A career-high 22 points and nine boards for sophomore Autumn Childress and the first career double-double from Eboni Gilliam propelled Longwood to an 83-32 victory over Notre Dame of Maryland Sunday afternoon inside of Willet Hall.

Childress tallied 16 of her career-high 22 points in the second half and added nine rebounds, while Gilliam’s first double-double performance as a Lancer led an energetic Longwood (3-7, 0-2 BSC) bench that outscored the Gators, 58-32.

“Autumn Childress continues to impress,” said Longwood head coach Bill Reinson. “She’s getting in better shape and is proving how valuable she can be for us.”

The breakout performance for Childress came after she came into Sunday’s game averaging 3.5 points per contest this season. A product from Midlothian, Childress more than doubled her previous career-high of 10 points last season against Coastal Carolina. In addition, the sophomore finished Sunday’s game 8-of-11 from the field, while missing a double-double with nine rebounds.

For Gilliam, who recorded 33 double-doubles throughout her two seasons at Cape Fear Junior College, her performance came after she had scored at least six points in six of her first nine games of the season, while ranking inside the top-20 in the Big South and grabbing 5.7 per contest coming into Sunday.

“It feels good,” Gilliam said of her first career double-double as a Lancer. “I feel like I’m starting to get into a rhythm of playing and it just nice to be out there with my teammates. Obviously, it’s good to get a win today. We set three goals for ourselves before the game and we came out and accomplished two of the three.”

Childress and Gilliam were two of four double figure scorers for the Lancers, as each player who played for Longwood tallied at least two points. It marks the second time in three games that the Lancers have enjoyed balanced scoring throughout the lineup with each player scoring.

Sparked by the duo of Childress and Gilliam, Longwood was able to control the painted area, as the Lancers held a 46-12 margin in points in the paint, while out-rebounding the Gators by a 44-34 margin.

The Lancers cruised to a 16-3 lead over the opening 4:21 in the first quarter, holding Notre Dame (Md.) to just a three-point field goal in that stretch. Longwood went 5-for-8 from the field to open the game, including five points from Deborah Headen, who finished the day with 11.

In the opening half, Longwood had 10 of 11 players score, while holding Notre Dame of Maryland to just two first-half field goals. Holding the Gators to eight points marks the best defensive half of the season for the Lancers, who used full-court pressure to force 19 first-half turnovers.

Four Lancers finished the game in double figures, including Kyndal Skersick, who came off the bench to finish with 15 points on 6-of-11 shooting and 3-of-6 from beyond the arc, while senior captain Deborah Headen added 11 points to go along with five rebounds and two steals. Raven Williams tallied a season-high five assists and three steals in the contest, as she was one of three Lancers to rack up at least three steals.

The Lancer defense stifled the Gators throughout the afternoon, holding Notre Dame (Md.) to .261 shooting (12-46) and 3-of-19 (.158) from beyond the arc. That marks the lowest shooting percentage for a Longwood opponent this season, as the Lancers forced the Gators into 33 turnovers and created 21 steals.

“We have one more opportunity to play before Christmas,” Reinson said. “The ladies need to be focused for 40 more minutes before heading home for the holiday.”

The Lancers will return to action on Tuesday, December 29, when they host Charleston Southern at 7 p.m.