Reading, Pa. – Keystone College's women's basketball team opened the 2016-17 season with an 81-49 victory at Penn State Berks on Thursday night to give first-year head coach Meghan Sullivan her first collegiate coaching victory in her debut at the helm of the Giants.  Nina Hodanich (Scranton, Pa./West Scranton) scored 21 points to lead four Keystone players in double-figures as the Giants (1-0) posted the 32-point victory.
 
Tied 7-7 with 2:50 remaining in the first quarter of Tuesday's season-opener, Hodanich drained a three-pointer that started an 11-0 Keystone run to close the frame as Keystone held an 18-7 lead after the first 10-minute period. 
 
The Giants extended their lead to 15 points early in the second stanza, before Penn State Berks (0-1) pulled to within 10 points at 31-21 with 3:24 remaining in the opening half.  Keystone closed the frame with an 11-5 run though to hold a 42-26 lead at halftime.
 
The visitors put the game out of reach by scoring 21 of the first 24 points of the second half, outscoring the Nittany Lions 24-9 in the third quarter to open up a commanding, 66-35 advantage.  Keystone closed out the 32-point victory by outscoring the hosts 15-14 in the fourth quarter.
 
Hodanich's 21 points came on a 7-12 effort from the floor including a 5-8 night from three-point range. Bryce Garrett (Philadelphia, Pa./John Bartram) totaled 15 points while Dyjae Williams (Newark, N.J./Bloomfield Tech) added a double-double on 14 points and a game-high 10 rebounds for Keystone.  Emily Hutton (North Bennington, Vt./Mount Anthony Union) tallied 11 points while Brianna Nolen (Union Bridge, Md./Walkersville) chipped in with nine points and tied for a game-high with four assists.
 
Hodanich and Williams collected four steals apiece for the Giants while Hannah Zuchowski (Wellsboro, Pa./Wellsboro Area) blocked a pair of shots in the win.
 
Deanna Daddona scored a game-high 26 points for Penn State Berks while Sam Brensinger netted 10 points in the loss for the Nittany Lions.
 
Keystone shot 39.1 percent from the floor for the game including a 42.9 percent effort from beyond the arc.  The Giants also shot 64.3 percent from the free throw line and forced the Nittany Lions to turn the ball over 22 times while giving the ball away just 12 times on the evening.
 
Penn State Berks, who held a 48-42 edge in rebounds for the game, connected on 25.7 percent of its field goal attempts while shooting 29.4 percent from long range and 40 percent from the charity stripe.
 
Keystone will play its home opener on Thursday night against Susquehanna University in a non-conference contest starting at 7:00 p.m. in the Gambal Athletic Center.