ARLINGTON, Va. - In a rematch of the Saints' only loss in Atlantic East Conference play this season, the Marymount University women's basketball team showed vengeance with an incredibly hot hand, handing Cabrini University its first league defeat of the year on Wednesday night, 68-45. 

Sophomore Katie McShea, who finished the night three assists shy of the league's first triple-double of the season, led the Saints from the start to the finish. In just the first half, the strong forward went 7-for-8 from the floor with 16 points, seven rebounds and seven assists. 

Although much of the game was a double-digit advantage, the first quarter played much differently. In the opening three minutes, it was the Cavaliers that had a 6-0 lead before McShea put in her first of many layups for the night to start the scoring for MU. Cabrini continued to hold a steady lead for much of the first quarter until 13-unanswered points in the final 3:30 put the Saints out in front the rest of the way with a 21-15 advantage after the first 10 minutes. 

In the second quarter, Marymount began to take full command of the rest of the game, holding the Cavs to just two field goals on 18.2-percent shooting while turning the ball over nine times. On the other side of the court, the Saints couldn't miss, knocking down 10-for-12 for 23 points to carry a 22-point lead into the locker room.

For the first half, the Saints shot nearly 80 percent from the floor (19-for-24) led by McShea with 16 points and freshman Symantha Shackelford with nine points. The Cavaliers were held to just 28.6-percent shooting with eight field goals.

Coming out of the break, the Saints maintained heavy pressure to build up their distance to 35 points, the largest lead of the game, while not allowing Cabrini to register a field goal until the final minute of the period. For the quarter, the Cavs were held to just five points. 

With a large advantage, Marymount's hot hand slowly cooled off in the final quarter with the Cavs cutting into their deficit with an 18-10 fourth. However, the lead was so large for the Saints that it was more than enough to cruise to the 23-point victory. 

As a team, Marymount shot 65 percent for the game with 26 field goals while commanding the glass with 44 rebounds compared to the Cavs' 19. 

McShea led all scorers with a game-high 27 points to go along with a game-high 12 rebounds, game-high seven assists, and three steals. She was joined in double figures with Shackelford who notched 14 points on 5-for-6 shooting. Senior Gabriella Haddad contributed eight points, nine rebounds, two steals, and an assist for a well-rounded statistical line. 

The Saints are now 17-4 overall, 7-1 in Atlantic East competition, good enough to put them in a tie for first place with Cabrini after the two teams have split with eachother this season. 

They'll hit the road for their next league matchup on Saturday, February 8, traveling to Neumann University for a 1 p.m., tip.