After the visiting Lady Pioneers (3-9, 0-1 AMC), who were coming off a win over then No. 6 Huntington (Ind.) University on Saturday, jumped out to a 5-2 lead, MVNU (13-2, 1-1 AMC) used a 14-4 run to pull in front 16-9 by the 11:14 mark. Senior guard Rachel Fiely (left) and sophomore guard Lauren Johnson both scored five points to lead the surge for the Lady Cougars.

A quick 7-0 run by Malone knotted the score at 16-16 with 9:13 remaining in the half as Ashley Speicher drained a three-pointer and Katie Murphy and Allyson Wilson added a basket apiece.

Then, MVNU went on a 22-9 run to close the half as the Lady Cougars took a 38-25 lead to the locker room at the break.

Fiely and senior post Melissa Mastrodonato both scored 10 first-half points with Fiely adding five assists. Mastrodonato went 5-for-6 from the field, while Fiely was 4-for-5 as MVNU shot a blistering 57.1 percent from the field (16-for-28). The Lady Cougars also went 3-for-10 from three-point range (30.0 percent) and made all three of their free throw attempts.

Speicher led the Lady Pioneers with eight first-half points, while Wilson added seven points. Malone shot 42.3 percent from the field (11-for-26), 66.7 percent from three-point range (2-for-3), and 50.0 percent from the free throw line (1-for-2).

After the Lady Pioneers pulled within 38-29 by scoring the first four points of the second half, Mastrodonato hit back-to-back baskets and freshman forward Alexis Harkins nailed a three-pointer to extend MVNU’s lead back to 45-31 at the 16:53 mark.

From that point on, Malone would get no closer than 45-34 on a three-point play by Speicher on the Lady Pioneers’ next possession. The Lady Cougars closed the game on a 31-20 run and led by as much as 25 points at one point before finishing with the 76-54 victory.

“This was a great win at home tonight,” said MVNU coach Steve Gregory. “Our players played hard and made a lot of good plays defensively that led to easy transition baskets. Our offense was very strong, too, as we shot the ball well both inside and outside the arc tonight.”

Mastrodonato (right) finished with a game-high 20 points, seven rebounds, and three blocked shots as she went 10-for-11 from the field. Fiely added 16 points, a season-high 11 assists, a game-high six steals, and four rebounds, while senior wing Bethany Hughes contributed 11 points and four rebounds off the bench. Johnson tossed in eight points off the bench, and senior guard Jessica Lynn also registered six points, five assists, and four steals. MVNU shot 56.1 percent from the field (32-for-57), 42.1 percent from three-point range (8-for-19), and 80.0 percent at the free throw line (4-for-5). The Lady Cougars also forced 24 turnovers and registered 16 steals.

“Melissa had a great outing tonight,” said Gregory. “She did a great job of getting deep seals in the paint, and the guards did a great job of setting up the defense with great pass fakes before locating her and making a nice lob or bounce pass.”

“Rachel was outstanding again as well,” said Gregory. “She made shots when she needed to, but more importantly she found open teammates and those teammates scored tonight. To have 11 assists, that is a pretty special night. She was also pretty special on defense with six steals herself. Her overall game has been tremendous for us.”

“Bethany also stepped up and played very well,” Gregory added. “Her contributions were big for us tonight.”

Wilson led Malone with 18 points and five steals, while Speicher finished with 16 points and six rebounds. Nicole Feher also contributed nine points. The Lady Pioneers shot 45.1 percent from the field (23-for-51), 60.0 percent from three-point range (3-for-5), and 62.5 percent from the free throw line (5-for-8).

MVNU will now play its biggest game of the season to date on Friday when the Lady Cougars host No. 22 Daemen (N.Y.) College at 5:30 p.m. in AMC action. Last year’s meeting between the two teams was a thriller with the Lady Wildcats pulling out a 66-64 win on a shot at the buzzer.