RAPID CITY, S.D. - Making their first road trip of the season, the University of Mary Women's Basketball team paid at visit to South Dakota School of Mines tonight in the second week of the regular season.
 
The Marauders (1-2) shook the rust off the wheels as they powered through the Hardrockers (2-1) to claim U-Mary's first win of the season at 74-48.
 
U-Mary struggled early in the first quarter as South Dakota Mines opened up the game with a 7-0 lead through the first two minutes, but the Marauders fired off a 14-2 run thanks to six points from Brittney Dietz and eight from Dani Williams to take over the lead at 14-9.
 
The Marauders would hold onto the lead for the remainder of the game.
 
The Hardrockers narrowed the gap down to 17-14 with 2:19 left in the game but the Marauders had the last say in the quarter as Hannah Larson sunk a free throw and a layup for the final points of the first with the score favoring U-Mary at 20-14.
 
U-Mary got the offense rolling early in the second quarter on a 14-3 run thanks to a mix of younger and older members of the 2015-16 squad as Anna Schmelzer made two free throws, Hayley Niles made a driving layup in the paint, Larson added a three pointer and a couple of free throws, and Dani Clarke added a perimeter shot of her own to give the Marauders a 34-17 lead with 3:13 remaining in the quarter.
 
South Dakota Mines made a handful of baskets through the end of the quarter but U-Mary was there to match every single one and the Marauders held a 40-22 lead going into halftime.
 
The Marauders' offense kept the momentum going to start off the second half as they opened up the third quarter on a 17-2 run thanks to eight points from Dietz, two from Larson, two from Rachel Weir, two from Niles, and another three-pointer from Clarke to blow the lead open at 57-24 with 3:23 to go in the quarter.
 
The Hardrockers made a three-point shot of their own to stop the run but U-Mary's defense was too much as they held the home team to five points in the quarter and Weir added the finishing touches on the quarter with the final layup at 31 seconds to go, giving the Marauders a 59-27 lead heading into the final frame.
 
South Dakota Mines got the offense in rhythm at the start of the fourth quarter with an 8-3 run, but the Marauders' lead was too much as they cruised to a 74-48 victory for their first win of the season.
 
Brittney Dietz continued her torrid scoring pace as she finished with 21 points on 10-for-17 shooting from the field, to go with five rebounds, four assists and one block in 33 minutes of action.
 
Dani Williams found her stride as she recorded 14 points on 5-for-10 shooting from the field, including a 4-for-7 mark from the perimeter, to go with five rebounds and two assists in 30 minutes on the floor.
 
Hannah Larson recorded her first double-double of the year with 12 points and 10 rebounds on 4-for-9 shooting, while adding one assist, three blocks and three steals in 32 minutes played.
 
Dani Clarke was the last of the Marauders to record double digit points with 11 on 4-for-7 shooting, 3-for-5 from beyond the arc, to go with two rebounds, three assists and two steals in 31 minutes on the court.
 
Hayley Niles provided the spark off the bench for U-Mary as she added six points, six rebounds and one assists in 20 minutes of action, while Rachel Weir added four points, one rebound, one assist and one steal in 17 minutes played.
 
The Marauders will return home on the weekend when they host Oglala Lakota College on Friday, November 20, and Saturday, November 21, for Parent's Weekend.
 
#marauders#