WEST HARTFORD, Conn. – The University of Hartford women's basketball team dropped its first contest in 2014-15, falling to Lafayette (2-1) 74-59 on the road on Sunday afternoon. Hartford (3-1) was led by sophomore point guard Deanna Mayza who finished with 14 points and seven assists.

Three Hawks joined Mayza in double figures with senior Cherelle Moore adding 13 and senior Amber Bepko and freshman Janelle Harrison who each chipped in 10. As a team, Hartford finished the game shooting 36.4 percent on 20-of-55, while making 5-of-18 attempts from beyond the three point arc (27.8 percent).

The seven assists for Mayza led all players in the game, while she finishes out a three-game week with 20, including a career-high nine in a home win over Providence. Bepko's 10 points go along with back-to-back 20-plus performances as she averaged 17.3 points over the three-game week.
 

GAME HIGHLIGHTS

·        Sophomore Deanna Mayza led four Hartford players in double figures with 14 points, nine of which came in the second half. Overall for the game, Mayza made 3-of-9 attempts from the field including a pair of three pointers, while she was a perfect 6-of-6 at the free throw line. She also added a game-high seven assists for her third game of the season with 5-plus assists.

·        Joining Mayza in double figures in the scoring column was senior Cherelle Moore with 13, her second-straight game in double digits, while senior Amber Bepko and freshman Janelle Harrison each chipped in 10, the first double digit performance for the rookie post player. Harrison's 5-of-10 shooting also led Hartford as they finished at 36.4 percent overall on 20-of-55.

·        Harrison also led Hartford's rebounding efforts with seven, the first player other than Moore to lead the team in rebounding this season. Her seven boards are a career-high.
 

FIRST HALF HIGHLIGHTS 

·        Senior Cherelle Moore led the Hawks with nine points, finishing a perfect 3-of-3 from the field, while making 3-of-4 at the free throw line. Joining Moore in leading Hartford was freshman Janelle Harrison who contributed eight points on 4-of-6 from the field. Harrison also led Hartford's rebounding efforts with four boards.

·        Hartford answered a 21-3 Lafayette rally with one of its own, scoring 12 of the next 14 points to pull within 25-17 with 6:52 remaining. The final eight points of that rally came unanswered with Harrison providing six of the eight. The first four points in the 12-2 run for Hartford came from Moore as she answered the 23-5 run by scoring a jump shot and hitting a pair of free throws 21 seconds later.

·        Lafayette would take a 10 point advantage into the locker room at the break after scoring six of the final nine points of the half. The lone basket in that stretch for Hartford was a three pointer from Deanna Mayza. 
 

SECOND HALF HIGHLIGHTS 

·        Hartford opened the half scoring the first five points on a three pointer from Amber Bepko and a layup from Janelle Harrison off a feed from Bepko. That early 5-0 run cut the Hawks deficit to five, just over two minutes into the action.

·        Lafayette would then use a 12-2 run to regain a double figure lead with 10:45 remaining. Hartford answered a 16-point deficit with a three pointer from senior Katie Roth who came off the bench to hit the basket thanks to a pass from Mayza.

·        With under five minutes remaining, the Hawks mounted a rally that included 10 unanswered points and ended with a seven point deficit, 64-57, with 3:02 remaining. Included in the run was five points from Mayza and a steal and fast break layup from Bepko. An old fashioned three point play from sophomore Morgan Lumb capped off the rally. 
 

INSIDE THE NUMBERS 

·        Sophomore Deanna Mayza finished her third game of the season with five-plus assists, closing out the contest with a game-high for all players with seven. She also added a team-best 14 points.

·        Senior Cherelle Moore increased her season best in scoring to 13 points on 4-of-9 shooting and 5-of-6 at the free throw line, her second-straight game in double figures.

·        As a team, Hartford finished the game making 14-of-16 attempts from the free throw line for a season-high 87.5 percent. Leading the way was Mayza who finished 6-of-6, while Moore was 5-of-6.

·        Freshman Janelle Harrison led the Hawks with seven rebounds, the first player other than Moore to lead the Hawks in rebounding.
 

TWEETABLES (140 characters or less) 

·        Four Hawks finished in double figures, led by sophomore Deanna Mayza who finished with 14 points.

·        Sophomore Deanna Mayza also added a game-high seven assists, averaging 6.7 per-game over the last three games.

·        The Hawks put up their best numbers of the season at the free throw line making 14-of-16 for 87.5 percent. Mayza was a perfect 6-of-6.
 

UP NEXT
The Hawks will travel outside of the United States for their next three games as they make a second appearance in the Cancun Challenge over Thanksgiving. Three games in three days begins with a 1 p.m. tip off against the Furman Paladins. All three of Hartford opponents in Cancun (Washington, Florida State) are coming off of postseason appearances in 2013-14. Washington and Furman both made appearances in the WNIT with the Huskies advancing to the quarterfinals. Florida State earned a bid to the NCAA Tournament, falling to Stanford in the second round.