APPLETON, Wis. -- The Lawrence University women's basketball team started strong Friday and went on to a 79-58 nonconference victory over Rockford University at Alexander Gymnasium.
    The Vikings built a 12-point lead after the opening quarter and then pulled away in the third quarter.
    Maggie Culver and Charlotte Brennan scored 15 points apiece to lead the Lawrence attack. Culver went 5-for-6 from the floor, including 2-for-2 from behind the 3-point line. Culver added six rebounds and a pair of assists. Brennan was 5-for-7 from the floor and went 2-for-3 on 3-pointers. Brennan had a game-high five assists and picked up a pair of steals.
    Lawrence's Mallory Meyer added 14 points on 5-for-9 shooting from the floor, and Josie Chose came off the bench to score 10 points. Chose went 3-for-4 from the floor and 4-for-4 from the foul line.
    Lawrence (3-2) jumped out to a 13-4 lead to start the game, and Sophie Morey's layup gave the Vikings a 13-point edge at 19-6. Culver's layup in the final second of the first quarter gave Lawrence a 23-11 lead heading to the second quarter.
    The Vikings went on a 10-0 run, capped by a Brennan layup, early in the second quarter to push the lead to 33-14. Rockford rallied to trim the lead to 39-30, but Culver finished the half with a three-point play for a 42-30 lead at the break.
    Brennan then sparked a 9-2 scoring run early in the third quarter as she scored six of those points to help the Vikings to a 51-32 advantage. Lawrence would go on to lead by as many as 23 points, and Rockford (1-3) never got closer than 15 points the rest of the way.
    Lawrence forced 21 Rockford turnovers, and the Vikings picked up 13 steals. 
    Jocelyn Callahan paced the Regents with 14 points.