HAVERFORD, Pa. – Behind an impressive second half showing, the Ursinus women's basketball team cruised to an 80-52 victory over Haverford College in its Centennial Conference opener.
 

The victory marked the fourth straight for the Bears, improving them to 6-2 overall and 1-0 in conference play. Meanwhile, the Fords fell to 4-2 and 0-1 in the Centennial. After leading 28-25 at halftime, Ursinus outscored Haverford 42-27 over the final two quarters to secure the win. Senior forward Madison Smith led the way with a career-high 25 points and tied her collegiate best with 12 rebounds. Junior guard Colleen Blackman tallied 16 points on four 3-pointers, and senior Ava Possenti added 13 points. Sophomore Delaney McCaffery recorded a career-high 14 points and seven assists.
 

The Fords jumped out to a quick 6-0 lead, keeping the Bears' offense off-balance until a McCaffery basket at the 5:08 mark of the first period. After a Haverford bucket, Ursinus responded with two baskets by Smith and a layup by Possenti to tie the game at 8 with 2:21 remaining. Haverford briefly regained a 10-8 advantage, but a three-pointer by Blackman closed the period and gave Ursinus an 11-10 lead. The Fords opened the second quarter with a 6-2 run to take a 16-13 lead, but the Bears answered with a 7-4 spurt to tie the contest at 20 with 4:56 left in the half. During the run, McCaffery and Smith each converted layups, while Blackman knocked down her second three-pointer of the night. The teams traded baskets until a McCaffery triple sent Ursinus into halftime with a 28-25 advantage.

 
The Bears carried the momentum into the second half, scoring five straight points to extend their lead to 33-25 at the 7:59 mark. After a 5-0 Haverford run cut the margin to 33-30, Blackman answered with a layup and a three-pointer on consecutive possessions to push the lead back to eight. The Fords hit a three-pointer on the next trip down, but an 11-4 Ursinus run widened the margin to 49-37 with 1:44 left in the third. Following a Haverford triple, a tip-in by sophomore Emily McDonald and another three-pointer from Blackman gave Ursinus a 54-40 cushion heading into the fourth.

 
Ursinus opened the final period with 11 straight points to build a 65-40 lead with 5:53 remaining. The run featured six points from Smith and was fueled by two turnovers and six consecutive defensive stops. The Bears led by as many as 31 points and outscored Haverford 15-12 over the final five minutes to cap the 80-52 victory.

 
Ursinus shot 43.2% (31-of-72) from the field, 43.8% (7-of-16) from 3-point range, and 91.7% (11-of-12) at the free-throw line. Haverford shot 36.8% (21-of-57) from the field, 20% (4-of-20) from beyond the arc, and 66.7% (6-of-9) at the line. The Bears dominated the paint with 48 points and converted 27 second-chance points. Haverford's Audrey Jakway finished with a team-high 17 points, while Caroline Orza added 16 in 40 minutes.

 
The Bears return to action on Saturday, December 6, when they host McDaniel College for their Centennial Conference home opener at 1 p.m.