WASHINGTON, D.C. - The University of Dayton finally broke its winless curse against the George Washington Colonials, scoring a 59-55 victory in its Atlantic 10 opener Saturday at the Smith Center. Going into the game the Flyers had never beaten the Colonials and were 0-24 all-time against GW.

Dayton improves to 13-3 overall and 1-0 in A-10 play. Sophomore Justine Raterman scored a game-high 16 points, 12 of which came in the first half. Sisters Kristin and Kari Daugherty added nine points each. Kristin also notched eight rebounds and had a career-high five steals. Kari was right behind her with three steals.

Sophomore Casey Nance added nine rebounds, five points and three blocked shots. Nance, the A-10 leader in blocks with 36 this season, has 100 in less than two seasons, putting her fourth all-time on Dayton's career block list. She needs seven to move into third.

Sophomore Patrice Lalor contributed four assists and six points. Four of her points came at the free throw line when she went 4-for-4 in the final 33 seconds to seal the victory for Dayton.

The Flyers had a healthy 14-point lead with 11:27 to play in the game after Forestville, Md. native Olivia Applewhite -to the cheers of her hometown fans -powered up for a layup to give Dayton a 44-30 lead.

GW (3-10 overall, 0-1 A-10) went on a 10-5 run in the final five minutes of the contest to close the gap to a two-point Flyer lead, 57-55, with 13 seconds to play in the game. That's when Lalor clinched the game for UD at the free throw line.

"They execute very well. They play very hard," said GW Head Coach Mike Bozeman of the Flyers. "They've been hovering around Top 25 all season and rightfully so.

The Colonials scored the first basket of the game but Raterman and Kristin Daugherty combined for 10 points to fuel UD's 13-2 run. Then Kendel Ross notched a steal, passed the ball ahead to Raterman who found Casey Nance; she converted a bucket and one to give the Flyers a 13-4 lead with 15:44 to play in the half.

GW chipped away and got within three points, 23-20, after a jumper by Megan Nipe with 7:20 left in the half. Kari Daugherty drove the lane and hit a layup to give Dayton its 30-23 lead after 20 minutes of action. The Colonials had 22 turnovers which the Flyers capitalized on, scoring 22 points off the GW miscues. Dayton also dominated in the paint 32-18. Both squads notched 38 rebounds.

The Flyers host St. Bonaventure on Saturday, Jan. 16, a week after their game against George Washington. Tipoff is slated for 4 p.m. ET at UD Arena. The game will be carried by 1660 Info Radio and televised nationally by CBS College Sports. Live stats on Gametracker are available at www.DaytonFlyers.com.