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PHILADELPHIA – The Drew University women's basketball team had a day to remember on Sunday.
 
Playing in the Palestra – one of the most historic basketball arenas in the country – the Rangers captured a 59-51 victory over Moravian University, kicking off the "Landmark at the Palestra." The event features a total of four games and includes either the men's or women's basketball team from each Landmark Conference school.
 
With the victory, the Rangers (14-1, 4-0 LC) extended their winning streak to 10, tying the school record set when last year's squad started the season 10-0. In addition, they continued their best overall start in team history while also opening the season 4-0 in conference play for the first time.
 
Known as the "Cathedral of College Basketball," the Palestra opened its doors in 1927, making it the oldest major college arena still in use today. It has hosted more games, more visiting teams, and more NCAA tournaments than any other facility of its kind. It is currently home to the Philadelphia Big 5, which consists of the University of Pennsylvania, Villanova University, Temple University, Saint Joseph's University, and LaSalle University.
 
The Rangers trailed just once on the day, when Moravian took a 40-38 lead with 8:11 left. But that's when Drew answered with a 12-1 run to open up a nine-point advantage (50-41) with 2:15 left. The Greyhounds closed within six with 28 seconds left, but the Blue and Green iced the game at the foul line, where they went 6-for-6 in the closing 20 seconds.
 
Senior guard Joey Meyers scored a game-high 23 points for Drew, which held Moravian to just 23.9% shooting. Meyers also grabbed seven rebounds and shot 12-for-14 at the foul line, posting the third-highest free throws made total in team history.
 
Junior forward Jamie Struble contributed 14 points, seven rebounds, and a pair of blocked shots for the Rangers while senior guard Gwen Alberici dished out five assists.
 
Tessa Zamolyi led the Greyhounds (8-7, 1-3 LC) with 17 points, 12 rebounds – including nine offensive boards – and four steals.
 
The Rangers were hot from the start and outscored Moravian 19-6 in the first quarter. Meyers scored eight of her points in the opening period, when Drew shot 58.3% (7-for-12).
 
Moravian climbed back into it in the second quarter, when it used an 8-1 run midway through the stanza to pull to within five. But the Rangers answered with the next five points to push the lead back into double figures, and they led 29-19 at the break.
 
The Greyhounds refused to go away, however, and started the second half on a 6-0 spurt to draw to within four. Drew pushed their lead back to 11 (36-25) after Meyers scored seven straight point.
 
Moravian made one final push when it assembled a 15-2 run that spanned the third and fourth quarters, as an Emily Markowski lay-up put the Greyhounds up 40-38 with 8:11 showing. But Struble answered with a long jumper to pull the Rangers even, kicking off Drew's decisive 12-1 run. Freshman guard Madelyn Morgan followed with a conventional 3-point play to put the Rangers up for good at 43-41 with 7:08 remaining. Struble scored six points during the surge for Drew.
 
A 3-pointer from freshman guard Maddie Beyer pushed the Rangers' lead back into double figures at 53-43 before Moravian followed with the next four points. However, Alberici went 2-for-2 at the foul line with 48 seconds left before Meyers made four straight to seal the win.
 
The Rangers return to Landmark Conference action on Wednesday, when they host sixth-ranked and undefeated University of Scranton at 7 p.m.