SAINT PETER, Minn. - For the second straight game, the Gustavus women's basketball team scored early and often Tuesday night, resulting in a decisive 87-47 win over St. Olaf in the MIAC opener. The 15th-ranked Gusties improve to 2-0 overall, while the Oles drop to 1-3. 

The Gusties had a double-digit lead in the first four minutes of the game and never looked back. The home team scored 10 consecutive points to end the first quarter with a 30-6 advantage. The second quarter was the lowest scoring of the Gusties but they were still able to extend their lead to 46-15 at halftime. 

Coach Kelly was able to clear her entire bench in the second half with six different bench players scoring. Morgan Kelly led the team off the bench, scoring 15 points in 16 minutes, including 3-for-3 from three-point range. Rachel Kawiecki was next on the stat sheet with 14 points on 6-of-10 shooting, including four rebounds and two steals. Syd Hauger added 11 points and Kaitlyn Schaefer contributed nine points, all from beyond the arc. 

"It's nice to start with a veteran group and we came out of the gate just like our opener," Head Coach Laurie Kelly said. "We established ourselves in the first quarter and played really well. To be able to play that deep and get everyone some experience, especially our eight freshmen, was great to see. We saw some good things. We shot well from the three-point line and defensively we held them under 50 points. It was a great opportunity for us early in the season to keep learning and growing." 

Gustavus was originally scheduled to travel to Carleton next Wednesday but that game is canceled due to Carleton canceling its season with a lack of healthy players. The next scheduled game is Dec. 2 at Augsburg. 
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