Sacramento State women’s basketball team had another blowout game Saturday, except this time they didn’t lose.

The Hornets avoided making history, dodging Long Island University?s all-time Div. I record of 58 consecutive losses. It was the Hornets first win since a Jan. 27, 2001, victory over Portland State.

The University of Notre Dame de Namur Argonauts (3-8) had the wind knocked out of their sails, receiving a 77-55 drubbing from Sac State (1-7). The victory ended Sacramento’s 44-game losing streak, and broke season records in scoring (77 points), field-goal percentage (45.5 percent) and assists (20).

The secret to success against Notre Dame de Namur, Hornet coach Carolyn Jenkins said, came from a lesson learned against UC Riverside, when the Hornets threw away a 13-point halftime lead.

“Ball handling and executing on offense was a critical factor in the victory against the Argonauts,” Jenkins said. Sac State turned the ball over 18 times, their second lowest figure this season.

On offensive, the Hornets hit a blistering 52.9 percent on 18-of-34 shooting in the first half, melting the Argonaut’s defense in transition.

At halftime the Hornets led by 19-points, their greatest lead since the 2001 victory against Portland State. The double-digit lead over Notre Dame stretched to as many as 35 points in the second period.

Sydney Gatson, a shooting guard and 3-year Sac State veteran, led the Hornets in the first half, scoring 13 of her 16 points, despite a torn disk in her back. Gatson is the only current Hornet who had previously won a game with the Hornets

“I’ve been a little gun shy coming out the last few games,” Gatson said. “Coach (Jenkins) told me that we can’t have that. You have to shoot with confidence and that’s what I did.”

Small forward Sarah Craig led Sac State in scoring, knocking down 9-of-12 shots and pulling down a game-high 12 rebounds.

“I was just as pumped up at the end as I was at the beginning of the game,” Craig said. “It was a great all-around game from all of our players. It just came together so nicely for us. That’s the team we can be.”

“I just know what I see at practice,” she said. “I have a lot of faith in our team.”

Shooting guard Crystal Conley, the Hornets? lone senior, scored a career-high 12 points on 6-of-13 shooting and tied her career record with seven rebounds.

Kristine Knowlton, Hornet center, blocked a season-high four shots, pulled down six boards and scored 11 points.

Sac State also received support from team captain Diane Peterson, who had a game-high seven assists, and center Danielle Iceman, who had 10 points and nine rebounds.

The Argonauts’ were limited to 30.8 percent field goal percentage and were outrebounded 52-43.

“(Sac State) came in with the mentality that they had everything to lose from this game and they needed a win,” Argonauts’ coach Stephanie Duke said. “They needed a win bad. They came in with a very aggressive mentality that we didn’t have.”

Sac State will next take on Air Force at 6 p.m. Dec. 28 before returning home.