BUFFALO, N.Y. – The Villa Maria College women's basketball team battled Thiel College on Friday in the first day of the Betty Abgott Invitational hosted by Buffalo State College. The Vikings won in convincing fashion over the Tomcats, using a score of 79-45 to win their fifth straight game. Villa opens the season 5-0, while Theil drops to 0-6 on the year. 
 
The Tomcats and the Vikings traded buckets to start the game, but Ta Lia Burgess knocked down a jumper to take a 10-8 lead. Dakaylah Winfield hit a three-pointer and Takia Gary recorded back-to-back buckets to extend the advantage to 17-8. The lead held up through the remainder of the quarter and Villa was up 21-13. Jordon Wright got the team ahead by double digits to start the second quarter with a three-point shot. From there, the advantage continued to grow and eventually a Gary layup pushed the score to 37-16. When the half time horn sounded, the Villa was ahead 45-23. 
 
The Vikings lead did not shrink below 20 the remainder of the game. Towards the end of the third quarter, the team used a 12-2 run to take a 30-point lead going into the fourth quarter. The run started with back-to-back makes by Winfield and then back-to-back buckets by Wright. Burgess then hit a free-throw before Wright nailed a three to push the score to 66-34. The Vikings kept the pressure going and never let the Tomcats make a run to get back into the game, and after four quarters of dominance, the Vikings won by a score of 79-45. 
 
Winfield led the way in scoring, collecting 21 points in 30 minutes of play. She also dished out seven assists, while recording two steals. Wright was the second highest scorer with 18 points, including 4-for-6 shooting from behind the arc. Gary and Burgess combined for 24 points and were tough on defense as they collected 11 steals together. 
 
Villa will play in the championship game on Saturday, Nov. 23 at 1 p.m. against the winner of Bryant and Stratton-Buffalo and Buffalo State.
 
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