NEW YORK, NY – The Hartwick women's basketball team finished off a perfect 2-0 weekend in the NYU Tournament on Sunday, picking up a blowout win over Sarah Lawrence, 84-24. The victory moves the Hawks to 2-2 on the season, while the Gryphons fall to 0-4.
Hartwick essentially put the game away early, leading 14-2 not far over the midway point of the first quarter. Five different Hawks got in on the action throughout that stretch, and 'Wick ended up leading 27-7 after the first ten minutes. Kelly Pine (Hoosick Falls, NY/Hoosick Falls) and Giuliana Pritchard (Amsterdam, NY/Amsterdam) each had seven of those points.
Pritchard and Pine extended the Hartwick lead with twin lay-ups in the first two minutes of the second, and Molly Kirby (Selkirk, NY/Bethlehem), Pritchard, and Kelsey Collins (Forestburgh, NY/Eldred Central) followed with three more lay-ups for a 10-0 run and 37-7 lead. The teams traded points for the next few possessions, and the team from the City of the Hills went into the half with a 41-13 advantage.
The third quarter brought more of the same, as Hartwick outscored the Gryphons 26-7 and led 67-20 by the end. With the score 46-16, the Hawks went on a 16-0 run to take a 62-16 lead. Maggie Kirby (Selkirk, NY/Bethlehem) had six points on the run. A three-pointer from Victoria Sacramone (Queens, NY/St. Mary's) and a free throw each from Isley Sterling (Wilton, NY/Saratoga Springs) and Kayley Ericson (Franklin, CT/Norwich Free Academy) rounded out the period's scoring for Hartwick.
The fourth quarter was a mere formality with the game all but decided. Hartwick scored the first 10 points of the period, from four different players, and ended up with the 60-point lead by the time the buzzer sounded.
Maggie Kirby paced the Hawks with a season-high 19 points, achieved on 6-of-9 shooting and 6-of-7 from the line. She also added in four rebounds, two assists, two steals, and a block. Pritchard was right behind her with 17 points (7-of-12), six rebounds, and a career-high five blocks. Pine was the only other Hartwick player with double-digit scoring, at 12 on 5-of-6 from the field; she also had seven rebounds. Molly Kirby had eight points and a career high five steals (as well as three rebounds), and Mary Schoenherr (Unionville, CT/Farmington) registered six points, five assists, four rebounds, and four steals. Collins set her career high with nine boards, and pitched in with three points and a steal to boot.
Demitra Loukopoulous led Sarah Lawrence with nine points, and was followed up by Camryn Davis at seven points and Ana Srdanovic with six points. Davis and Srdanovic each had four rebounds, as well. Jordyn Medina led her side with seven rebounds and two steals.
Hartwick slammed the Gryphons offensively, shooting 49.3% compared to 18.0% from the field. They won the turnover battle, 32-20, and definitively won every other secondary statistical category there is. They led in points off turnovers, 42-4, second chance points, 17-5, points in paint, 48-6, and fast break points, 14-2.
Hartwick returns to action on Thursday, November 21, when they open their home schedule against rival SUNY Oneonta at 5:30 p.m.
Make sure to catch the latest news on all your favorite Hartwick Hawks teams by following @HawkTalk on Twitter, @hartwickhawks on Instagram, and by liking 'Hartwick Hawks' on Facebook.