NORTHFIELD, VT. -   On Saturday afternoon inside the Shapiro Fieldhouse, the Albertus Magnus College women's basketball team extended its winning streak to seven games to start the season with a 66-51 triumph over the Cadets of Norwich University in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) road tilt.

Caitlyn Scott (White Plains, N.Y.) led the offensive attack for the Falcons with a 22-point performance to go along with three rebounds, five steals, and five assists. Sophomore Jakara Murray-Leach (Norwalk, Conn.) was the next player to score in double-figures as the guard netted 19 points, nine rebounds, an assist, and a steal. Diamond White (Hamden, Conn.) rounded out the Falcons' double-digit scorers with 15 points.

At the same time, Natasha Rivera (Ansonia, Conn.) finished with 10 rebounds behind nine defensive boards and one offensive rebound, respectively.

THE BASICS
Final: Albertus Magnus 66 | Norwich 51
Records: Albertus Magnus (7-0, 2-0 GNAC) | Norwich (4-5, 0-2 GNAC)
Box Score

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Norwich controlled the opening five minutes of play as the Cadets held a four-point advantage, 6-2, after scoring the game's first four points.
• A pull-up jumper from Murray-Leach sparked a 7-2 run that gave the Falcons a one-point lead, 9-8, before Norwich countered with a 6-2 run to regain possession of the game, 14-11, with 2:44 left in the opening quarter. 
• At the end of one, Albertus trailed Norwich by two, 16-14, with Scott scoring six first-quarter points. 
• In the opening four minutes of the second quarter, Albertus and Norwich traded leads until six points from Scott and two points from Murray-Leach put the visitors ahead by eight, 28-20. 
• Following a Falcon timeout at 3:34, Norwich cut the deficit to within four, 28-24, but a 6-0 spurt, ignited by a layup from Murray-Leach, increased the Falcons' lead to double-digits, 34-24, forcing the Cadets to call a timeout at 1:10.
• Solid defensive work kept both teams at bay for the remainder of the quarter, with Albertus leading by 11, 36-25, at the half.
• Scott and Murray-Leach combined for 27 first-half points. 
• The first five minutes of the third quarter saw the Falcons outscore the Cadets 6-3 and extend their lead to 14, 42-28.
• A three from Brittany Graham at the 2:19 minute mark brought the Cadets to within seven, 42-35, but seven unanswered points from Albertus pushed its lead back up to 14, 49-35, heading into the final 10 minutes of regulation. 
• Norwich remained determined offensively by chipping away at the Falcons' advantage and battled back to within 10, 53-43, following a driving layup from Rachel Botala. 
• The late run by the Cadets was no match for the Falcons as the visitors held off the hosts to secure the road conference victory.

TEAM STATS
Albertus: 34.7% FG | 28.1% 3PT | 50.0% FT
Norwich: 38.2% FG | 14.3% 3PT | 63.6% FT

PLAYER HIGHLIGHTS

Albertus:
Caitlyn Scott - 22 points (8-23 FG, 5-13 3PT, 1-1 FT) | 5 assists | 3 rebounds | 5 steals
Jakara Murray-Leach - 19 points (9-15 FG, 1-3 3PT, 0-2 FT) | 9 rebounds | 2 assists | 3 steals
Diamond White - 15 points (6-21 FG, 3-10 3PT) | 2 rebounds | 1 assist | 1 steal

Norwich:
Haley Brewster - 12 points (5-16 FG, 0-6 3PT, 2-2 FT) | 6 rebounds | 4 assists
Maren McGinn - 12 points (6-12 FG, 0-2 FT) | 15 rebounds | 2 assists 
Rachel Botala - 11 points (4-8 FG, 1-2 3PT, 2-2 FT) | 3 rebounds | 1 block

NOTEWORTHY

• Today's game marked the 29th all-time meeting between Albertus and Norwich. 
• With the win, AMC improves to 13-16 all-time against the Cadets.
• The Falcons' 7-0 start to the season is the team's best since beginning the 2018-19 campaign with seven consecutive wins. 
• Scott has crossed the 20-point threshold five times this season. 
• Scott set a new career-high with five steals.
• Murray-Leach fell one rebound shy of her fifth double-double this year. 
• With 10 boards this afternoon, Rivera is up to three double-digit rebound performances in 2022.

UP NEXT
The women's basketball team takes a break from GNAC play to next challenge the Pride of Springfield College on Wednesday, Dec. 14. The opening tipoff is set for 7 p.m. at Blake Arena.