RICHMOND, Virginia - Salem began their postseason run this afternoon in the first round of the USCAA Division I Women's Basketball Tournament with their matchup against the University of Maine at Fort Kent.

The Tigers dominated the game's opening period. Offensively they shot an extremely efficient  53.3% from the floor and the Tiger defense held the Bengals to below 15% shooting. Salem did a great job of moving the ball on offense to get the best possible look. The Tigers had five players get into the scoring column, a testament to how unselfish they had been playing. After ten minutes of action Salem held a commanding lead at 17-5.

Salem's offense continued to have great success against the Bengals in the second quarter. Carine Pinkney had started to heat up and began knocking down jumpers over the UMFK defenders, Anna Machytkova had success attacking the rim, and the trio of Anete Bluma, Cassandra Smith, and Emerson Wells all contributed from deep to help grow Salem's lead further. Defensively the Tigers did not enjoy the same level of success they had in the first quarter, but they still managed to hold the Bengals down enough to grow their lead even more before the half. At the break, Salem was still on top 38-20.

Salem got back into form in the third quarter. The Bengals still hadn't come up with an answer for the Tiger's hot shooting, and Salem's defense returned to its first-quarter dominance. The Tigers continued their barrage from deep to pad the lead further. Elena Pericic, Emerson Wells, and Anete Bluma all contributed to the Tiger's long-range efforts. Londaisha Smith and Cassandra Smith continued to drive the ball to the rack, and the Tigers thrived. After three-quarters of play, Salem had built a huge lead at 58-30.

In the fourth, the game quickly turned into a track meet. The Bengal offense had finally gained some momentum, but Salem was fit to the task with a response to every Bengal basket. The Tigers got away from their beyond-the-arc approach and adopted an attack-first mentality which proved to be successful for them. Time and time again Salem got to the rim and converted to keep the Bengals at bay and hold on for victory. The Tigers took home the win 74-50.

Salem will be back on the court on Monday, March 11th at 10:00 PM to face off against Bryant and Stratton-Buffalo for round two of the USCAA Division I Women's Basketball Tournament in Richmond, Virginia.

SALEM STAT LEADERS

Points: Emerson Wells (18)

Rebounds: Carine Pinkney (7)

Assists: Liliani Krause (5)

Blocks: Emerson Wells (1)