MEADVILLE, Pa. - The visiting Kenyon Ladies jumped in front early and never looked back to defeat Allegheny 71-39 in North Coast Athletic Conference action at the David V. Wise Center.

Kenyon (14-5, 8-2 NCAC) opened the game on a 21-2 run over the first seven minutes of the first quarter, and the Gators (3-14,1-8) were unable to recover.  The Ladies stifled the Allegheny offense throughout, as the Gators shot just 30.8 percent from the field (16-for-52), including a 3-for-14 mark from behind the arc.  Allegheny was also hampered by 24 turnovers that led to 26 Kenyon points, while the Gators were out-rebounded 48-30.

The Ladies scored the first five points of the game, before Olivia Barkley put the Gators on the board with a foul line jumper 90 seconds into play.  From there, Kenyon took over, scoring 13 unanswered points to take a 21-2 lead with just inside three minutes left in the opening quarter.  Barkley would close the quarter with baskets on consecutive possessions, before Amanda Beebe sank a three-pointer from the top of the key in the closing seconds, making the score 21-9 at the end of the quarter. Kenyon totaled eight field goals in the opening 10 minutes, including five three-pointers, while the Gators were limited to a 4-for-11 showing from the field.

The Gators' Meaghan Wilby opened the second quarter with a bucket in the paint to close the gap to 23-11, but again Kenyon answered with a lengthy run, out-scoring the Gators 16-5 over the next seven minutes to open up a 39-15 advantage with two minutes left.  The teams traded baskets over the final 90 seconds of the half, as Kenyon entered the locker room with a 40-17 lead.

The third quarter was defensively-themed, with the two squads combining for just nine field goals.  Zoe Soilis had four of the Gators' eight third quarter points, going 2-for-2 from the field, but Kenyon's Bailey Dominguez assured her team would maintain a comfortable lead, as she went for eight points over the final six minutes of the frame to push the Ladies' advantage to 52-25 heading into the final quarter.  The Gators put together their best quarter of basketball in the fourth quarter, posting 14 points, but Kenyon answered each Allegheny basket, and cruised down the stretch to extend its winning streak to five games.

Barkley led Allegheny with eight points on the day, while Soilis added six, on a 3-for-4 performance from the field.  Michela Contestabile paced the Gators on the glass with eight rebounds, while also adding a pair of blocked shots.  

Kenyon put together a balanced scoring effort, as six different players tallied at least six points, led by 14 from Dominguez and eight off the bench from Ifeoma Archimalo, who also grabbed a team-leading eight rebounds.

The Gators will now have a week-long layoff before returning to action on Sat. Jan. 28, when they travel to Hiram for a 1 p.m. NCAC tilt.