Box Score  |  Photo Gallery

EAST STROUDSBURG – Junior guard Imani Brown supplied 14 points and seven rebounds, junior center Rebecca Rutkowski added 12 points and a pair of blocks, and East Stroudsburg University used a strong third quarter to pull away from Clarion in 91-74 home victory on Saturday afternoon.

The Warriors (2-0) outscored the Golden Eagles (1-3) by a 26-13 margin in the third quarter to open up what had been a 38-33 advantage at halftime. Brown led a group of six ESU players in double figures, a feat which has not been accomplished by the program since at least 2003, and the Warriors scored over 90 points on a PSAC opponent for the second time since 2000.

Rutkowski's 12 points came on 5-of-6 shooting from the floor, and she now has five blocks in the season's first two contests. Senior forward Allison Howard (13 points), sophomore guard Noelle Powell (12), senior guard Rachel Falkowski (11) and freshman guard Jordan Hertz (11) also cracked double digits in scoring for ESU.

The Warriors used an 8-1 run late in the second quarter to grab a 38-29 lead, their largest of the half, before Clarion scored the final four points of the frame to reduce the deficit back down to five.

Rutkowski found Howard inside for a pair of easy layups to begin the third quarter, and two Howard free throws capped a 10-2 run to begin the frame which increased ESU's lead to 48-35 with 7:09 remaining.

A 3-pointer by senior guard Madison Tamburini finished off a 10-0 stretch later in the quarter which gave the Warriors their largest lead of the game at 64-41, and the Golden Eagles would not get closer than 16 points the rest of the way.

ESU shot 50.9 percent from the field overall and 44.1 percent (8-for-18) from 3-point range. Both teams spent plenty of time at the free throw line, with the Warriors going 25-for-35 (71.4 percent) from the charity stripe and the visitors hitting 19 of their 29 attempts (65.5 percent). The squads combined for 47 total fouls.

Brown and Falkowski led the team on the glass with seven boards apiece, while Hertz led ESU in both assists (4) and steals (3). Twelve different players scored at least one point for the home side in the victory.

The only other time that the Warriors have reached 90 points against a PSAC squad this century was in a 96-60 triumph over Cheyney on Dec. 19, 2015.

ESU is 2-0 to begin the season for the first time since the 2005-06 squad won each of its first four contests.

The Warriors, currently ranked No. 6 in the D2SIDA Atlantic Region rankings, conclude a three-game season-opening home stand on Sunday afternoon, welcoming Pitt-Johnstown for a matchup scheduled to begin at 1 p.m.

Notes:

With her 13 point total this afternoon, Howard has scored 979 points in her ESU career, putting her 21 away from becoming the 15th player in program history to reach 1,000 points.