WATERLOO, Ont. - Second-year forward Julia Curran dropped a game-high 16 points to help lead the Western Mustangs to a 57-50 victory over the Waterloo Warriors on Saturday afternoon in Waterloo.
 
With the win, the Mustangs will improve to 5-1 on the season and will move back into a tie for first place in a closely contested OUA West division. The Warriors' loss will drop them to 2-3 on the year as they will hope to make it back to .500 in their upcoming game against Nipissing.
 
After putting up a huge 23 point and 20 rebound performance against Laurier this past Wednesday, Curran continued her dominant play early in the game as she scored eight points in the first half to maintain a slim lead for the Mustangs. Curran not only led all players in scoring in the win, but chipped in nicely with her work on the boards, leading the team with eight.
 
Three other Mustangs scored in double figures in the win, as Laura Graham scored 10 points to go along with three steals, Victoria Heine scored 13 while being a presence on the defensive end with four blocks, and Mackenzie Puklicz had a strong all-around game as she dropped in 10 points while adding four steals.
 
Waterloo was lead by fourth-year guard Emily Wilk, who continued to be the backbone of her team as she put up 14 points and six rebounds in the Warriors loss.
 
Both teams put in an exceptional effort throughout the game, as each squad clamped down defensively on one another for all four quarters. The first half saw both teams combine for 31 turnovers, while the Mustangs were uncharacteristically out-rebounded 23-15 through the first two frames. But despite the scrappy play by the Warriors, the Mustangs held a three-point lead heading into the second half.
 
The second half was equally contested, and as the intensity grew, so did the physicality. There were a total of 43 personal fouls called, Waterloo's Jenel Ulman and Sofie Persson would both foul out alongside Curran in the fourth quarter. After six lead changes, the game remained up in the air until Western's Meredith McLeod hit a clutch three pointer with just over a minute left in the fourth quarter to seal the victory for the purple and white.
 
The Mustangs will be back in action this Wednesday, November 30 as they head to Toronto to take on the Ryerson Rams. The game is set to begin at 6:00 p.m. and fans can catch the action live on OUA.tv.