#9 Owls Begin Season With 81-45 Win Over #14 Spartans

Prince George's Community College, the 9^th ranked program entering the season in NJCAA Division 3 women's basketball, appeared to pick right up where they left off last season as the Owls knocked off the 14^th ranked Northampton Spartans in dominating fashion, 81-45.

The Owls opened up with a 7-0 run while holding the Spartans scoreless for the first five minutes of action. Prince George's lost the lead minutes later after surrendering an 8-0 run themselves but quickly responded, gaining control 10-8 on their next possession and never looked back as they ended the first period in front 19-11 before growing their lead to 19 by halftime, 44-25. The sophomore duo of Janiah Williams (13) and Vanessa Schwarzmann (12) had combined to match the Spartans point total by the break with the sharpshooting Schwarzmann collecting all of her points from beyond the arc.

Prince George's found the same success in the final two periods as the Owls outscored Northampton 37-20 to cap off their season opener with a 36-point win. The Owls held the Spartans to only 7 points in the fourth quarter and led by as many as 38 down the stretch. The Owls have now opened the year with wins against the Spartans in back-to-back seasons after Prince George's defeated Northampton on the road 77-58 to open up the 2021 slate, which was the first game for Owls head coach Devin May.

Williams finished the game as the leading scorer with 26 points, adding 8 rebounds and 5 blocks. Schwarzmann ended with 18, all of which came from the three while Tori Tolson rounded out the double-digit scorers with 15 points. Tolson also collected 8 boards and dished out 7 assists.

Following the game coach May stated, "It's always great to start the season with a win, especially against a ranked opponent in front of our home crowd. I think we played with a lot of energy which we've been focusing on in practice."

"We wanted to set the tone early for not only this game, but for the season as a whole with our sights set on returning to the National Championship. Our goal of returning will stay within reach if we keep playing up to our standard of ball."

The Owls are now off until November 10^th when they host another Region 19 Division 3 opponent, Camden County in Novak Field House at 5:30.