The Lancaster Bible College women's basketball team returned to North Eastern Athletic Conference play on Tuesday, and snapped a two-game losing streak, with a convincing 76-53 victory over Gallaudet at Horst Athletic Center. The victory propels the Chargers back to the .500 mark at 7-7, and Lancaster Bible is a perfect 5-0 in conference action. The loss dropped Gallaudet to 5-8 overall this season and 3-2 in conference play, as both NEAC losses are to the Chargers.

How it Happened: Lancaster Bible struggled in the opening 10 minutes, as the Chargers led 7-5 in the early minutes, but then suffered a five-minute drought with no points, as Gallaudet took a 13-7 lead with 3:17 remaining in the first quarter. The Bison built their lead to 16-9 after a three-point play from Lawjen Ashmore, but the Chargers were able to rebound prior to the end of the quarter and trailed just 18-15 after 10 minutes of play.

Lancaster Bible finally tied the game at 18-18 on a free throw from junior Courtney Goyak, but Gallaudet scored the next four points and led 22-18 with 6:51 remaining in the half after a layup from Emelia Beldon. It was all Lancaster Bible from that point on however, as the Chargers went on a 15-0 run over the next five minutes of the quarter. Goyak and senior Kirsten Webster combined for 13 of the 15 points, with Goyak capping the run with a layup to make it 33-22 with 2:08 to play.

Gallaudet cut its deficit to six with just under a minute to play, but four late points from Goyak restored the Chargers' 10-point lead, and they led, 37-27 at the half.

The Bison tried to get back into the contest early in the third quarter, but the Chargers answered back every single time and led by 11 after a layup from freshman Leah Steiner with 4:33 left in the third quarter. A jumper from freshman Lizzy Tilton with three seconds to play gave Lancaster Bible a 57-44 lead after 30 minutes of play.

The lead would grow larger in the fourth quarter, as sophomore Caitlin Hickey knocked down a 3-pointer early in the fourth to give the Chargers a 60-44 advantage. Hickey was dominant in the final 10 minutes, and gave Lancaster Bible a 66-47 lead with 6:30 to play on yet another layup. The Lancaster Bible bench got into the action as well in the final minutes, as freshman Kendra Brown scored her first collegiate point and junior Sara Bell and sophomore Becca Lucente teamed up for a pretty passing play that led to a layup for Bell.

By the Numbers: Lancaster Bible shot 26-of-50 (52 percent) from the floor and was 22-of-33 from the free throw line...Gallaudet was 20-of-54 (37 percent) from the field, and just 2-of-11 from 3-point range...Goyak finished with 24 points, 20 rebounds and four assists...Webster had 17 points, five steals and four assists, as she was 11-of-12 from the free throw line...Hickey finished with 14 points and five boards, while Steiner, Tilton and sophomore Kaylee Boger each had six points...In addition to the six points, Steiner added five assists and four rebounds...Tilton and Boger each had six rebounds as well for the Chargers...Sabina Shysh had a team-high 18 points for the Bison.

The Coach Says: "We've been challenging the team that we need more offense threats from different places and that is exactly what we got tonight," Lancaster Bible Head Coach Katelyn Vanderhoff said. "I think our team finally saw what it looks like to have a balanced scoring attack and saw how good we can actually be."

On the weekend's games against NEAC North Division opponents: "We are being very intentional about playing solid team basketball and need to make sure we play that way against teams from the North Division," Vanderhoff said.

Information Hodge Podge: Lancaster Bible is now 14-0 all-time against Gallaudet...The Chargers defeated the Bison, 73-63 on Dec. 5 of this season in Washington, D.C...Webster leads NCAA Division III with 99 made three throws this season...Goyak, the NCAA Division III leader in rebounds, had her third 20-20 game of the season with her 24 points and 20 boards...Lancaster Bible held a 46-19 advantage in rebounds, including a 17-8 edge on the offensive glass...The 22 made free throws are a season-high for the Chargers, as are the 33 attempts...Tuesday was the third time this season the Chargers have shot over 50 percent from the floor, and Lancaster Bible improved to 3-0 in those games...The Chargers outscored the Bison, 40-26 in the paint.

Up Next: Lancaster Bible will play NEAC North Division opponents for the first time this season on Saturday and Sunday, as the Chargers host Penn College on Saturday at 3 p.m. and Keuka on Sunday at 2 p.m.