Box Score
Baltimore, Md. -- The Notre Dame of Maryland University basketball team claimed its first win of the season against Cairn University in a defensive battle that saw the Gators come out on top 32-28.

The Gators were led by sophomore Kamelya Medina (Albuquerque, N.M./ West Mesa) with 17 points, and junior Marylu Ortiz (Oceanside, Calif./ El Camino) with 11 rebounds. Freshman Erika Deppenschmidt (Philadelphia, Pa./ Philadelphia for Girls) also contributed eight points, while junior Shaun De' Jones (Baltimore, Md./ Polytechnic Institute) grabbed seven rebounds. Defensively, Medina and freshman Stephanie Miller (Darnestown, Md./ Northwest) paced the defense with five steals each.

The game began with a steal and fast-break lay-up from Miller within the first minute. A back and forth affair, the difference never exceeded three points when Deppenschmidt's three pointer gave the Gators a 12-9 lead with ten minutes left. The teams continued to battle for a score of 16-16 at the break.

After exchanging baskets to open the half, Notre Dame used an 8-0 run to push their lead to the largest of the game with a score of 26-18. Helping the Gators maintain this lead was the defense, allowing just three points in the first 11 minutes. The Highlanders answered by rattling off five straight points of their own to tighten the lead to a score of 26-23 with 8:10 remaining.

The team once again exchanged baskets, but a free throw by Cairn's Amy Eppolito knocked the score to 28-26 with five minutes remaining. Two free throws by Medina and one more by Miller pushed the lead back to five with just over three minutes to go. A minute later, Eppolito again decreased the lead to three points after two free throws. With 1:51 left, Medina made her ninth free throw of the game to give the Gators a 32-28 advantage. The Gators then clamped down defensively to render the Highlanders scoreless for the remainder of the game.

Notre Dame returns to action on Wednesday, January 15 when they host Colonial States Athletic Conference rival Neumann University.