MADISON, N.J. – The Drew University women's basketball team cruised to a 91-45 victory over Rutgers-Newark in its home opener Wednesday evening in Baldwin Gym.
 
The Rangers (2-0) took control from the start, racing out to a 24-11 lead at the of the first quarter and building a 48-22 halftime advantage before continuing to pull away in the second half.
 
Junior guard Amy Rachilla led the Rangers with 16 points and four steals while classmate Olivia Aliotta contributed 14 points and five rebounds. Senior forward Gianna Pica and freshman guard Katie Reiner added 10 points apiece for Drew, which had 13 players find the scoring column. Freshman forward Molly Chapman tallied nine points and seven assists, and senior center Brenna Hezel handed out a career-high seven assists for the hosts.
 
Twelve different players also recorded at least one assist for the Rangers, who dished out 25 assists for the night.
 
Quanajah Felder posted 18 points and eight rebounds to lead the Scarlet Raiders, who were playing their season opener.
 
The Rangers never trailed after opening the game on a 12-2 run. Drew scored the last six points of the first quarter to build its 13-point lead at the end of the period, then ended the second half on a 19-5 run to assume its 26-point surplus at the break.
 
The Blue and Green posted their highest offensive output in the third quarter, when they outscored Newark 26-13. The lead exceeded 30 (60-28) with 6:56 left, ballooned to 39 (74-35) by the end of the third quarter, and reached as much as 52 (89-37) with 6:09 to go.
 
The Rangers continue their season on Saturday, when they visit Franklin & Marshall College in another non-conference affair starting at 2 p.m.