York, Pa. – Junior forward Marché Pearson (Baltimore, Md./Laurel) tallied a career-high 16 points Saturday afternoon but the St. Mary's College of Maryland women's basketball team dropped their third straight contest, falling 77-54 at York College of Pennsylvania in Capital Athletic Conference action.

Along with her 16 points, Pearson contributed seven rebounds and three steals.  Senior Joanna Murray (Reisterstown, Md./Franklin) also picked up 16 points as Murray connected on the Seahawks' only three-pointer of the contest.  Junior Sophie Pruden (Carrboro, N.C./Chapel Hill) recorded her fourth double-double of the season with 10 points and a game- and career-high 12 boards.

St. Mary's (8-9, 2-5 CAC) opened up with an 8-4 lead with Murray scoring half of the team's points in the run.  York responded on its home court with a 19-6 run to own a nine-point advantage at 8:06.  The Seahawks had an answer of their own as Murray scored nine points in a 14-5 run to knot the game at 28-28 with 31 seconds left in the half.  The Spartans' junior forward Kristen Haley (Silver Spring, Md.) notched a layup in the paint to send her team into the locker room with a 30-28 halftime lead.

Thirteen of Murray's 16 points came in the first half while Pruden hauled in a first-half best of eight caroms.  Behind Pruden's solid rebounding efforts, the Seahawks edge York in the game's rebounding battle by a 47-43 margin.  YCP's Haley paced all players at intermission with 14 points and added six rebounds.

A Pruden layup at 19:15 of the second half kept St. Mary's within two before the Spartans (16-4, 5-2 CAC) went on a 10-1 run to post a double-digit lead at 15:52 and YCP never looked back.  The Spartans shot an impressive 62.1% from the floor over the final 20 minutes.

Haley finished the day with a double-double to lead York, collecting game-highs of 27 points and a dozen rebounds, while junior Brittany Hicks (Dover, Pa.) chipped in 15 points, nine boards, and six assists.  With today's win, the Spartans sweep the season series with St. Mary's.

The Seahawks will look to turn back their three-game skid on Wednesday, January 30 when St. Mary's welcomes Wesley College to the Michael P. O'Brien Athletics & Recreation Center Arena for another conference tilt at 6:00 pm.

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