HOBOKEN, N.J. (January 10, 2010) – Sophomore forward Jillian Barrett netted a team-high 15 points to power the Stevens Institute of Technology women's basketball team past visiting Empire 8 rival Hartwick College, 70-50, at Canavan Arena in Hoboken, N.J. With the win, the Ducks moved to 7-5 on the season with a 5-1 league ledger, while Hartwick fell to 4-9 overall and with a 2-4 mark against conference opponents.

Hartwick senior guard Heather Pruchansky (Naples, Fla.) netted five of the game's first seven points to stake the Hawks to an early, 5-2, lead before a 9-2 Stevens run, capped off by a Sarah Gehring triple, helped the Ducks build a four-point advantage at the 15:32 mark.

After a pair of Lauren Ploof (Hammond, N.Y.) free-throws cut the Hawks' deficit to one, Stevens reeled off another 9-2 run – beginning with a Paige Armstrong three-point play – to take an eight-point lead with just over eight and a half minutes remaining in the first half.

A three-pointer by Hartwick sophomore guard Jordan Nichols (Bloomville, N.Y.) coupled with a pair of Jalicia Connell (Westbury, N.Y.) free-throws pared the Stevens advantage to three, but the Ducks responded with a 7-0 run of their own thanks to a pair of Armstrong and Victoria O'Connor layups followed by a Gehring three.

Down 10 after a Kathleen Schuckers triple at 1:50, Connell tallied a two more free-throws to pull Hartwick within eight, but O'Connor drained her first three-pointer of the season as time expired to give the Ducks an 11-point cushion heading into the intermission.

Stevens extended their lead to 15 with a pair of Brittany Fuller and Barrett layups coming out of the break before Cassie Dresser (Ovid, N.Y.) netted five-straight points, kick-starting a quick, 7-0, Hawks run that trimmed the Ducks' lead to eight.

Still up eight after Hartwick's Laneka Brown (Spring Glen, N.Y.) buried a three-pointer at 10:56, Stevens wrestled control of the game, rattling off 16 unanswered points to take a decisive, 64-40, lead with just over five and a half minutes to play. Schuckers started the crucial run with back-to-back layups, before a pair of Fuller and Barrett layups gave the Ducks a 16-point edge. The lead swelled to 19 after a Dawn Garcia triple at 7:02, before a Barrett three-point play and Armstrong layup all but ensured the Stevens victory.

Fuller finished with nine points and 10 rebounds, while Armstrong tallied 11 points, nine boards, and three assists. Gehring totaled 10 points, six rebounds, and three assists in the win, while Schuckers and O'Connor finished with nine points apiece.

Pruchansky paced Hartwick offensively, leading all scorers with 16 points, while Dresser added 14 points, five assists, and three steals. Connell netted nine points in the loss.

Stevens, which shot 46.3 percent (31-for-67) from the floor and 46.2 percent (6-for-13) from three-point range, held Hartwick to just 25.9 percent shooting (14-for-54) on the afternoon. The Ducks also held a 50-27 rebounding margin, while forcing 15 Hawks turnovers.

Stevens will travel to Elmira College on January 15 before squaring off with Ithaca College on January 16.