GENEVA, N.Y. – The Union College defense held strong for three quarters, but fourth-seeded William Smith outscored the fifth-seeded Dutchwomen 27-11 in the fourth quarter in dealing Union a 65-50 defeat in the first round of the Liberty League Tournament, held on Tuesday night at Schmidt Gymnasium.
 
William Smith (17-8), who wins for the first time in three meetings with Union (16-9) this season, advances to the semifinals of the Liberty League Tournament and will face top-seeded Ithaca on Saturday. Union has its excellent season come to a close with the loss.
 
Senior Sophie Borg scored a team-leading 14 points on perfect 5-of-5 shooting, while classmate Nicole Conley chipped in eight points, a team-high six rebounds and a game-high four blocks in their final collegiate game. Freshman Amber Raisner also added 13 points and three blocks as well for the Dutchwomen.
 
The Herons won Tuesday's game on the glass, as the home team out-rebounded the visitors by a 41-29 margin, including a 20-4 advantage on the offensive glass that resulted in 23 second-chance points. Mia Morrison scored 17 points with 11 rebounds, while Olivia Hughes added a game-high 19 points for the Herons.
 
The Dutchwomen jumped out to an early 4-0 lead on buckets from Borg and freshman Laura Vinton, and the lead changed hands a few more times before a three-point play from Raisner gave Union the final lead change of the opening quarter up 11-9. The visitors finished the first with a 13-12 lead thanks to holding the Herons to 4-of-15 shooting.
 
The lead changed hands twice more in the second quarter, with junior Joana Santos draining a three with 7:27 left that put Union ahead for the remainder of the frame. The Dutchwomen went into the half leading 27-21 behind seven points of Borg.
 
Union built up its largest lead of the night after a pair of Santos freebies made the score 35-28 with 4:07 left in the third, but a 10-4 run got the Herons within one at 39-38 after three quarters. The home team went on a 12-2 run to start the final frame, building up a 50-41 edge with 4:16 remaining, and six straight points came after a Raisner three to put the game out of reach in the final minutes.
 
Union shot the ball well, finishing the night at 44.4 percent (20 of 45) from the field, and limited William Smith to just 37.5 percent shooting (24 of 64), but the 19 more shot attempts caught up to the Dutchwomen in the second half.
 
The season may be over but the future is promising for the Dutchwomen, who lose two big pieces in the front court but are set to return eight underclassmen and 11 players from this season's 16-9 squad.