GENEVA, N.Y.—The William Smith College basketball team dominated the first quarter on its way to a 73-53 Liberty League victory over Union College in Bristol Gym this afternoon. The Herons raced out to a 24-8 lead after 10 minutes and maintained a double digit lead throughout the remainder of the contest.
 
Olivia Parisi led all scorers with 18 points on 7-of-14 shooting and a perfect 4-for-4 effort at the free throw line. She also grabbed seven boards, dished out a pair of assists and blocked two shots. Christina Mitrow erupted for a career-high 15 points, going 5-of-8 from beyond the 3-point arc. Brooke Jarvis also scored 15 points on 5-of-11 shooting from the floor. Lauren DeVaney grabbed a game-high 14 rebounds, leading the Herons to a 51-34 advantage on the glass.
 
Union was led by Megan Lee's 13 points on 6-of-11 shooting, six boards and two blocked shots. Laura Vinton joined her in double digits with 10 points. Olivia Pachla recorded eight points and a team-high eight rebounds.
 
William Smith (4-8, 3-3) was locked in right from the opening tip, making its first four shots from the field. The Herons shot 60% from the floor in the first quarter on the way to 44.6% for the game. William Smith jumped out to a 7-0 lead on a Parisi layup, a 3-pointer by Kerstin Kelly and layup by DeVaney. The Herons led by at least two possessions for the rest of the quarter and caught fire in the final three minutes.
 
Leading 13-6, William Smith rattled of 11 straight points. Kelly started the run with a three followed by a triple from Mitrow, then Parisi posted up for two and Mitrow dialed long distance again to give the Herons a 24-6 lead. Lee made the final bucket of the opening quarter to cut Union's deficit to 16 heading into the second quarter.
 
William Smith led by at least 13 and as many as 19 before carrying a 43-25 lead into the break. Mitrow closed out the first half scoring with a 3-pointer. She was 4-for-5 from deep in the first half, leading all scorers with 12 points going into the locker room.

Midway through the third quarter, Union (3-9, 1-5) scraped its way back within 14, 47-33, on a turnaround jumper by Laura Vinton. The Herons squashed any thoughts of a comeback with the next 13 points of the game, including another three by Mitrow to stretch the lead to 59-33. The Dutchwomen weren't able to gain any traction in the fourth quarter, falling by 20.
 
William Smith will be on the road for its next two games, visiting Clarkson on Jan. 21 and St. Lawrence on Jan. 22.