SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) — Hannah Hidalgo scored 27 points, Gisela Sanchez had a double-double in her Notre Dame debut, and the 15th-ranked Fighting Irish routed Fairleigh Dickinson 98-52 to open their season on Wednesday night.
Hidalgo a national player of the year candidate, made 11 of 22 shots and added six rebounds and three assists. Sanchez, a graduate transfer from Kansas State, contributed 14 points and 12 rebounds.
Vanessa DeJesus, a transfer from Duke, scored 22 points, Cassandre Prosper 15 and KK Bransford 13 for Notre Dame.
Ava Renninger scored 15 points and Joi Johnson 10 for the Knights (0-2).
Notre Dame outrebounded Fairleigh Dickinson 41-25 and turned 19 FDU turnovers into 32 points. Notre Dame had only eight turnovers.
Notre Dame shot 65% in the first quarter and led 27-13. The Fighting Irish had a 21-0 run spanning the first and second quarters and went on to lead 50-20 at halftime after shooting 57%. Hidalgo had 20 points at halftime.
Kelly Ratigan was the only bench player to see game action for Notre Dame in the first 36 minutes of play. The Fighting Irish led 90-45 with 3:55 remaining before the starters began to rotate out.
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