STATEN ISLAND, NY – Second-seeded Hartwick College (20-8) went on the road and defeated host and seventh seed College of Staten Island (16-12) on Wednesday night 71-56 in the opening round of the 2013 ECAC Metro Tournament at CSI's Sports and Recreation Center. The Hawks were dominant on the boards in the game as they held a huge edge, 54-19. They also had a good night shooting the basketball as they made 49% (24-for-49) from the floor, 58% (7-for-12) from three-point range, and 80% (16-for-20) from the free-throw line.
            With the victory, Hartwick advances to the tournament semifinals on Saturday, March 2 where it will face third-seeded Rutgers-Newark. The Scarlet Raiders downed Stevens, 71-46. Brooklyn College will host the semifinals and championship at the West Quad Center. The top-seeded Bulldogs beat the eighth seed, Purchase, 70-50. In the night's remaining quarterfinal game, fourth-seeded Mount Saint Mary defeated fifth-seeded Ramapo, 64-56.
            Maria Foglia (Rensselaer, NY/Catholic Central) led all scorers for Hartwick tonight with 23 points on 8-of-15 shooting. She added four three-point shots, grabbed nine rebounds, and dished out four assists. Brittney Dumas (Easton, CT/Joel Barlow) contributed a double-double with 16 points and a game-high 10 rebounds. She also registered a career-high six blocked shots.  
            The Hawks would overcome a season-high 28 turnovers in the game, including 17 in the first half alone. The host Dolphins would turn the 'Wick miscues into 26 of their 56 points in the contest.
            Neither team led by more than three points over the opening 11 minutes until a 7-0 Hawks' run would give Hartwick a 15-10 edge with 8:53 left in the first half. Down by a 10-8 margin, Taylor Vonasek (Willington, CT/E.O. Smith) knocked down a three-pointer to put the Hawks in front. Rachel Hunt (Penfield, NY/Webster Schroeder) followed with a mid-range jumper and Vonasek added a layup for the five-point advantage.
            The Dolphins would answer with a 9-2 run over a three-minute span to retake the lead, 19-17. It would mark their final lead of the night, however. A three from Dumas made the score 20-19 Hartwick with under four minutes to go in the half. Later, CSI evened the score at 23, but 'Wick would score four of the half's final six points for a 27-25 lead at the break.
            After an Olivia Tierno jumper evened the game early in the second half, a Foglia triple would put Hartwick up to stay with 18:24 to go in the contest. The Hawks would use a 12-4 spurt to up their lead to eight points, 39-31, only to have the Dolphins come back with an 8-0 run over the next minute of their own to trim the Hawks' edge to one.
            Both teams battled over the next four minutes before a Foglia three-pointer and two Carlee Hirt (Beacon, NY/John Jay-East Fishkill) foul shots gave 'Wick some breathing room, 52-43, with under 10 minutes showing on the clock.
            Staten Island would trim the lead to six twice over the next four minutes of action but it got no closer. The Hawks added to their total with three straight from the stripe and Foglia connected on a layup to increase the margin to double-digits, 61-50, with just over four minutes to go.
            At 63-54, consecutive layups from Foglia and Alicia Razanousky (Stuyvesant, NY/Ichabod Crane) with under two and a half minutes left would put the game on ice for the Hawks. Eleven points would be as close the Dolphins got as Kate Purcell (Buffalo, NY/Mount Mercy Academy) and Dumas each sank a pair of free throws with under 40 seconds.
            Vonasek would finish with nine points and four rebounds with Purcell ending with seven points, five boards, three assists, and two steals for 'Wick. Razanousky closed the game with six points and five boards and Hirt added four points and four rebounds. Katrina Caulfield (Palmer, MA/Palmer) also netted four points and contributed five rebounds.
            For the Dolphins, Tierno and Megan Myhre each scored 13 points. Nikki Fabozzi and Melanie Johnson tallied 10 points apiece.
            The win for Hartwick marks its second straight 20-win season. It is just the ninth 20-win campaign in program history.  
            Game times for this weekend's semifinal and championship will be announced tomorrow.