BOSTON, Mass. – The Hartwick College women's basketball team opened its 2026-27 season on Friday night, falling 69-64 to Emerson College at Brown & Plofker Gym. The Hawks battled back from an early deficit and made a late push in the fourth quarter, but the Lions held on in the closing seconds to secure the five-point victory.
Senior guard
Macy Durkin (Syracuse, N.Y./Jamesville-DeWitt) and sophomore forward
Molly Russom (Broadalbin, N.Y./Broadalbin-Perth) led the Hawks offensively with 16 points apiece. Durkin recorded a double-double with 10 rebounds, while also contributing two assists, two steals and a block. Russom added six rebounds, three steals and a block while shooting 5-of-9 from the floor and 6-of-7 at the free-throw line. Freshman guard
Ellie Lennon (Rockville Centre, N.Y./South Side) powered the team's fourth-quarter push, finishing with 15 points, shooting 4-of-7 from the field, including 2-of-5 from beyond the arc, and 5-of-6 at the free-throw line.
As a team, Hartwick shot 44.9% (22-of-49) from the field and 22.2% (4-of-18) from the three-point range. The Hawks outrebounded Emerson 32-28, but converted just 16-of-26 attempts at the free-throw line. Hartwick also scored 26 points in the paint and 19 points off the bench. The Lions shot 42.4% from the floor and 12-36 from three (33.3%), and were 7-9 (77.8%).
The Hawks move to 0-1 overall to begin the season and will remain in Massachusetts for their next contest, taking on Curry College on Saturday, November 7 at 3 p.m. Emerson improves to 1-0 with the victory, and next takes on Elmira College on Saturday, Nov. 7 at 7 p.m.
Emerson established an early advantage, opening the contest with a 24-point first quarter while limiting Hartwick to 10 points. The Hawks found some offensive rhythm in the second quarter, outscoring the Lions 19-15 to trim the deficit to 39-29 heading into halftime.
Emerson maintained its 10-point advantage entering the final period, after a back-and-forth third quarter, leading 53-43. Hartwick continued to chip away in the fourth, getting contributions from across the lineup. Lennon led the first charge around the half-point of the fourth, as the freshman hit a three and two free throws to pull the team within four before the Lions pushed their lead back out to seven.
Hartwick made its biggest push in the closing minutes. Trailing 62-59, Russom converted two free throws with 2:29 remaining to bring the Hawks within two. After Emerson added a free throw, Russom finished a layup with 51 seconds remaining to make it a one-point game at 63-62. Emerson's Jessie Silk responded with a jumper with 23 seconds left, extending the lead to three. The Lions then converted four free throws in the final 10 seconds to hold off Hartwick's comeback attempt, despite a late basket from Durkin that pulled the Hawks back within three.
Silk led all scorers with 20 points for Emerson, shooting 8-of-19 from the field and 3-of-8 from three-point range. Addie Meyer and Lindsay Gould each added seven rebounds, while Beya Chase contributed nine points and three assists.
