Orono, Maine -- Anne Simon led all scorers with 27 points to go along with nine rebounds as the Black Bears cruised to a 69-48 victory over UMass in their home opener on Sunday afternoon.

Simon, who finished 11-of-19 from the floor with four triples, added five assists and a pair of steals to her impressive stat line while recording the 500th rebound of her career. Caroline Bornemann and Sarah Talon each joined Simon in double-figures with 10 each while Adrianna Smith added seven points and 11 boards.

Maine followed up its 50 rebound performance at La Salle with another impressive showing on the boards, snatching 41 rebounds to the Minutewomen's 26 as the Black Bears tallied 14 offensive boards in the win. Maine's offense operated efficiently with 20 assists on 28 field goals while finishing 28-of-62 (45.2) from the floor including a 10-for-15 effort in the first quarter.

The Black Bears came out on fire. After missing their first three shots, Maine ended the first quarter 10-of-12 from the floor while racing out to a 20-6 advantage. Four points from Talon aided an 8-0 run for Maine as the Black Bears took a 14 point lead. The lead grew to 23-7 on a triple from Simon off a turnover.

UMass slowly chipped away at the deficit, trimming the Maine lead down to eight with 5:49 left in the first half.

It would be as close as the Minutewomen would get the rest of the way.

Leading by eight, Maine closed the second quarter with a 16-4 sprint. The run began with seven consecutive points from Bornemann before another Simon three, this one also coming off a turnover, put the Black Bears on top by 20.

Maine's lead would stand strong at 42-22 at the break.

UMass opened the second half with an 8-0 run before Maine regrouped to close the third quarter on a 7-3 run.

Adrianna Smith began the fourth quarter with a bucket while drawing a foul to begin a 10-0 run for Maine. The run gave Maine its largest lead of the afternoon, 59-33.

The Black Bears cruised the rest of the way to take the home opener by a final of 69-48.

Maine returns to action with another A-10 opponent when it welcomes Rhode Island to Memorial Gymnasium on Tuesday at 6 p.m. Tickets are still available and can be purchased by visiting GoBlackBears.com/tickets.

-UMaine-