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FAIRFIELD, Conn. – Behind the first career double double from junior Cherelle Moore (16 points, 13 rebounds) the University of Hartford women's basketball team (3-9 overall) posted a 70-64 victory over Sacred Heart on Saturday afternoon at the Pitt Center.

Senior Alyssa Englert led all Hawks players with 17 points making 6-of-9 from the field including a pair of three pointers. She also finished 3-of-4 at the free throw line. Englert and Moore were joined in double figures by junior Shanise Bultron who finished with 12 points, all on thee pointers.

As a team, Hartford finished the game shooting 45.8 percent on 22-of-48, including a 42.1 percent effort from beyond the three point arc (8-of-19). The Hawks also made 18-of-27 free throw attempts and won the battle of the boards with a 39-31 edge with Moore's 13 leading all players. Englert and La'Trice Hall each added five boards.

The Hawks came out of the gates opening an early 15-2 lead with the first nine points all coming on three pointers, two from Bultron and one from Englert. Freshman Alyssa Reaves would close out an early 9-0 run with a put back layup with 14:52 remaining in the first half.

The Pioneers then scored four straight before Amber Bepko and Englert sandwiched a Sacred Heart layup with a pair of three pointers, regaining a 13 point advantage. Moore extended that lead to 14 before the Pioneers rattled off 10-straight points in under a minute to pull within four, 22-18, with 8:22 before the break.

Sacred Heart would then go without a layup for nearly four minutes which allowed Hartford regain a 27-19 lead before Ericka Norman broke the home team's drought with a layup. That would be the first of eight straight points for the senior guard with those points the only for Sacred Heart the remainder of the half.

Hartford took a 32-27 edge into the break thanks to a layup at the buzzer by Englert who finished with a team-high 10 points at the intermission. She made four of her five field goal attempts in the first 20 minutes. Norman led all players at the break with 12 points.

Coming out of halftime the teams would trade baskets for the first five minutes before the Pioneers erased a seven point Hartford lead to take their first and only of the game at 42-40 with 13:24 remaining. That lead came courtesy of four-straight free throws from Gabrielle Washington.

Bepko would break that rally with a pair of free throws which began a 5-0 run ending with a 45-42 Hawk lead, one they would hold to the final buzzer. She would answer again for the Hawks; this time with a three pointer right after a triple from Shepard cut the Hartford lead to two.

With just over five minutes to play Bultron drained her fourth three pointer of the afternoon, sparking a 6-0 run that led to a nine point cushion with 2:49 remaining. Free throws from Mayza (four) and Englert (two) would secure the Hawks victor despite a pair of baskets in the final 10 seconds for the Pioneers.

Following a break for the holidays, the Hartford women's basketball team will travel to Penn State for its final game in 2013. The match-up with the Lady Lions will be the second of the season against a ranked opponent with Penn State 17th in the AP poll and 18th in the USA Today Coaches Poll as of December 17. Hartford and Penn State are scheduled for a 2 p.m. tip-off at the Bryce Jordan Center.