WEST HARTFORD, Conn. – The Hartford women's basketball team cruised to its second victory of the season and first win at home, downing Villa Maria 84-31 on Sunday afternoon. The Hawks move to 2-22 overall, while the Vikings dip to 8-7 on the year.

 
HARTFORD 84, VILLA MARIA 31
Hartford came out of the gates strong, using a 14-0 run to grab a 16-7 lead heading into the opening timeout of the first quarter. Coming out of the break the Hawks kept their momentum rolling, closing out the opening period on a 10-2 run to take a commanding 26-10 lead into the second quarter. 
 
With eight Hawks reaching the scoring column in the first 10-minutes of the game, Hartford looked to expand on their 16-point advantage in the second. After trading baskets to open up the frame, the Hawks would utilize a 20-3 run fueled by nine points from sophomore Nayeli Dowding to push the score to 46-18 heading into the locker room.
 
With the game well in hand in the third quarter, Hartford kept the offense rolling, using a 19-0 run capped off by a fastbreak layup from freshman Tatum Forbes to extend its lead to 45-points heading into the fourth. The Hawks would wrap up the game in the final quarter, securing its second win of the season, 84-31.
 
INSIDE THE BOX & NOTES

• Dowding led the game in scoring, tying her career-high mark with 15 points
• Sophomore Ta'Nya Outten also tied her career-high in scoring, finishing with 14 points on 6-of-9 shooting from the floor
• Forbes filled up the stat sheet with eight points, eight rebounds, six assists and five steals
• Freshman Elena Houghton notched her 100th career points, finishing with eight total
• Freshman Paige Loughman and Abigail Cherry each recorded career-highs in scoring, finishing with six and five points, respectively
• Junior Lanae Johnson-Kleinpeter dished out a career-high five assists
• Hartford set a new season-high with 26 assists, just two off from the single-game program record that was set back on Feb. 17, 2018 against Vermont
• The Hawks dominated the boards, outrebounding the Vikings 45-32
• Hartford's 84 points were the most for the Hawks in a winning effort since defeating NJIT 92-47 back on Feb. 6, 2019

NEXT ON TAP
Hartford closes out its home slate on Thursday, Feb. 16 against Merrimack. Tipoff between the Hawks and Warriors is set for 5 p.m.