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SCHENECTADY, N.Y. – Sophomore
Laura Vinton and senior
Joana Santos led four Dutchwomen in double figures with a game-high 14 points as the Union College women's basketball team started the season on the right foot with a 65-46 victory over Hartwick College on Friday night at the Viniar Athletic Center.
Vinton had a solid outing in her first collegiate start, adding eight rebounds to her 17 points. She was joined in double figures by Santos, who also scored 14 points with a game-high four steals; sophomore
Anna Metcalf, who chipped in 13 points, five boards, five assists and two steals; and senior
Elly Vaughan, who grabbed a game-high 17 boards – including 11 offensive caroms – to go with her 10-point night.
The Union defense also starred on the night, forcing 27 Hartwick turnovers and converting them into 26 points at the other end of the court. Eight different players had at least one steal for the home team.
The Dutchwomen jumped out to a 13-4 lead at the midway point of the opening quarter, capped by a three from junior
Corina Lindsay. Metcalf finished the opening quarter with a three that opened up a 21-9 Union advantage, as the home team forced nine turnovers in 10 minutes and shot 53.3 percent (8-of-15) from the field.
The teams alternated buckets for the first four minutes of the second quarter before Union closed on a 10-5 run, punctuated by a Metcalf trifecta on the period's final possession that put the Dutchwomen ahead 39-21 at the break.
Hartwick started the third quarter with a 6-0 run, but Santos hit a big three to stem the tide and the visitors never got the deficit under 15 points the rest of the way.
For the game, Union shot 38.5 percent (25 of 65) from the field and 6-of-17 (35.3 percent) from beyond the arc, while Hartwick finished at 38.0 percent (19-of-50) and took 15 fewer shots than their opponents.
Union will continue its challenging early-season schedule next weekend at UMass Dartmouth's Lafrance Hospitality Classic, beginning next Saturday at 7 p.m. against Babson College.
