WEST HARTFORD, Conn.  - The Hartford women's basketball team defeated Roger Williams University on Wednesday evening with a score of 68-63.

In this evening's game Hartford hosted the WE BACK PAT game. This night is dedicated to the legacy of the legendary Pat Summitt and the ongoing fight against Alzheimer's disease. Pat Summitt was not only one of the greatest basketball coaches of all time, but she was a tireless advocate for Alzheimer's awareness and research. After her own diagnosis in 2011, Coach Summitt turned her personal battle into a mission for others, founding the Pat Summitt Foundation to help those facing Alzheimer's and dementia. We encourage you to visit www.patsummitt.org to learn more about the foundation, donate at the ticket booth, and find out how you can get involved. Be sure to follow the Pat Summitt Foundation on social media @webackpat to stay updated on their efforts and the fight against Alzheimer's. 

Rapid Recap:

• Sophomore Ella Marchesani (Saddle Brook, N.J.) striked first with a big three to get the ball rolling for the Hartford Hawks in the opening first minute. RWU Hawks had a strong answer putting up 11 straight points against Hartford. With just 3:25 to go sophomore Sidnee Bowden (Canton, Ohio) put a halt to their momentum with a swift lay-up to claim her first points of the game. RWU continued their lead as they closed out the first quarter 15-7.
• Sophomore Kendall Rieman (Chicago, Ill.) and freshman Maya Okoro (Frisco, Texas) entered the second quarter with drive both putting away points in the paint, 18-11. Both teams struggled to maintain possession of the ball trading turnovers and went scoreless for the next minutes. Sophomore Taryn Blevins (St. Louis, Mo.) was doing a lot of work on and off the ball tonight as she collects two offensive rebounds and drops down a floating jumper with 6:26 to go trailing by six. RWU was clean at the top of the arc with big plays by Sophia Coppola and Abrielle Drufrane, adding to their ten point run against Hartford. The second quarter closes out 31-19, RWU still on top.
• RWU knocked down the first shot of this quarter off the hands of Elizabeth Dufrane. Marchesani drove by a few of the RWU Hawks to slip in a lay-up off the glass, 33-21. The Hawk battle continued trading points and steals all over the court. RWU dominated the free-throw line to strengthen their lead to 37-24. With 6:01 on the clock sophomore Ava Naszimento (Secaucus, N.J.) adds her tenth point of the game to the score board grabbing an offensive rebound off the glass and dropping it in the hoop. RWU maintained a comfortable distance with big points outside the paint. Hartford Hawks were not going to let them run away with it just yet as freshman Emma O'Hare (Drexel Hill, Pa.) gets the crowd off their feet with a buzzer beater three pointer to close out the third quarter, bringing the differential to just six, 49-43.
• In the opening minute of the fourth quarter Bowden finds the hands of Marchesani to swish a shot from behind the arc. Both teams traded points at the foul line, this allowed the Hartford Hawks to maintain their reach on RWU. Sophomore Lauren Sabia (Simsbury, Conn.) attacked the basket for a crafty lay-up, bringing the RWU lead to just four with 5:49 to go. Naszimento continued to be solid all around the court putting up back to back points claiming her 17th point at the free throw line. RWU sat at their most comfortable lead of this quarter with a big three from Coppola, RWU 61-53 with 3:30 remaining. Naszimento again exploited gaps in their defense driving home four more points for Hartford. O'Hare follows with a lay-up to the glass giving the fans an exciting end to this Hawk match-up, Hartford trails by just 1 at 61-60 with under two minutes remaining. Sabia stole the lead as she let it fly from the top of the key and dropped straight in the hoop. With Hartford stealing the lead RWU fought to claim their lead back with last minute fouls. Hartford was strong at the line to claim this triumph over RWU 68-63.

Post Game Press:

"It feels great to win, especially with a little bit of a losing streak recently, but my teams were really looking for me tonight giving me great passes," said sophomore Ava Naszimento (Secaucus, N.J.)."This team is number two in the conference and we have been slacking a bit so this win means everything to us."

"I thought we played really good defense in the second half, I am proud that we continued our defensive stance and our offense caught up with us," said Head Women's Coach Polly Thomason. "This is a We Back Pat Game, his team was known for defense, their rebounding, tenacity, and I think we played that way tonight, like a Pat's team. I am proud of the effort we gave, the commitment, and doing what we needed to do tonight."

Inside the Numbers:

• Naszimento lead the Hartford in tonight's match-up with a career high 21 points (9-12 FG, 0-0 3PT, 3-5 FT) along with 12 rebounds to bring the Hawks to victory tonight. Next leader for Hartford is Sabia with 12 points (3-13 FG, 1-7 3PT, 5-6 FT) and six rebounds. Marchesani had a strong night for the team tonight with nine points (3-8 FG, 2-5 3PT, 1-2 FT) and two rebounds.
• RWU Hawk Sophia Coppola claimed 21 points in tonight's game (5-12 FG, 2-5 3PT, 9-11 FT) and grabbed six rebounds for the team.
• Hartford Hawks lead in total team rebounds at 44 while RWU Hawks at 33.

Up Next:
The Hawks will travel to Maine this weekend to face-off against the University of New England on Saturday January 25th at 1:00 p.m.

For the latest information on Hartford Athletics follow the Hawks on Facebook, Instagram, X, and YouTube.