SALEM, Va. – The Washington and Lee women's basketball team closed the third period with a 20-6 run en route to claiming a 73-63 victory over Roanoke on Saturday at the Bast Center.

The two teams played to a 23-23 tie following a sluggish first half, and the score remained even at 30-30 with 5:54 left in the penultimate quarter.  However, the Generals (14-9, 9-5) caught fire at that point, going 7-of-12 from the floor for the remainder of the quarter to claim a 50-36 lead.  Sophomore guard Emily Perszyk (Greendale, Wis. / Greendale) got things started with a three-pointer at the 5:33 mark and junior guard Jackie Clifford (Tenafly, N.J. / Tenafly) picked it up from there, scoring 11 points in the final 3:36 of the quarter.

Senior forward Shelbi Hendricks (Louisville, Ky. / Kentucky Country Day) got into the act at the start of the fourth period, hitting a jumper and a three-pointer around a single basket from Roanoke (12-11, 7-7) to stretch the lead to 17 points (55-38) at the 8:28 mark.

Roanoke made a methodical run that cut the W&L advantage to single digits (60-53) with 3:02 left to play, but Clifford made back-to-back baskets immediately thereafter and the Generals went 9-for-12 from the foul line in the final 1:33 to keep the Maroons at bay.

W&L shot 44.2 percent (23-52) from the field and 19-of-26 (.731) from the foul line.  The Blue & White also held a 37-26 edge on the boards and the Generals committed just 13 turnovers.  Clifford scored a game-high 19 points on 6-of-7 shooting from the floor.  Sophomore forward Ailyn Kelly (Clifton, Va. / Centreville) totaled 12 points and senior guard Paige Corvino (Clarendon Hills, Ill. / Fenwick) added 11 points, five rebounds and three assists.  Perszyk finished with nine points, six rebounds and two assists.

Roanoke was paced by Bridget Holleran's 16 points and four assists.  Cary Beahm contributed 11 points.

Washington and Lee returns to action on Wednesday, when it travels to Shenandoah for a 7:00 pm contest.

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