LEBANON, Tenn. -- Indiana Wesleyan University women's basketball never trailed Thursday night in a 57-42 victory over host Cumberland (Tenn.) University in the Rosa Stokes Classic in Lebanon, Tennessee.

The Wildcats raced out to a 16-2 advantage to open the contest and improved to 13-2 on the season.

All five Indiana Wesleyan starters scored during the 16-2 run to start the game which lasted five and a half minutes. The IWU lead peaked at 14 points in the opening half and would reach that plateau three more times in the half.

The final 14 point lead in the first half came at 5:17 remaining before halftime when senior forward Elaine Hessel scored in the paint to increase the Wildcat lead to 25-11.

But the Bulldogs were able to trim the deficit to single digits before the half. The Bulldogs connected on three field goals in the final three and a half minutes of the period to close the gap to eight at 25-17.

Cumberland (7-4) continued to reel in Indiana Wesleyan at the start of the second half. Four minutes into the second half, Cumberland clawed back and trailed by three at 32-29.

Senior forward LeAnn Douglas, junior guard Stephanie Burtch and junior center Krystal Stoneking scored the next three baskets in the game as Indiana Wesleyan increased the lead to 38-29. The lead grew to 13 points at 46-33 with 9:02 remaining as the total run culminated at 14-4.

Indiana Wesleyan continued to pull away late in the second half and extended the lead to a game-high 17 points at 53-36 with 5:23 left to play. IWU led by double figures the rest of the way before settling for the 57-42 win.

The Wildcats shot well at the field, finishing at 56.1-percent (23 of 41) from the floor and 55.6-percent (5 of 9) from 3-point range. The defense for IWU was just as effective Thursday, forcing the Bulldogs into 31.9-percent (15 of 47) shooting.

Hessel and Cumberland guard Casie Cowan led all players in scoring with 15 points apiece. Hessel finished 6-of-8 from the field while also pulling down a game-high seven rebounds. Senior guard Kayla Thompson added 10 points and three assists while Stoneking scored nine points.

Indiana Wesleyan will complete play in the Rosa Stokes Classic on Friday at 2 p.m. ET with a contest against Trevecca Nazarene (Tenn.) University. Both IWU opponents at the tournament are NAIA Division I competition.