Score: Roanoke 69, VA Wesleyan 44
Records: Maroons 17-5, 11-5 ODAC; Marlins 6-17, 2-14 ODAC
Location: Salem, Va.

The Short Story: It was all Maroons from beginning to end as the Roanoke women's basketball team won their third game in a row with a 69-44 win over the Virginia Wesleyan on Saturday afternoon. Prior to the game with the Marlins, Roanoke honored its four seniors Sayre Brandstatter, Morgan Micallef, JaBryah Haverkamp, and Rose Sande with a special ceremony. 

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Maroons started off on the right foot with their seniors on the court, taking a 13-0 lead after just four minutes, a lead they never gave up the rest of the game. Despite putting a small chip into Roanoke's lead, the Marlins still trailed the home team 21-13 after the first 10 minutes of play. 
• The second quarter saw both teams slow down offensively with the Maroons outscoring VWU 13-10 in the period. Both teams used small runs to counter the other with Roanoke leading by as many as 12 and the Marlins pulling themselves within five on different occasions. Roanoke maintained an 11-point lead at the break.
• A three-pointer by Brandstatter with 51 seconds left in the third gave the Maroons their biggest lead up to that point at 47-33. A pair of Marlins' layups closed out the period with VWU outscoring Roanoke by one in the third quarter with Roanoke leading 47-37.
• The fourth quarter saw both the Maroon offense and defense kick into gear. An 8-0 run to start the period put Roanoke ahead by 18, 55-37, with just 2:13 played in the final period. After a single Marlin free throw, the Maroons went on a 6-0 to extend their lead to 23 points and pushed it even further to 24 points on a Haverkamp jumper with 2:03 left in the game. VWU made a three-pointer with just over a minute left with Roanoke securing the 69-44 win.

BY THE NUMBERS

• Sande led all scorers with 21 points to lead a trio of Maroons in double figures. Madison Nereu finished with 16 points and Peyton Kirchner closed out the game with 10. 
• Nereu also finished with 10 rebounds for her second double-double of the season, both coming against the Marlins.
• Roanoke nearly doubled-up VWU in field goals made with the Maroons leading 30-17. The home team also led in rebounds (46-30), assists (16-12), second-chance points (25-4), and points in the paint (40-24). 

UP NEXT

• The Maroons are on the road for the final two games of the regular season, starting on Wednesday, February 15 when they pay a visit to Bridgewater. Game time with the Eagles is scheduled for 7 p.m.