ROCHESTER, N.Y. - The Hartford women's basketball team has extended its winning streak to three games after defeating Worcester Polytechnic Institute by a 52-44 margin in the first round of the Sandy DeWolf McCormack Memorial Holiday Tournament hosted by Nazareth University. Sophomore Ella Marchesani (Saddle Brook, N.J.) scored 13 points in the second half en route to the victory. 

Rapid Recap:

• Sophomore Lauren Sabia (Simsbury, Conn.) netted the opening three of the game while adding another free throw as the Hawks jumped ahead 5-0. Freshman Emma O'Hare (Drexel Hill, Pa.) finished a jumper to extend the lead to 7-1, but the Engineers responded with five-straight points to trim the deficit to just a single point. Machesani kept Hartford in front with an old fashioned three-point play, followed by a bucket for freshman Mikaela Williams (Windsor, Conn.) and Sabia as the Hawks led 15-8 after one quarter.
•  After WPI netted the first bucket of the second quarter Williams added her second layup of the night to keep the lead at seven points. The Engineers went on a five-point spurt to cut the lead to just a single bucket, but Marchesani finished another layup followed quickly by an O'Hare triple to keep the lead at 22-16 headed into halftime. 
• WPI started off the second half strong getting the lead cut down to 23-20, but Marchesani stopped the run drilling a three. The teams struggle to score in the third quarter, but the Engineers cut the deficit to 28-26 with 1:10 remaining in the period. Marchesani nailed a late in the shot clock three followed by a finish for sophomore Ava Naszimento (Secacus, N.J.) to get the lead back to seven with 10 minutes to play. 
• Marchesani stayed cooking to open up the fourth quarter netting a three as the lead was 36-28 with 8:01 to play. Back-to-back layups by O'Hare pushed the lead to double-digits for the first time in the game with 6:31 to play. Sophomore Taryn Blevins (St. Louis, Mo.) flipped in a floater with 4:55 to play after a small run by WPI to hold the 42-34 lead. The Engineers made a late run drilling two three-pointers with under a minute to play, but the Hawks netted 10 free throws to hold on for the third-straight win.

Post Game Press:
"It was a great team win", said sophomore Ella Marchesani (Saddle Brook, N.J.). "Everyone stepped up and played their part very well till the final buzzer went off. We are looking forward to furthering our winning streak!"

Inside the Numbers:

• Marchesani led the offense pouring in a season-high 18 points (5-12 FG, 3-5 3PT, 5-5 FT) to go with five boards and a pair of steals. O'Hare notched a new career-high with 14 points (4-9 FG, 1-2 3PT, 5-8 FT) to go with six rebounds, two blocks and a steal. Sabia rounded out the double-digit scorers with 11 points (2-9 FG, 1-5 3PT, 6-8 FT) and five rebounds. 
• Alice Kelly was the top scorer for the Engineers with nine points (3-9 FG, 0-3 3PT, 3-6 FT), along with five rebounds and two assists. 
• The Hawks flew up the floor with 23 fast break points in the win compared to just one for the Engineers. Hartford also scored 15 points off of turnovers compared to just seven from WPI.

Up Next: 
The Hawks will play Nazareth University in the championship of the Sandy DeWolf McCormack Memorial Holiday Tournament tomorrow with a 3:00 PM tip.

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