ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – The Drew University women's basketball team jumped to a 22-4 lead at the end of the first quarter and the Rangers closed their trip to Florida on a high note, downing Russell Sage College 77-58 on Wednesday in the St. Pete Classic at Eckerd College.
 
Sophomore guard Maddy Morgan led the Rangers (4-6) with a career-high scoring total for the second day in a row. She pumped in 23 points on 10-of-14 shooting while also posting six rebounds and five steals. Sophomore guard Maddie Beyer added 13 points for Drew, which netted its highest scoring output of the season, while senior forward Jamie Struble recorded 12 points, six rebounds, and four assists. Freshman guard Sarah Smout chipped in with nine points off the bench.
 
All 16 Rangers who dressed for the game entered the contest while nine different players scored a point.
 
Olivia Huneau paced the Gators (1-8) with 15 points.
 
The Rangers never trailed after opening the game on a 10-0 run. Morgan and freshman guard Amy Rachilla each scored four points during the early burst while sophomore forward Gianna Pica capped it with a layup at the 5:49 mark.
 
Sage got on the scoreboard with a layup 14 seconds later, but that's when the Rangers embarked on another big run, this time scoring 12 consecutive points to break the game open at 22-2. Four different players scoring during the decisive stretch, including five straight points from Smout in the middle of the run. The Gators stopped the bleeding with 31 seconds left to make it 22-4 at the end of the of the quarter.
 
The Rangers continued to pull away in the second quarter, when they outscored Sage 21-13. Beyer knocked down all three of her 3-pointers in the period, and her final triple made it a 29-point game with 57 ticks showing. A late 3-pointer from Sage made the score 43-17 at the half.
 
The Gators did not go away, however, and used a 12-1 run late in the third quarter to pull within 16. It was a 57-39 game heading into the final stanza, and Sage scored the first four points of the final quarter to make it a 14-point game.
 
The two sides traded runs over the middle part of the quarter, starting with an 8-0 Drew surge put the Rangers up 67-47 with 5:18 remaining. Morgan scored the first six points of the rally.
 
Sage answered with an 8-0 run of its own to make it 67-55 with 2:22 left, but the Rangers put the game away by scoring the next six points on a pair of baskets from Morgan and a lay-in from senior center Gracie Hezel.
 
Drew now takes nine days off from competition before picking up its schedule on Saturday, Dec. 30, when it visits Kean University at 1 p.m. in its final non-conference game of the season.