TAMPA, Fla. - The Palm Beach Atlantic women's basketball team returned to the court after a holiday break to take on the No. 6 ranked Tampa Spartans. The Sailfish jumped ahead by double-digits early and led throughout the night before earning their highest-ranked win in program history in overtime 79-76. The program win for PBA takes their record to 7-4 on the season and 3-2 in Sunshine State Conference play while handing the Spartans their first loss of the season.

The Sailfish came out of the gates quickly and jumped ahead from the get-go. PBA was led by Mariyah Fletcher, who scored ten of her game-high 24 points in the opening quarter of play. The 'Fish outscored the Spartans 23-14 in the first ten minutes of play and shot 53 percent from the field and hit on 3-of-4 shots from three. Defensively, PBA held Tampa to just 33 percent shooting and out-rebounded the Spartans 11-7. PBA's offense was humming as they assisted on seven of their nine makes.

 The Sailfish made sure that the opening ten minutes of play was no fluke as they back their performance up by winning the second quarter 16-14. Fletcher added another six for PBA and Alma Danielsson hit two threes to match her. The 'Fish led by as many as 14 in the first half but went into the locker room up 39-28.

PBA maintained their advantage against one of the best teams in the country in the third quarter. Kash Ayuso and Maria Benitez-Zayas came to life offensively as they each scored five points in the third quarter. Benitez-Zayas was a catalyst throughout the game and especially in the second half as she finished with 13 points and six assists on the night. PBA led by ten and looking to hold on to a historic win heading to the final quarter.

Things looked to be going smoothly for PBA as they held onto a 14-point lead with 2:15 remaining. However, the Spartans press caused the Sailfish problems as they quickly cut the PBA lead to six in 30 seconds of play. Two missed free throws in the final ten seconds and five late turnovers gave the Spartans a chance to force overtime as they hit just their third three of the game with one second remaining to tie the game at 71.

After being hit with a huge run on the road, the Sailfish showed their composure to get back to their game in overtime. They outscored the Spartans 8-5 in the extra five-minute period. The dagger was Benitez-Zayas dropping a dime to Fletcher who converted the layup with 35 seconds left to go up three. A stop late secured the biggest victory in PBA history as the 'Fsh won 79-76.

Fletcher finished the game with 24 points and 14 rebounds as she continues to be a double-double threat night in and night out for PBA. Ayuso added 16 points and nine assists while Danielsson and Jillian Schenk combined for 22 points and seven three-pointers. The difference in the game was the shooting from behind the line as PBA hit on ten threes while the Spartans hit just four.

The Sailfish capture a big win to start off a difficult stretch in their schedule as they next return to Rubin Arena to face Eckerd on Jan. 1. The Tritons are 9-2 on the season and ranked No. 12 in the country.