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ROCHESTER, NY – Hartwick (4-5, 1-1 Empire 8) ended the contest on a 18-4 run over the final 6:35 to hand the RIT women's basketball team (3-9, 1-2 Empire 8) a 66-51 loss at Clark Gym on Saturday afternoon.

RIT, who trailed by 13 early in the second half, chipped away and cut the Hartwick lead to one, at 48-47 on back-to-back 3-pointers by #Leslie Havens (Wayland, NY/Wayland-Cohocton)#, the second coming with 6:35 left. From there however, RIT went ice cold from the field and did not score in the final 4:34.

Kate Purcell led all scorers with 20 points for the Hawks. She was 10-for-14 from the foul line to go along with seven rebounds, four assists, and three steals. Fritzi Flores rebounded from a cold shooting first half to drain a pair of crucial 3-pointers in the second half, finishing with 12 points and six boards.
Katrina Caufield scored 11 points and added six boards. Samantha Fox led the Hawks with three blocks.

Havens and #Courtney Tennant (Cortland, NY/Cortland) led RIT with 16 points and eight rebounds apiece. Havens also dished out three assists and added three steals. (Neptune, NJ/Neptune)Kayla Wheeler (Clifton Park, NY/Shenendehowa) tallied eight points and eight boards. (Neptune, NJ/Neptune)Jess Kramer (Fayetteville, NY/Jamesville-Dewitt)# dished out six assists.

Hartwick won the battle of the boards, 42-35. RIT had 21 turnovers to Hartwick's 18. Hartwick attempted 32 free throws to just 12 for RIT.

The Hawks led 29-19 after a sloppily played first half that featured 22 turnovers and both teams shooting under 34 percent from the field. Purcell led the Hawks with 12 first half points, while Caulfield was 5-for-5 from the field. Wheeler paced RIT with eight points.

Hartwick leads the all-time series between the two schools, 31-7. Since the start of the 2006-07 season, Hartwick has won five of nine games. The two teams also meet at Hartwick on Feb. 11.

Last night, the Tigers fell to Stevens in Empire 8 action, 70-51 at Clark Gym. Havens led all scorers with 17 points.

The Tigers return to action on Tuesday, as they make the short trip to Nazareth for an Empire 8 contest that gets underway at 8 p.m.