Freshman point guard Quinn Wittman admits there were nerves early in the season stepping onto the varsity stage. Not only did she have to prove she belonged with the upperclassmen, she’s been handed the job of leading Salisbury’s offense.

She seems to be settling into her role as one of the Lady Falcons’ leaders on the court.

Wittman scored 13 points, including a late clutch free throw, that helped Salisbury secure its second Colonial League victory of the season with a 36-33 win over Catasauqua on Monday. The Falcons also defeated the Rough Riders back in mid-December.

“It was nerve-wracking,” Wittman said. “At the beginning of the season it felt like I had a lot of pressure on me. Now it just feels relieving that I’m on varsity. It’s exciting.”

And Monday’s win, something that has been tough to come by for the Falcons, certainly helps. The victory ended a seven-game skid in league play.

But it wasn’t solely Wittman that helped Salisbury secure the win. Forward Madison Bettuccio finished with a game-high 18 points, 10 of which came in the second half, to hold off a late Catasauqua charge.

After Melena Koutch found Erica Holben in the post for a bucket, Salisbury held its largest lead of the game at 30-21 late in the fourth quarter. But the Rough Riders had an answer.

Catasauqua reeled off the next seven points before Koutch got Salisbury back on the scoreboard with a layup in transition with 1:30 to play. Koutch then found Bettuccio for a fast break bucket, and Wittman hit one of two free throws on two separate occasions to provide some breathing room for the Falcons in the final seconds.

“It felt good,” Wittman said. “I think we needed it to get excited for the games coming up.

“We just have to keep calm. We have to hold back from fouling and still try our hardest and put our heart in it until the end.”

While Bettuccio held her own on the glass down low, head coach Dan Reichenbach would like to see a more-balanced effort in that area. It’s one of the reasons Catasauqua was able to inch its way back into the game.

“You’ve got to be able to keep your composure on defense and rebounding,” Reichenbach said. “We should not get beat on the boards like that. We are relying on one person to rebound, and everyone else has to help out.”

The Rough Riders hit 8 of 10 free throws in the fourth quarter, including six from Alexis Rushatz. She finished with eight for Catasauqua, while Madison Hicks led the way with nine.

Salisbury travels to Moravian Academy on Saturday for an 11:15 a.m. start. Results from Tuesday’s game against Lehighton were not available at time of press.