Amherst, MA ? The University of Hartford women's basketball game had a six-game win streak snapped at the University of Massachusetts on Saturday afternoon with a 72-60 defeat. The Hawks were led by Erica Beverly who finished with 14 points and 10 rebounds for her first double double of the season. The Hawks are now 6-2 overall, while the Minutewomen improve to 3-4.
Beverly was one of three players in double figures, joining her was Diana Delva with 12 and Danielle Hood with 11. Hood's 11 points is the fourth-straight in double figures. The Hawks struggled to find the basket throughout the game with 11 baskets in each half. The Hawks did finish 3-of-4 from three point territory in the first half, but hit just one in 11 attempts in the second half.
The Hawks shot 33 percent for the game, with Beverly leading the way with a 6-of-11 effort. Hartford also struggled at the free throw line, missing six of their 18 attempts. Hartford did finish the game with 13 steals, forcing the Minutewoman into 19 turnovers. Lisa Etienne finished the game with five steals for Hartford.
UMass finished the game shooting 50 percent from the field, capitalizing in the first half with a 54 percent effort on 13-of-24. Pam Rossanio led the Minutewomen with 22 points, while Kate Mills added a double double with 18 points and 14 rebounds. UMass finished with a 44-30 edge on the boards.
The Hawks managed a first half draw, after trailing by as much as eight with 5:49 to play before the break. The Hawks managed 12 of the final 16 points of the half, with each team scoring a pair of free throws for the final points of the stanza. Etienne was the final player to score in the half with two free throws with three seconds on the clock. Delva led the Hawks in the first half with 11 points. Hartford also forced the Minutewomen into 14 first half turnovers.
UMass came out of the break to score the first six points of the half and never looked back. Back-to-back eight point runs gave the Minutewomen a 14 point advantage with 9:50 to play. The first run saw two-straight three point baskets, one from Stefanie Gerardot and the other from Sakera Young. The first run left the Hawks scoreless for just over three minutes, with a Hood layup breaking the streak.
After the Hawks scored another layup from Etienne, the Minutewomen took advantage of a second scoreless drought, this one lasting just over two minutes. This time UMass scored on two sets of free throws and a pair of layups. Hartford cut the lead back into single digits on a MaryLynne Schaefer three pointer and a steal and layup from Etienne.
The teams traded baskets for the next three minutes before three free throws from Kim Benton put the Minutewomen up 12 with 5:31 to play. The Hawks held UMass to just three free throws in the final 4:45, but struggled to score, making just two of 11 attempts, trying to pull back within reach.
The Hawks will return to Chase Arena at the Reich Family Pavilion for a meeting with the St. John's Red Storm on Friday, December 7 at 7:00 p.m. The game will be Connecticut Night, where anyone who shows a Connecticut ID will receive a $3.00 reduced price for bleacher seating.
