GRAMBLING, La. – Three Lady Mavs scored in double figures as the UTA women's basketball team picked up an 88-54 road win over Grambling (1-4) on Monday night at the Frederick C. Hobdy Assembly Center.

With the win, UTA remains undefeated and starts the season 3-0 for the third time (in 7 seasons) under head coach Krista Gerlich. UTA also went 3-0 to start the 2016-17 and 2017-18 seasons.

After posting a double-double in her UTA debut, Marie Benson got her first start as a Lady Mav and finished with a game-high 27 points on 11-of-12 shooting from the field and 5-of-6 from the charity stripe. She also added 7 boards, 2 steals and a block. Aysia Evans chipped in with 14 points, 4 assists and a pair of steals, while Claire Chastain added 12 points, 4 boards and 3 dimes. Emma Halverson finished with 9 points and Misty Dossey and Terryn Milton added 7 points each. Katie Ferrell pulled down a game-high 13 rebounds, to go with 6 assists, 4 steals and 3 points.

UTA shot 58.8 percent from the floor (30-of-51), while Grambling was limited to 27.9 percent from the field (17-of-61) marking the second consecutive game that the Lady Mavs have held an opponent below 29 percent shooting.

UTA opened the game on a 17-0 run, highlighted by 5 points from Benson. A quick 7-0 run from the home team pulled the Tigers within 10 points (17-7). The Lady Mavs went on to outscore Grambling 9-4 over the final 3:19 of the opening period to grab a 26-11 lead after 10 minutes of play. UTA shot a 76.9 percent (10-of-13) from the field in the first period, while the Tigers were limited to just 3-of-13 shooting (23.1 percent).

The second period was back-and-forth, but UTA was able to hold off a couple Grambling runs to take a 42-26 lead into the locker room at the intermission.

The Lady Mavs turned it on in the third period, starting the frame with a 13-2 run, capped by a Benson layup, to go ahead by 27 points (55-28). UTA would never look back and cruised to the 88-54 road win.

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UTA STAT LEADERS AT GRAMBLING
Points: Marie Benson (27)
Rebounds: Katie Ferrell (13)
Assists: Katie Ferrell (6)
Steals: Katie Ferrell (4)
Blocks: Marie Benson, Katie Ferrell (1)