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WEST HARTFORD, Conn. – In its final contest of a six-game homestand, the University of Hartford softball team could not muster up any runs against the Connecticut Huskies as it fell in mid-week action to its Nutmeg State rival, 3-0, on Thursday afternoon. Concluding the home stretch with a 4-2 mark, Hartford (12-22) hits the road for its next five games, starting with a doubleheader at Siena on Sunday at noon.

UConn (17-16) produced single runs in the first, third and fourth innings while Katelyn Callahan and Alyson Ambler combined to throw seven scoreless innings to lead the Huskies to victory. Callahan tossed the first four innings, scattering two hits and striking out four, to earn the win while Ambler picked up her second save of the season, working the final three innings, allowing two hits and picking up one strikeout in that span.

On two occasions, Hartford had the bases loaded with one out or less recorded in the frame, but was unable to scratch any of those runners across home plate as UConn's defense was in place to rob the Hawks out of any run-producing hits.

The Huskies first and third runs of the contest were scored by Lexi Gifford and Jacklyn Dubois, who both reached base by earning walks off of Hawks' pitcher Kaitlyn Meade. Gifford made it a 1-0 ball game in her team's first at-bats, beating out the throw at home on a one-out fielder's choice by Marissa Guches to provide UConn with the early 1-0 lead.

UConn threatened to plate more runs in its first go-around at the plate as it loaded up the bases with still one out recorded. Meade got her team out of the jam, however, striking out Audrey Grinnell and inducing Jacklyn Dubois into a groundout to end the frame without any more damage done to the scoreboard.

Following a two-out solo home run off the bat of Guches in the top half of the third, UConn added one more run to its count in the following frame to take a 3-0 advantage. Brittany Duclos doubled-in Dubois, who earned a one-out walk. With two outs, Duclos found herself 60 feet closer from plating her team's fourth run of the game following back-to-back walks, but she would remain on third for the duration of the stanza as Emily O'Donnell hit into an infield groundout to end her team's at-bats.  

In the bottom half of the fifth, Hartford was quick to back Ambler, UConn's newly inserted pitcher, into a corner as Erica Phelps, Amber Andrews and Kate Wacyk each reached base to load up the paths. Phelps and Andrews connected for back-to-back singles before Aloyo reached on a fielder's choice, with no out being recorded by the Huskies on the play.

The Hawks were unable to convert on the bases loaded opportunity, though, as Wacyk hit into a fielder's choice that saw Phelps get tagged out at the plate. Hartford's final two batters were retired by UConn's infield, squandering the Hawks' hopes of lighting up the scoreboard.

Meade threw for seven innings, recording three strikeouts in the outing. Andrews led the offense with two hit while Sawyer Fried and Phelps rounded out the offense for the Hawks.