ST. MARY'S CITY, Md. — The St. Mary's College of Maryland women's basketball team used a decisive third-quarter surge Saturday afternoon to secure a 70–58 United East Conference victory over Penn State Harrisburg inside the Michael P. O'Brien Athletics & Recreation Center Arena.

With the win, the Seahawks improve to 21-5 overall and 13-0 in conference play, while the Lions fall to 8-18 overall and 7-6 in the United East.

The contest featured six ties and three lead changes in a tightly contested first half. St. Mary's held a slim 18-17 advantage after the opening quarter before Penn State Harrisburg edged ahead briefly in the second. The Seahawks entered halftime with a narrow 31-30 lead.

St. Mary's created separation in the third quarter, outscoring the Lions 21-13 while shooting 41.2% from the field and converting 5-of-6 free throws. The Seahawks extended the margin to double digits in the fourth and closed the game by hitting 5-of-7 from the line.

Saffiyah Gibson paced St. Mary's with 14 points and two steals off the bench, while Marley Saunders added 13 points, knocking down three three-pointers. Keira Mason controlled the glass with 12 points and nine rebounds, including six offensive boards that helped the Seahawks to a 22-2 advantage in second-chance points.

St. Mary's dominated the rebounding battle, 46-30, and held a 40-26 edge in points in the paint. The Seahawks also received 27 bench points in the balanced team effort.

Lauren Moffatt led Penn State Harrisburg with 19 points, while Mikayla Coleman contributed 15 and Nicole Hernandez added 10.

St. Mary's will host 4th seeded Cedar Crest in the United East Semifinals on Tuesday, February 24th at 6:00PM