minutes. The Stags held Rider to 0-8 during the stretch, while forcing five turnovers. Linney hit her first three on the Stags ensuing possession to give Fairfield a lead it would not relinquish. She knocked down a pair of threes for the Stags during the Rider drought as Fairfield put together a 12-1 run, capped by a Pina basket 7:32 into the game and a 12-3 advantage.

The Broncs second field goal came at the 11:35 mark, as MyNeshia McKenzie put back a fast break miss. Ali Heller followed with a three-pointer to bring the Broncs back within four points, 12-8 with 10:57 to play in the half. The Broncs still trailed by four points, 16-12, when Nawrocki scored her first basket of the half, with 6:51 to play. Those points began a half-ending 13-5 Fairfield run, giving the Stags a 29-17 halftime advantage.

The Broncs were led by the 16-points of McKenzie, who was 7-12 from the floor, as well as recording seven rebounds. Sarah Homan and Shereen Lightbourne both tallied 11 points for the visitors, which shot 37.5 percent from the floor for the game.

Pina converted a conventional three-point play on the Stags first possession of the second-half and Fairfield maintained a double-digit margin for the entire period. The Stags lead was as many as 18 points during the second-half, with Katie Cizynski (Southbury, Conn.) putting the Stags up 62-44 on a jumper with 2:33 to play. 

Cizynski netted nine points on 4-7 shooting in 28 minutes off of the bench. She also recorded seven rebounds and blocked two shots. Joelle Nawrocki (Unionville, Conn.) and Laura Vetra (Riga, Latvia) both added four points and Alexyz Vazquez (Berlin, Conn.) added two points. Fairfield finished with 33 rebounds, while Rider had 28. 

The Stags take a break from MAAC play on Tuesday, February 1, travelling to Raleigh, N.C. for a 7 p.m. game with North Carolina State University.