UTICA, NY - The Utica University women's basketball team is set to host Hartwick College on Tuesday, January 23 at 5:30 p.m. and Houghton University on Saturday, January 27 at 2 p.m. in its Brooks Miles & Alumnae Game.
 
Follow Along: Those unable to attend either game can tune in for live video and/or stats here.
 
Last Time Out: The team fell to Alfred University 67-63 in an Empire 8 battle that forced overtime last Saturday. McKenzie Simmons (Red Hook, NY/Red Hook) led the team with 13 points, nine rebounds, and three assists and was a fantastic 7-for-9 from the charity stripe. Hayleigh Lagase (Wallingford, CT/Mark T. Sheehan) was phenomenal, pouring in a new Pioneer career-high 12 points and a career-high 10 boards to secure her first double-double with Utica. Vanessa Hall (Whitesville, NY/Whitesville Central) added 11 points with four rebounds with Krissy Geraci (Rochester, NY/Greece Arcadia) scoring nine points and grabbing seven rebounds. Haley Burchhardt (Schenectady, NY/Schalmont) also dropped nine points and hauled in four rebounds. Julia Rotando (Cold Spring, NY/Haldane) scored seven points with three rebounds and four assists. The teams began the match each converting a pair of layups to have the score tied 4-4 just about two minutes into the first quarter. Haley Burchhardt (Schenectady, NY/Schalmont) canned a triple and Vanessa Hall (Whitesville, NY/Whitesville Central) scored a pretty and-one to give Utica a strong 10-4 edge at the 6:29 mark. Alfred started to claw back, tying the score at 12-12 yet Hayleigh Lagase (Wallingford, CT/Mark T. Sheehan) and McKenzie Simmons (Red Hook, NY/Red Hook) each scored three points over the last few possessions to give the team a 20-16 edge after one. The Saxons came out firing and now trailed just 20-19 yet Krissy Geraci (Rochester, NY/Greece Arcadia) was on fire nailing three jumpers to increase the team's lead to 26-19 about halfway through the frame. Alfred had a small scoring run to knot the score at 28-28 yet Lagase nailed a clutch three-pointer to aid Utica in grasping a 31-28 advantage at the half. Vanessa Hall (Whitesville, NY/Whitesville Central) started the second half with a pair of layups to increase the Pioneers lead to 35-28 with 6:40 remaining in the third quarter. Utica kept attacking the paint as McKenzie Simmons (Red Hook, NY/Red Hook) hit a pair of free throws to extend the lead to 37-30. Yet, the Saxons rallied with a nine point scoring run to hold a slim 39-37 edge with just 1:40 left in the quarter. The Pioneers retook a 41-39 lead, yet an Alfred four-point play gave the Saxons a 43-41 lead after three frames of play.Utica quickly tied the game 43-43 in the fourth quarter with a Geraci layup at the 9:40 mark. However, the Saxons started to heat up from beyond the arc hitting four three-pointers to grab a firm 55-45 edge with just over six minutes to play. Yet, the Pioneers were clutch as a Julia Rotando (Cold Spring, NY/Haldane) three-pointer and McKenzie Simmons (Red Hook, NY/Red Hook) and-one knotted the game at 57-57 and sent it into overtime. The Saxons splashed a triple to begin overtime, yet Lagase nailed a pair of free throws and a Burchhardt steal and fastbreak layup put Utica up 61-60 at the 3:47 mark. Alfred regained a 62-61 edge, yet a Geraci free throw tied the game at 62-62. The Saxons retook a 65-62 lead with an and-one at the 1:50 mark. Utica rallied yet Alfred held on for a 67-63 overtime win. 
 
A Game for Brooks Miles: The Pioneers will host Houghton University at 2 p.m. on January 27 for its annual Brooks Miles Game. "A Game for Brooks Miles" was created after Utica College Alum Dr. Greg Rorick '98 and his wife Angela lost their son, Brooks, shortly after he was born in 2008 from heart complications. This year's proceeds will go towards Luka, who was born on March 23, 2023, and has been in the pediatric ICU over 10 months with only a few weeks spent home. The family is asking for help to offset the growing hospital expenses and any new expenses that occur as they acclimate to Luka living at home. A direct link to the fundraiser can be found here.
 
Where We Stand: The team is currently 4-11 and sports a 1-5 conference record which is eighth in the conference. Utica's offense is in the middle of the pack in the Empire 8 averaging 54.5 points per game yet has come alive scoring more than 63 points in its last two outings. The team continues to be strong from the charity stripe with its 68.3 percent clip being third best in the Empire 8. The Pioneers defense has also started to ramp it up, ranking third in the conference averaging 11.07 steals per game and fifth averaging 2.53 blocks per game.
 
Going Hall the Way: Vanessa Hall (Whitesville, NY/Whitesville Central) turned in another strong week pouring in 52 points, eight rebounds, three assists, and two blocks over the course of three Empire 8 games. The freshman poured in 22 points against St. John Fisher and followed this up with an incredible performance against Elmira with 19 points, three rebounds, three assists, and two blocks. Hall continues to lead the conference in scoring with her 17.2 points per game and has reached double figures in all of her 15 appearances.
 
I'm Heating Up: Haley Burchhardt (Schenectady, NY/Schalmont) has been heating up as of late, turning in two strong outings in a row especially on the offense end. The sophomore poured in 17 points with six rebounds and two assists against Elmira on January 19. The Schenectady, NY native followed this up with nine points, four rebounds, and one steal against Alfred. Her three-point shooting has started to become a real factor as she has made at least one three-pointer in seven straight-games including hitting more than two in three of those outings.
 
Scouting the Hawks: Hartwick sits at 6-9 and boasts a 4-3 conference record which ranks fourth in the Empire 8. The team fell to SUNY Cobleskill 61-49 in its last outing on Friday, January 19. Bree Fargnoli leads the squad averaging 13.3 points per game and also leads the team with 22 steals while stretching the floor with 13 made three-pointers. Isabella Astorino is another top scorer averaging 10.4 points per game with 7.5 rebounds per game while being one of the top shot blockers in the conference with 25. Sareena DiCerbo is another scoring option averaging 9.4 points per game with 6.9 rebounds per game while also being another pesky defender with 21 steals this season. 
 
Looking at Houghton: The Highlanders are an incredible 15-1 this season and sport a 6-1 conference record which has them tied for second in the Empire 8. The team topped Russell Sage College 71-54 in its last outing on Saturday, January 20. The team will clash with Nazareth and Keuka before facing Utica on Saturday, January 27 at 2 p.m. Kayla Camacho is the conference's third leading scorer averaging 15.3 points per game along with 5.4 rebounds per game. Camacho is also a ferocious defender with 40 steals and 14 blocks this season. Crysta LaCrosse and Tabitha DeVries are two more top scorers each averaging at least 10 points per game, 4.8 rebounds per game, and 21 steals with DeVries also swatting 18 shots this season. 

Up Next: The team will host Nazareth University on Tuesday, January 30 at 5:30 p.m.