STEUBENVILLE - The Franciscan women's basketball team rolled to their second-straight conference win Wednesday night, with a 77-61 win over Penn St.-Altoona, Wednesday night.

The Lions kicked off the game with a deep three-pointer but the Lady Barons made their presence known, knocking down two three-pointers back to back. A jump shot by junior Kaitlyn Sonneberger gave Franciscan the lead. Key rebounds from freshman Tia Taglione allowed freshman Angela Starre and senior Gaby De Jesus to get easy baskets, lengthening Franciscan's lead. A pair of free throws from De Jesus and a good three-pointer from Raegan Stead added to the Lady Barons' 10-point scoring run. Penn St.-Altoona made a layup in the paint, making the score 22-14 to close out the first quarter.

The Lady Barons used the momentum from the first quarter to play successfully in the second quarter. Penn St.-Altoona formed a full court press to try to break up the offensive momentum but were unsuccessful. Each player contributed in points for the Lady Barons, as the Lions attempted to shut them down. Franciscan outscored Penn St.-Altoona 12-7 in the second quarter to take the 34-21 lead at halftime.

Entering the third quarter, the Lions competed offensively against the Lady Barons. Penn St.-Altoona sunk several free throws, shrinking Franciscan's lead. Although the Lions made an offensive surge, the Lady Barons did not crack under the pressure and continued to maintain their lead, 51-37 after three.

In the fourth quarter, Franciscan took its largest lead of the game, 19 points, on a fast break from De Jesus. The Lady Barons' defense caused the Lions to turn the ball over several times on tipped passes, allowing Franciscan to transition and fast break. Good jumpers by junior Abby Baierl helped solidify the Lady Barons' win.

The Lady Barons shot 54.7% from the floor and made 13-16 of their free throws. Junior Abby Baierl had her first double-double of the season with 10 rebounds and 13 points. De Jesus finished the day with a season-best 16 points. The Franciscan women's basketball team will be on the road for their next AMCC matchup against the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford on Saturday, January 19 at 2 pm.