The winter collegiate sports season is under way, which means, in the infamous words of Lil’ Bow Wow, “We’re playing basketball.” The Hamilton women’s basketball team is off to a fast start in November, carrying a 4–0 record to kick off the team’s push to play in the 2017/18 NESCAC playoffs. The team’s stout defense and potent offensive attack has led to an undefeated stretch for the Continentals, who have utilized the early non-conference schedule to build team chemistry before battling in intense NESCAC competition.
The Continentals’ first test of the 2017/18 season arrived in the form of the Hartwick Swoops, who they faced in the opening game of the Brockport Tip-Off Classic hosted by SUNY-Brockport from Nov. 17–18. On Friday, Hamilton toppled Hartwick 52–40 to earn its first victory of the season. Hartwick held a narrow 25–23 lead heading into halftime of the season opener, primarily carried by guard Carly Johnson who dropped 15 points in the first half — including all eight of Hartwick’s second quarter points. A 9–0 run in the third quarter helped the Continentals grab the lead heading into the fourth. Hamilton dominated in the final quarter, holding the Swoops to just three points and without a bucket in the final 6:56 of the contest. Lauren Getman ’18 came up big for Hamilton with seven points down the stretch to close out the win.
The Continentals’ lock-down defense late in the game was vital to capturing the opening night win, holding the Swoops to just 28.9 percent shooting while forcing 19 turnovers. Guard Carly O’Hern ’20 led the Continentals with 14 points, draining four three-pointers to pace the Hamilton offense. O’Hern also dominated on the defensive end of the floor, picking up three steals. Getman stuffed the stat sheet with 11 points, a team-leading seven rebounds, three assists, and two steals. Small forward Hallie Serbent ’19 contributed ten points in 30 minutes.
On Sat. Nov. 18, the Continentals extended their winning streak to two games in a win over the Alfred Saxons to close out the Brockport Tip-Off Classic. Despite the heroic effort of Alfred guard Jamie Wilcox, who put up 32 points, the all-around effort from Hamilton was enough to pull out the 69–55 victory at the neutral site. The Continentals fed off the momentum on the defensive end in the second quarter, outscoring the Saxons 18–9 to build a 33–26 halftime lead. Hamilton would not relinquish the early lead, dominating the paint while forcing countless Alfred mental errors. Getman led the Continentals with her first double-double of the year with 16 points and 14 rebounds, tying her single-game career high total. O’Hern was Hamilton’s leading scorer with 17 points in the victory, while Kendall Rallins ’19 was the leading distributor with four assists. Marie Steiner ’20 provided a much needed spark off the bench, dropping 15 points on the Saxons.
The following week, Hamilton made it three-in-a-row by picking up a victory against SUNY-Polytechnic. The Continentals battled the Wildcats in a tightly-contested match-up, but ultimately triumphed behind a dominant fourth quarter performance. SUNY-Polytechnic got off to a blistering start, holding the Continentals to just five points on one made field goal in the first quarter, while putting up 18 themselves. However, the Continentals fought back to trim the Wildcats’ advantage to 28–22. Trailing by four in the fourth quarter, Hamilton went on a 17-point run, holding the Wildcats without a made basket until the final ten seconds of the quarter. The scoreboard read 58–49 when the final buzzer sounded. Samantha Srinivasan ’18 scored
ten of her 16 points in the final quarter of the game, where she was a perfect six for six from the free-throw line in the final ten minutes. Srinivasan also racked up four steals on the defensive end of the floor to tie a career high. O’Hern led all Hamilton players — for the third straight game — with 18 points, including two three-pointers. Getman picked up another double-double against the Wildcats, with 12 points and 12 rebounds, while also tallying one steal and one block. The Continentals played impressive team defense, holding the Wildcats under 30 percent shooting from the field.
The Continentals closed out their first quartet of games with their first home contest at the Margaret Bundy Scott Field House against the Utica College pioneers. Hamilton had a perfect start to the game, allowing just one basket through the first quarter. Getman led the way with seven points in the first period where the Continentals outscored their opponents 15–2.
Hamilton would control the game for the remainder of the non-conference match-up, closing out the 52–40 victory with relative ease. Steiner and Serbent were the lone Continentals in double figures with 13 and 12 points respectively. Srinivasan dominated on the glass with 12 rebounds, while Getman logged ten rebounds, three steals, and two blocks. For the third time in four games, Hamilton held their opponents below 30 percent shooting.
Hamilton will put its winning streak on the line this Fri. Dec. 1 at 5:30 p.m. against Morrisville State before returning home for games against Cazenovia (Dec. 4) and Union (Dec. 6). Morrisville has stumbled to a 1–3 record in their first four games, allowing over 70 points to their opponents in every game. Cazenovia (3–1) will present a substantial challenge to a strong Continentals’ defense, led by senior guard Skylar Girard who is averaging 21.5 points per game. Union holds a 1–1 record, but has struggled to score the basketball, averaging just 44 points per game.
The Continentals will start NESCAC competition on Jan. 7 with a home game against the Trinity Bantams, seeking to gain a bid to the NESCAC quarterfinals in mid-February. Hamilton will be looking to capitalize on a seven-game home stand in the second half of January into February to close out the season on a high note before the post-season begins. However, a lot of basketball will be played before the playoffs will be at the forefront of the minds of the Hamilton players, who will seek simply to keep their winning streak alive as long as possible in non-conference play.
