HOUSTON, TEXAS – The University of Pennsylvania women's basketball team cruised to a 34-point victory over NCAA Division III University of St. Thomas Friday afternoon, in the first game of a weekend road trip to Texas.

The Quakers led wire-to-wire in improving to 5-2 on the season.

Quaker Notemeal
*Penn shot 14 of 33 (42.4 percent) from behind the arc and outrebounded the Celts 38-26, with 12 of them coming on the offensive glass.

*Katie Collins scored a team-high 18 points, going a perfect 6-of-6 from beyond the three-point line.

*Mataya Gayle totaled six of the team's 22 assists while also scoring 14 points.

*The Penn bench outscored the St. Thomas bench, 25-8.

*The Quakers scored 18 points off of 23 St. Thomas turnovers.

*Penn had 20 second-chance points.

*Eight different Quakers hit at least one three-point shot.

How It Happened
The Quakers began the game scorching hot from behind the arc, hitting four consecutive threes and taking a 10-point lead before St. Thomas called its first timeout. Overall, Penn hit five out of eight three-pointers in the first 10 minutes with five different players connecting from downtown.

St. Thomas began the game with eight turnovers as the Quakers recorded three steals in the first quarter on the way to a 13-point lead after one.

Brooke Suttle joined in on the action with a three-pointer of her own, and Collins hit her second midway through the second quarter as Penn took a 26-9 lead. The Quakers also thrived defensively in the second quarter, allowing just one field goal and eight total points. Gayle led all scorers with 11 points while shooting two-for-two from three in the first half, and also found success on the other end of the court with four steals for the Red and Blue.

The Celts struggled to control the ball, committing 16 turnovers in the first half that resulted in nine steals for the Quakers. At the other end, Penn distributed the ball efficiently in the first two quarters recording 11 assists.

 Penn took its largest lead of 23 heading into the second half as the scoreboard read 39-16, and Tina Njike added to the lead as she scored Penn's first two baskets to begin the second half as Penn continued to pull away.

The Quaker bench came alive in the second half, scoring 12 of the team's 19 third-quarter points. As a result, the lead was 58-27 heading into the final quarter of play. Collins then opened the final quarter with two more three-pointers, completing her perfect night as the Red and Blue cruised to the victory.

Up Next
The Quakers will face No. 4 Texas in the second game of their road trip on Sunday at 2 p.m. The game will air live on SEC Network+.

For the latest on Penn Women's basketball, follow @PennWBB on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram, and on the web at PennAthletics.com.