MOON TOWNSHIP, Pa. – The La Salle women's basketball squad rode a huge first half to a 75-61 win over preseason NEC favorite Robert Morris at the Charles L. Sewall Center on Wednesday evening. 
 
The win puts the Explorers at 5-2, and marks the first five-game win streak since the 2011-12 squad put together six straight. The Explorers also handed Robert Morris (2-4) its first home loss since Dec. 14, 2013. The Colonials entered the game on a 13-game home win streak, and went 15-1 at home last season.

Threes rained down for the Explorers, as they went 10-for-14 including a perfect 6-for-6 from long range in the first half to go up 45-27 at halftime. The last time an Explorer squad hit at least 60 percent from three was a 12-for-20 (60.0%) effort against Massachusetts on Feb. 17, 2010.

The three-point parade was led by Alicia Cropper, who drained all four attempts in the first half and six of eight overall en route to a game-high 22 points. Micahya Owens added 13 points on 4-for-5 shooting from long range.

Siobhan Beslow put together a double-double of 11 points and 10 rebounds, and Jasmine Alston was the fourth player in double figures with 10 points. She added a near double-double with nine rebounds, while leading all players with four assists.
 
Colonial high-scorer Anna Niki Stamolamprou (19.0 ppg) led the home team with 20 points. Janee Brown chipped in 12.

The Explorers clamped down on RMU's three-point sharpshooters, limiting the Colonials to 27.8 percent (5-18) from beyond the arc. The Colonials entered the game shooting 41.2 percent from three. The Explorers also limited RMU to just 35.5 percent from the field overall, while going 47.5 percent themselves thanks to an 18-for-30 effort in the first half.

Both squads started hot, combining to hit 10 of their first 12 attempts as the Colonials took an early 15-11 lead at the first media timeout. A Beslow jumper and Cropper three put the Explorers up 16-15, a lead that they would never relinquish.

The Colonials got within 22-20 at 11:57, but an Amy Griffin layup in the paint sparked a 20-3 run over the next 8:37 to give the Explorers a 19-point 42-23 lead with 2:50 remaining in the half. Stamolamprou and Ashley Ravelli scored the next four points, but a Cropper three with 46 seconds left pushed the Explorer lead back to 18 for a 45-27 halftime lead.

Khristin Lee scored the first bucket of the second half to give the Explorers their first 20-point lead, but the Colonials scored seven of the next nine points to get back within 15 at 49-34 with 16:55 on the clock. 

The Explorers responded with a 9-2 run over the next three minutes to go up 58-36; the 22-point margin was the largest of the game.

However, the Colonials showed their mettle as the preseason NEC favorites as they mounted a 19-6 run to get back within single digits at 64-55 with 4:31 left. A Cropper three stopped the bleeding, but Ravelli countered with a three for another nine-point gap. That was the closest the Colonials got down the stretch, as Cropper hit yet another three to push the lead back to double digits. After that last nine-point gap, the Explorers scored eight of the game's final 11 points for the 75-61 final score.

In addition to hot shooting, the Explorers dominated the boards by outrebounding RMU 47-35. They also dished out 16 assists to the Colonials' seven. The lone weak point was at the free throw line, as the squad converted just 7-of-16. RMU went 12-for-19 at the charity stripe.

The Explorers return to action on Saturday when they host William & Mary at 1pm at Tom Gola Arena.