CANTON, N.Y.—St. Lawrence University (6-2) defeated the SUNY Potsdam women's basketball team (3-6) 64-36 on Tuesday evening. Senior forward Jakia Howard (Syracuse, N.Y./Nottingham) led the Bears with 11 points and eight boards, while senior guard Dyamon Hunter (Bronx, N.Y./Thurgood Marshall Academy) had seven points and three assists.
 
Howard opened the scoring with a jumper 24 seconds into the contest. However, the Saints answered with a  15-1 run and never looked back. Howard added a free throw and Hunter hit a three, but Potsdam trailed 19-6 after one quarter.
 
SLU used another big quarter to put the game out of reach. A 15-4 stretch made it 34-10 at the 2:00 mark. The Saints led 34-13 at the break. Howard, Hunter, senior Mandy Barnell (Liverpool, N.Y./Liverpool) and sophomore guard Xy'El Bradford (Syracuse, N.Y./Syracuse Academy of Science) each had points for Potsdam.
 
The third quarter was more tightly contested with SLU outscoring the Bears just 17-13. Howard added six more to her total in the 10-minute period and sophomore guard Mikayla Shipley (North Chili, N.Y./Churchville-Chili) scored three.
 
The Saints then extended their lead slightly with a 13-10 fourth quarter to close out the 64-36 win.
 
Shipley matched a career-high with five points for Potsdam and matched a season-high with six rebounds.
 
Olivia Barringer led all scorers with 12 points for SLU and completed the double-double with 10 rebounds. Jackie Malley had 11 points and six boards for the Saints. Cam Roberts rounded out the leaders with eight points and four rebounds.
 
Hunter now has 1,071 points in her career, just 22 shy of Bears Hall of Famer Karen (Burns) Dandrow '90 for second place on the program's all-time scoring list.
 
The Bears return to SUNYAC play on Saturday when they head to SUNY Plattsburgh for a 2 p.m. contest with the Cardinals. Potsdam took the first meeting, 61-53, at Jerry Welsh Gymnasium on November 29.