Philadelphia, PA - La Salle University Women's Basketball Head Coach John Miller kicked off his 18th season as his 2003-04 squad defeated the New York Gazelles AAU team 91-62 at the Tom Gola Arena, Sunday, November 2nd. The Explorers exploded for 53 points in the second half of it's first exhibition game of the season to secure the victory.

The Explorers came out strong in the first half, but the Gazelles stuck around, going on a 19-10 run to finish the first half. La Salle went into the locker room up 38-33. Junior Meghan Wilkinson (Downingtown, PA/Downingtown) recorded 12 points in the first half on 4-6 shooting, 3-5 from behind the three point arc.

La Salle, who played with just nine players, absolutely dominated the second half, Wilkinson led the team with 22 points. She also dished out three assists and grabbed four steals. Junior Monica Garrido-Sanz (Majadahonda, Madrid/C.B. Majadahonda) recorded her first double double of the year with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Also dropping 20 points for the Explorers was sophomore Davineia Payne (Bear, DE/Caravel Academy). Payne led La Salle in assists with six and grabbed six rebounds.

Miller saw excellent play out of his freshmen as well. Crista Ricketts (Douglasville, PA/Daniel Boone) accumulated 14 points and pulled down nine boards. She also added five assists. Jenna Graber (Highstown, NJ/Peddie School) added five points in the win as she helped Wilkinson run the offense

Senior co-captain Ekaterina Markova (Sophia, Bulgaria/Vassil Levski) amassed six points and five rebounds in the game as sophomore Lamera Ferguson (Syracuse, NY/Nottingham) gathered four points and four rebounds.

The Explorers will have one more exhibition game at the Tom Gola Arena on Tuesday, November 11th as they host NWBL. La Salle will start regular season action at the Boston University Tournament November 22nd and 23rd.