HOBOKEN, N.J. (February 15, 2011) – Junior forward Victoria Webber (Silver Spring, Md.) led all scorers with a season-high 24 points but the Stevens Institute of Technology women's basketball team dropped a hard-fought, 55-52, game to visiting Empire 8 rival Hartwick College at Canavan Arena in Hoboken, N.J. With the loss the Ducks fell to 17-6 on the season with a 10-4 mark against conference opponents, while the Hawks improved to 9-13 overall with a 6-8 league slate.
The Ducks opened up the game on an 11-4 run, taking a seven-point edge on a Victoria O'Connor (Westwood, N.J.) jumper. Junior guard Dawn Garcia (Brooklyn, N.Y.) kick-started the run by opening up scoring with a three just under the 18-minute mark before Hartwick freshman Maria Forlia (Rensselaer, N.Y.) knocked down a pair of free-throws to put the Hawks on the board.
Webber would then tally a score from the charity stripe, before Garcia again found the range from distance, burying a three to make it 7-2. The junior guard then connected on a jumper before O'Connor's bucket following a Foglia layup made it 11-4.
Hoping to settle the Hawks down, Foglia drained a triple before a Tracey Koch (Glenmont, N.Y.) jumper cut the Hartwick deficit to just two. Minutes later, freshman guard Kate Purcell (Buffalo, N.Y.) knotted the game with a layup before converting a pair of attempts from the line on the Hawks' next possession to give the visitors their first lead of the contest.
Freshman Lee Arduini (Albany, N.Y.) extended the Hartwick advantage to four before Koch put the wraps on a 13-0 Hawks' run with a layup at 7:04 making to make it 17-11. Trailing by five with just over five minutes remaining in the half, Ducks' freshman Molly Spadaro (Sewell, N.J.) ended an eight-minute Stevens field-goal drought with a triple from the right wing, cutting the margin to two.
Looking to regain the edge, Webber knocked down a three, putting the Ducks back on top 20-19, but a Foglia trey on the other end helped Hartwick re-take the lead. Down by two with just over a minute left in the half, Spadaro nailed another three, giving Stevens a slim 25-24 edge heading into the intermission.
Coming out of the break, Flores opened up the second half scoring with a trey, putting the Hawks back up on top, but Webber quickly answered with a jumper to tie the game for a third time. The Ducks then mounted a quick 7-3 run over the next three minutes of action, taking a 34-30 lead on an O'Connor jumper.
Trying to keep pace, Hartwick rattled off a 13-4 run of its own, taking a five-point advantage on a Foglia free-throw. After four-consecutive points from the line helped start the Hawks' rally, junior center Samantha Fox (Hartwick, N.Y.) hit a jumper to put Hartwick back up two. The Hawks would then convert seven free-throws over a minute and a half stretch to cap off the run and extend their lead to 43-38.
Still up six with just over four minutes remaining in regulation, Flores drove the lane for two, upping the margin to 49-41, before a pair of Webber free-throws trimmed the Ducks' deficit. Hoping to build momentum, Garcia knifed into the lane to cut it to four, before two more Webber free-throws pulled the Ducks to within 49-47.
Down four with 1:51 left on the clock, Webber knocked down a three from the top of the key to bring Stevens within one at 51-50. Continuing to trail by one with 20 seconds left, senior co-captain Paige Armstrong (Fair Haven, N.J.) forced a steal off a Hartwick inbounds pass, but the Hawks would draw a charge on the Ducks' possession sending Foglia to the line.
After the Hawk freshman guard converted a pair from the charity stripe to increase the margin to three, Stevens pushed the ball into the frontcourt with no timeouts remaining. Hoping to tie, Webber launched a three that did not find the target, but Armstrong tracked down the loose ball, giving the Ducks' one last chance with under a second left. Following the inbounds, Webber would hit the would-be, game-tying triple from the left wing, but the buzzer sounded just before the Silver Spring, Md. native could release the shot, as Stevens fell for just the sixth time this season.
Garcia finished with 10 points, five rebounds, and five assists in the loss, while Spadaro added nine points and four boards. Armstrong collected a season-best 16 rebounds, while O'Connor added six points and four boards. Foglia led Hartwick with 21 points and seven rebounds, while Flores added 12 points and eight boards. Purcell chipped in with an eight point, seven rebound effort.
The Ducks will look to break back into the win column on Friday, February 18 when it welcomes Empire 8 rival Elmira College to Canavan Arena.