Alfred, NY (1/10/15)- The Utica College women's basketball team picked up its second Empire 8 victory in as many days as it downed conference foe, Alfred University 72-50 Saturday afternoon.  Five different players scored at least ten points to pace the Pioneers, including freshman Ashley Mayo (Nanuet, NY/Nanuet), who netted a career-high 16 points.
 
With the win, Utica improves to 6-8 overall and 2-3 in the E8.  Alfred drops to 4-9, with a 1-4 mark in league play.  The Pioneers return home next weekend for a conference double-header against Houghton and Nazareth.  UC hosts Houghton Friday at 6 p.m. before welcoming Naz on Saturday (2 p.m.).
 
The Pioneers found themselves down 32-30 at halftime, but opened the second half outscoring Alfred 18-2 in the first six minutes.  Freshman Ashelyne Babb (Lynn, MA/Winthrop) also had a career day as she scored 15 points off the bench and added a team-best four steals to go along with six rebounds and three assists.  Mary Miceli (New Rochelle, NY/New Rochelle) had 13 points and tied for the team lead with four dishes, while Samantha Stayer (Allegany, NY/Allegany-Limestone) collected a double-double with 12 points and 15 boards.  Senior Bridget Greenwald (Wayne, NJ/Wayne Hills) helped out on both ends of the court, draining 10 points and grabbing nine rebounds. 
 
The Pioneers scored 34 points off of turnovers, while allowing just 14 total giveaways to the Saxons.  Kelsey Cowell (Schenectady, NY/Mohonasen) and Christy Traglie combined for six points and six rebounds on the day.  Alfred was led by Amanda Off, who had 17 points in the loss. 



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