SALISBURY, Md. – Behind a double-double from Emily Dilger and an offensive rebounding margin of plus-13, the Salisbury University women's basketball team muscled its way to a 72-56 victory over the Lancaster Bible Chargers on Wednesday night at the Maggs Physical Activities Center.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Sea Gulls broke an early 2-2 tie with a 10-1 run over a three-minute stretch in the middle of the first quarter. Emily Dilger got things going with a bucket inside, and Nadia Bullock capped the rally with a three-pointer that put SU up 12-3 at the 4:30 mark.
• The Chargers answered with two straight baskets from Shelby Gard and Jade Eshelman, but Dilger's layup inside the final minute boosted the SU advantage to 14-7 at the end of the first.
• Salisbury got a layup from Abby Wilkinson and a free throw from Hailey Ader to build the margin to 17-7 early in the second quarter. From there LBC found its rhythm, putting together an 11-4 run that Sydney Heller punctuated with a triple to make it 21-18 with 3:30 left.
• With SU up 23-20 inside two minutes to go, Dilger broke free for a fastbreak and-one layup and knocked down the free throw to make it 26-20. After LBC got one-of-two at the line on the other end, Wilkinson poured in a trey and Alex Bull hit two from the stripe. Dilger provided the exclamation point on the 10-1 surge with another second-chance layup, restoring the Sea Gull lead to 33-21 at the half.
• Salisbury opened the third quarter on a 6-2 push, expanding the cushion to 39-23 after a layup from Ashlynn Burrows. The Chargers hung tough and trimmed the margin down to eight on a Gard jumper that made it 41-33 at the 4:55 mark.
• Dilger again provided the answer with a putback inside, then Kolby Brown and Bullock managed back-to-back scoop-and-score layups to get it back to 47-33.
• LBC eventually got back within 10 to end the third, using an Eshelman layup go cap the period down 49-39.
• The Chargers got as close as seven points in the fourth quarter, trimming the hole to 54-47 at the 6:23 mark. The Sea Gulls withstood this final rally and went on an eight-point swing of their own, started and finished by buckets from Dilger, that made it 62-47 with 3:50 to go.
• Both teams traded a flurry of baskets over the final four minutes, but it was too little, too late for LBC to get back into it. Salisbury led by as many as 18 and came away with a 16-point margin at 72-56.

SALISBURY GAME NOTES

• Emily Dilger posted one of the best games of her Sea Gull career, netting a season-high 21 points on 9-of-19 shooting and hauling in 14 rebounds, including eight on the offensive glass.
• Dilger's double-double marks the sixth of her SU career and first since she went for 19 points and 10 boards at Christopher Newport on Feb. 15, 2020.
• Ashlynn Burrows registered 16 points (8-of-14) with three rebounds and two assists.
• Abby Wilkinson posted a well-rounded line of 12 points, six boards, four assists and two steals.
• Tori Rumbaugh chipped in seven points, while Hailey Ader added five points and seven boards.
• The Sea Gulls shot 37.8 percent (28-of-74) from the floor, including 3-of-10 (30 percent) from long range and 13-of-17 (76.5 percent) from the free throw line.
• Salisbury bullied the Chargers on the inside, winning the rebounding margin 49-35 and 22-9 on the offensive end, allowing SU to take 20 more shots than LBC.
• SU was plus-six in turnovers, using 10 steals to help force 19 Charger giveaways.

LANCASTER BIBLE GAME NOTES

• Jade Eshelman led the Chargers with 13 points (6-of-10) and four rebounds, only playing 22 minutes due to foul trouble and ultimately fouling out of the game.
• Alaysha Iwais and Adalyn Steiner contributed 11 points each.
• The Chargers shot 37 percent (20-of-54) for the game, going 4-of-16 (25 percent) from downtown and 12-of-17 (70.6 percent) from the charity stripe.

UP NEXT

• The Sea Gulls wrap up their three-game homestand with a Saturday showdown against Cabrini.
• Tipoff from Maggs PAC is slated for 2 p.m. with game coverage on the Sea Gull Sports Network (SGSN) beginning at 1:45 p.m.

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Salisbury University is a proud member of NCAA Division III with primary membership in the Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference, along with the New Jersey Athletic Conference for football, Coastal Lacrosse Conference for men's lacrosse and the Metropolitan Swimming and Diving Conference for men's and women's swimming. With over 500 student-athletes in 21 varsity sports, SU is recognized as one of the most competitive intercollegiate athletics programs regardless of division, and dedicated coaches and staff that foster excellence on-and-off the field. The Sea Gulls have celebrated 22 team national championships, 24 individual national champions, 188 conference championships and 43 Academic All-Americans.

To Make Tomorrow Yours at Salisbury University, and learn more Sea Gull Athletics' tradition of excellence, visit www.SUSeaGulls.com or on social media @SUSeaGulls.