BOX SCORE
PHOTO GALLERY COURTESY OF STEVE MCLAUGHLIN
West Hartford, CT – The University of Hartford women's basketball team (1-0 overall), behind a double double night from senior Erica Beverly posted a 71-53 victory over the Quinnipiac Bobcats (0-1 overall) in the 2009-10 season opener.
With tonight's win the Hawks improve to 16-10 overall in home openers in the Division I era, while also improving to 8-3 in season openers during the 11 year tenure of head coach Jennifer Rizzotii.
Beverly led all players in the game with her 24th career double double, finishing with 16 points and 16 rebounds. The senior forward connected on only four field goals in the game, out of five attempts, but excelled at the line where she finished 8-of-10. She also added three assists and three blocks. Beverly was named the Nestle Purina ONE America East Player of the Game against the Bobcats.
Beverly was one of four Hawks players to finish in double figures with Ilicia Mathis and Diana Delva each adding 11 points and freshman guard Daphne Elliott contributing 11 in her rookie debut. Daphne led the Hawks from long range with three three-pointers, including back-to-back long balls, which gave the Hawks a 17 point lead with 14:30 remaining in the game.
Hartford struggled to find their niche in the first half, going into the break with a 26-21 lead. mathis, a sophomore guard, led the team in the first half with seven points on 3-of-5 shooting. As a team, the Hawks shot just 22 percent in the first stanza (7-of-32).
The Hawks shooting improved greatly in the second 20 minutes, improving to 58 percent on 15-of-26. Hartford finished the game shooting 37.9 percent (22-of-58). Quinnipiac held a slight advantage in the battle of the boards, 42-37, but Hartford's defense made the difference, forcing the Bobcats into 26 turnovers. The Hawks finished the game with 15 steals and also added five total blocks.
Quinnipiac was led by Jacinda Dunbar who finished with 12 points, one of three players in double figures. Joining her was Felicia Barron and Kathleen Neyens, who each added 10 points. As a team, the Bobcats shot 37.0 percent for the game (20-of-54).
The Hawks return to action with their second-straight home game on Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. when they welcome the 2009 national runner-up Louisville Cardinals to Chase Arena at the Reich Family Pavilion.
