SCHENECTADY, NY— The Union College Dutchwomen defeated the William Smith Herons tonight, 49-45, in the Liberty League conference opener.

Jenni Barra led all scorers with 15 points, nine of which consisted of back-to-back-to-back three pointers. Sophie Borg notched a team-high nine rebounds to go with six points.

The Herons controlled the glass (47-39) and committed six fewer turnovers, but struggled from the floor, shooting a season-low 26 percent. The Dutchwomen were able to maintain a 35 percent shooting percentage and went seven of eight from the charity stripe, opposed to the Herons' four of eight. 

The Dutchwomen scored the first five points of the game, an advantage that proved to be the largest lead of the contest for either side. William Smith countered with the next eight points, including back-to-back 3-pointers by Kendra Quinn-Moultrie and Stavriana Dimitrakopoulou. Union led 13-10 at the end of the first quarter and took a 23-20 edge into halftime.

The third quarter featured four lead changes. Quinn-Moultrie made a pair of free throws with just under a minute remaining to give the visitors the lead, their second of the quarter, 37-36. Barra answered with a layup for Union and a 38-37 edge heading into the fourth quarter.

In the final frame, the Dutchwomen maintained a narrow lead through the first eight minutes, but the Herons were finally able to draw even with 89 seconds left on a layup. Both teams misfired on shots to retake the lead, before Union's Lily Abarbanel made two from the line with 45 seconds remaining.

William Smith missed its next shot, got the rebound, but turned the ball over. The Herons got the ball back with a steal, but Borg foiled the comeback attempt with a steal for the Dutch. Barra sealed the victory with two makes at the free throw line with eight seconds remaining.

With a 1-0 start to Liberty League play, the Dutchwomen return to action tomorrow against RIT in the Viniar Center. Tip-off is slated for a 2 p.m. start.