Cazenovia, NY - Junior Cara Manfredi (Glastonbury, CT) shot 14-for-15 from the free throw line and Stephanie Grobe (White River Junction, VT) had a strong first half as the Clarkson University Women's Basketball team claimed its second win of the season with a 73-58 victory over Cazenovia College on Tuesday evening.

The Golden Knights improved to 2-1 on the season and will return to action this weekend at the Plattsburgh Invitational Tournament on Saturday and Sunday.

The Knights found themselves trailing by five just eight minutes into the contest, but a 13-0 run in the next four-plus minutes gave Clarkson a lead it would never relinquish. Leading by six late in the half, the Clarkson defense clamped down on the Wildcats and again held them without a point for a three-minute stretch, all the while putting up nine points to push its lead to double digits. Clarkson shot 52 percent from the floor (13-for-25) in the half and was even more impressive when shooting inside the 3-point arc (12-for-17, 70.5 percent). Clarkson also took care of the ball, providing Cazenovia with five turnovers while the Wildcats committed 15 miscues, due in large part to the Knights' defensive effort which had 10 first-half steals.

Grobe shot 5-for-7 from the field and 4-for-6 from the free throw line for a game-high 15 points in the first half, while Manfredi added six points and four steals.

In the second half, Cazenovia started with seven straight points to cut Clarkson's 14-point halftime edge in half, and the margin remained in that vicinity until the 12-minute mark following a Wildcat field goal. Once again, however, the Clarkson defense wouldn't allow many open looks as Cazenovia went nearly six minutes without a basket, scoring just two points in that time frame on free throws. Clarkson took advantage, pushing its lead from seven points to 24 (64-40) at the 7:16 mark. The Knights maintained a 20-point edge until the final four minutes when the Wildcats were able to slowly crawl back within 10 (66-56) at the 1:13 mark. However, Clarkson was able to halt the comeback and finished with a 15-point victory.

Manfredi finished with 18 points, with the majority of the points coming on her 14 free throws, and seven steals. Grobe had a solid all-around effort with 17 points, five rebounds, and a pair of steals. Ashley Loggins (Albany, NY) produced 10 points, five rebounds, two assists, and two steals, and Isabella Esposito (Essex, VT) tossed in 10 points and three steals. Alyssia Marsal (Clifton Park, NY) also produced five steals. For Cazenovia, Erin O'Malley led all scorers with 22 points.

Overall, Clarkson recorded 21 steals in the game and also finished with 16 assists on its 22 field goals made.