ELMIRA, NY – Behind a combined 46 points from Caitlin Corbett (Altamont, NY/Guilderland), Carly Johnson (Greenville, NY/Greenville Central), and Kelly Pine (Hoosick Falls, NY/Hoosick Falls), the Hartwick women's basketball team won their twelfth game in a row on Tuesday night, beating host Elmira, 75-50. The Hawks, who have clinched a spot in the Empire 8 Conference Tournament, are now 19-3 (11-1 E8). The Soaring Eagles fall to 5-15 (1-10 E8).
Hartwick got out to a quick start, scoring the first eight points of the game. Mary Schoenherr (Unionville, CT/Farmington) scored on the night's first possession from Pine, and then returned the favor a minute later by assisting on a Pine lay-up. Corbett followed with a lay-up of her own, and Maggie Kirby (Selkirk, NY/Bethlehem) finished the run by putting one home off of an offensive rebound. Elmira got as close as five later in the quarter, but ten points from Johnson over the final 2:47 (including a buzzer-beating three) put the Hawks up by 13 after ten minutes, 24-11. 'Wick extended their lead in the second, outscoring the Soaring Eagles 22-13. Highlights from the period include a personal 5-0 run by Pine and five more points from Johnson, giving her 15 for the half. At the break, Hartwick was in firm control, up 46-24.
Elmira made a bit of a game of it in the third quarter. The Hawk lead held firm at between 18 and 20 for most of the period, before a three and a lay-up by Bridget Yaw on back-to-back possessions made the margin 15 and a subsequent lay-up from Lauren Franklin narrowed the gap to 13. Molly Kirby (Selkirk, NY/Bethlehem) hit a three to end the quarter, however, and Hartwick went into the final period leading by 16 points, 57-41. They reasserted their dominance in the fourth quarter, doubling up the hosts, 18-9. The lead was extended out to as much as 29 after Kayley Ericson (Franklin, CT/Norwich Free Academy) made a lay-up with 2:53 on the clock, but Elmira scored the game's final four points to make the final score a tidy 75-50.
Corbett had the best night of any player, registering game highs with 16 points and eight rebounds, as well as shooting a perfect 8-of-8 from the foul line. She complemented her strong scoring and rebounding performances with four assists, two blocks, and a steal, giving her a neat 16-8-4-2-1 line. Pine (6-of-7) and Johnson (6-of-11) each dropped 15 points; Pine also grabbed six rebounds, tied Corbett for a game-high two blocks, and had a team-high two steals. Johnson had four rebounds, two assists, and a steal, and also shot 3-of-5 from three-point range. She now has 164 career threes, just two shy of tying and three shy of breaking the program record of 166. Maggie Kirby was the only other Hawk in double digits, scoring ten points on 5-of-7 from the field. As she has done many times this year, Schoenherr had a very strong all-around evening, scoring eight points, gathering seven rebounds (four offensive), and dishing out a season-high-tying eight assists.
Hartwick easily had the advantage over Elmira in all aspects of the shooting game, outshooting the hosts 45.3% to 31.3% overall, 33.3% to 20.0% from three, and 92.9% to 70.0% from the line. The Hawks had a significant 44 to 34 rebounding advantage; Elmira reversed that on the offensive boards, outrebounding the Hawks 15 to 14, but 'Wick had a 21 to 13 lead in second chance points. Hartwick had a narrow turnover advantage, giving it up 12 times to Elmira's 14, but converted their opponent's turnovers into points at a better rate, 16 to nine.
Yaw and Rachel Vespucci had identical lines for the Soaring Eagles, scoring 10 points and grabbing four rebounds (two offensive). Lindsey Heaton and Franklin both had nice all-around games for the hosts; Heaton had eight points, a game-high five steals, four assists, and three rebounds, while Franklin had seven points, four rebounds, four assists, and a steal. Alyssa Waters had six points and a team-high seven rebounds.
The Hawks have their final regular season home game next Sunday, February 10 against St. John Fisher, a makeup game from January 19. Tip-off is at 12 p.m., and seniors Johnson and Corbett will both be honored prior to the game for their contributions to the program.
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