ITHACA, N.Y. – The Cornell women's basketball team put together a stifling defensive performance, as it opened Ivy League play with an impressive 59-39 victory over Columbia at Newman Arena. The victory helped the Big Red to match its best start in program history, pushing its record to 10-5 overall, a mark previously set in the 1999-2000 season.
 
Cornell held an opponent below 40 points for the first time since defeating Fordham, 40-39, on Jan. 2, 2012. It was the lowest point production by an Ivy League opponent since Cornell beat Brown, 70-37 on Feb. 1, 2008 and it was the lowest scoring output by the Lions in the series since a 60-39 Big Red decision on Jan. 24, 1998. In total, Cornell has held opponents to fewer than 40 points on 46 occasions, but just 14 times since the 1979-80 season. 
 
"This is a great way to start the Ivy League season," said Dayna Smith, the Rebecca Quinn Morgan '60 head coach of women's basketball. "I think we came out with tremendous energy and played well defensively, which allowed us to set the tempo and score in transition. In the second half we didn't execute as well offensively and that's due to some great adjustments by Columbia."
 
"We'll learn from the good and the bad as we get ready for next week. We know we can't take them lightly next weekend."

Sophomore forward Nia Marshall continued her excellent run to lead all scorers with 19 points (7-of-14 FG, 5-of-6 FT), while adding six rebounds and four steals. Sophomore guard Megan LeDuc had an excellent game despite only tallying four points. She tied a program record with eight steals, while she tied a career high with eight assists, adding six boards.
 
"Megan is playing heady basketball right now," says Smith. "She doesn't always have the big scoring numbers, but she plays smart defense and knows how to push the ball in transition. She makes smart decisions and is playing with a lot of confidence, which makes the whole team better."

Sophomore forward Nicholle Aston would finish with 13 points (5-of-10 FG, 3-of-6 FT) and seven rebounds. Senior guard Christine Kline would also hit double-digits with 10 points (4-of-8 FG, 1-of-3 3PT, 1-of-1 FT), while adding four assists, one steal, and one block.
 
Cornell (10-5, 1-0 Ivy League) stymied the Lions offense right from the opening tip in a dominant performance. The Big Red held the Lions to just .260 percent shooting from the floor (13-50) and a mere .154 percent from beyond the arc (2-13), while forcing Lions' 23 turnovers with 16 steals, accounting for 24 Cornell points. 

The Big Red shot 40 percent for the game (22-55) but just 20 percent from 3-point range (3-15). Cornell was also had an uncharacteristic performance from the charity, connecting on just .571 percent (12-21). The home team assisted on 17-of-22 baskets and held the slim edge on the boards, 39-37.
 
Columbia (6-9, 0-1 Ivy League) was led by Tori Oliver (15) and Camille Zimmerman (10), who registered double-digit points, while Amara Mbionwu pulled down a game-high 12 rebounds. 
 
The Big Red took control in the opening moments as it held Columbia scoreless through the first media timeout. On the other end of the floor, the Big Red were efficient in its offensive sets, starting the game 4-of-8 from the floor to take a 8-0 lead to the under 16-timeout. The eight points came from four different players, as Moran, LeDuc, Kline and Aston all cashed in. 
 
Columbia responded with a 7-0 run over the next 4:14 to cut the Cornell lead to one at the under-12.
 
The Big Red came out in a full court press coming out of the timeout, surprising the Lions with the pressure defense. Cornell went on an 8-2 run, which included a Moran three-pointer and Marshall layup off of a steal from LeDuc on the ensuing inbound, prompting a Columbia timeout with the Big Red up 18-11.
 
The opportunistic defense-to-offense transition game continued to pay dividends for the Big Red as Marshall hit a layup on a steal and pass from LeDuc to stretch the Cornell lead to 22-13. Cornell would continue to roll, with 10 unanswered points, including six straight from Aston, to open up a 19-point lead with 1:30 remaining in the half. Marshall splashed a long-two just before the buzzer for a 34-15 lead at the break.
 
The inside duo of Aston and Marshall had their way with the Lions in the opening 20 minutes. Marshall finished with 10 points on 5-of-9 shooting, adding three rebounds, two steals, and one block. Aston was equally dominant with 11 points on 4-of-6 shooting, while also adding a team leading five boards.
 
LeDuc was a terror on both ends despite only tallying one bucket in the opening half. She led all players with four steals and six assists at the break.
 
The Big Red continued the suffocating defense after the break, limiting the Lions to just 1-of-8 shooting through the opening 6:50 of the half. On the offensive end, Cornell started much like the opening half, knocking down 4-of-9 to start and eventually stretched its lead to its largest of the game at 29 points (46-17) when Kline knocked down a trey with 13:46 to play in the contest. 
 
With the sizable lead, coach Smith turned to the bench to close out the contest, as every healthy player saw the court.

The Big Red is back in action next weekend when it closes out the home-and-home series with Columbia in New York City on Saturday, Jan. 24 at 4:30.