WILKES-BARRE – The Wilkes women's basketball team concluded its regular season in fine fashion cruising to a 58-31 home victory over MAC Freedom foe FDU-Florham Monday afternoon at the Marts Center.
 
Wilkes improved to 2-7 overall following the win while FDU-Florham dropped to 0-8 on the year.
 
Wilkes jumped out to an 11-0 lead midway through the first quarter as Brenna Babcock (Sweet Valley, PA/Northwest Area) and Maddie Kelley (Dallas, PA/Dallas) (twice) sank three-pointers in between a Brianna Horton (Verona, NJ/Verona) steal and score. After back-to-back FDU buckets, Erin Shober (Reading, PA/Wilson) drove the lane for two as the Colonels continued to lead 13-4 with just under two minutes left in the opening stanza. Another FDU score inside the paint cut into the advantage, but Kendra Smith (Hughesville, PA/Hughesville) and Babcock added consecutive treys to finish the scoring tear with Wilkes ahead 19-6 at the end of one.
 
The Wilkes lead continued to grow as Kelley and Ariel Reed (Woodbury, PA/Northern Bedford) each scored to give the Colonels its largest advantage of the first half up 25-8 with 6:28 on the second quarter clock. Scores from Reed and Gabby Smicherko (Edwardsville, PA/Wyoming Valley West) kept Wilkes out ahead by double figures taking its largest lead to the break at 34-16.
 
The lead ballooned to 24 points after the third quarter as a 10-2 Colonels run midway through the frame capped off by a Horton three-pointer and Smith three-point play put the hosts ahead 47-23.

The advnatage grew to as many as 30 points midway through the final quarter as Wilkes sealed its first conference win of the season in the process.
 
Babcock led 11 Colonels who reached the scoring column finishing with 10 points on 3-for-5 shooting from behind the arc. Kelley,Horton and Smith followed with eight points each. Wilkes also made a season-best nine three-pointers in the win.
 
Jade-Dee Tolentino and Arian Coleman paced FDU with eight points apiece.
 
Wilkes will now await confirmation of who and where it will play in the Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) Crossover Challenge game on Thursday.