CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- The Fairmont State women's basketball team jumped out to an 18-7 lead in the first quarter and never looked back in a 61-50 victory on Sunday afternoon at the Charleston Civic Center. The Falcons are now winners of five-straight games and improved to 10-3 overall and 4-3 in Mountain East Conference games.
 
After grabbing a double-digit lead at the 2:41 mark of the second quarter, FSU didn't allow UC to cut the lead to single-digits the rest of the afternoon.
 
The Falcons used a balanced offensive attack, led by Makenzie White with 18 points, eight rebounds, three assists and three steals. White shot just 5-of-14 from the field but knocked-down 7-of-8 from the charity stripe. The Falcons also got 13 points and four rebounds from Amanda Ruffner and Katie Nunan chipped in 11 off the bench.
 
Both teams struggled from the field on the afternoon with FSU holding the advantage (42.3-38.0%). Both teams also shot just 21 percent from behind the arc.
 
However, the FSU defense forced 19 turnovers and held a 17-2 advantage in points-off turnovers in the win. FSU also held a 36-28 margin in the paint and knocked-down 14-of-19 free throw attempts.
 
Charleston (4-9, 2-5 MEC) got a team-high 13 points and five rebounds from Kiara Johnson off the bench. Marissa Koob also reached double-figures for UC with 10 points on 4-of-6 shooting from the field.
 
FSU will return to the court on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. at West Virginia State's Walker Convocation Center.