West Hartford, Conn. - Adrienne Jones led UAlbany with nine points while Julie Forster grabbed a game-high 14 rebounds to lead UAlbany to a 40-37 win over Hartford in America East Conference women's basketball action on Monday evening at Chase Family Arena. The Great Dane victory, which was the league opener for both teams, marks the second straight season UAlbany has defeated Hartford, the reigning America East champion, on its home court in the regular season.

            UAlbany started off the game with an 11-0 run, getting a 3-pointer from Ebone Henry with just under 12 minutes on the clock. Shanise Bultron ended the run for Hartford, nailing a trey of her own with 10:50 to play, but Henry responded with her second long-range shot less than a minute later to keep the Great Danes ahead by double digits. The Hawks cut the lead to seven at 4:44 with a 3-pointer by Nikkia Smith, and shrunk the deficit again at 3:46 with a long-distance basket by Bultron to pull within 14-10.

            A steal by Jones led to a fast break layup by Henry with just under three minutes to play, while a 3-pointer by Lindsey Lowrie put UAlbany back on top by seven, 19-12, with 1:17 to go in the first half. It looked as though UAlbany would take the seven-point lead to the locker room, but Ruthanne Doherty nailed a shot from downtown with one second on the clock to cut the lead to 19-15 at the half.

            Smith hit a jumper to start the second half and pull the Hawks within two, but UAlbany battled back and regained a 25-18 advantage on a lay-in by Jones with 14:17 to play. Hartford then went on a 12-4 run, and took its first lead of the game, 30-29, on a 3-pointer by Daphne Elliott with 6:41 left in the game. Lowrie responded with a jumper to put the Great Danes back on top, where they would not relinquish their lead for the rest of the game. Hartford would cut the score to a point twice more in the game, but a relentless defense combined with strong free throw shooting down the stretch by the Great Danes, would allow UAlbany to hold on for the final 3-point victory.

            "I told the team before the game, the winner will execute offensively," said UAlbany head coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson, whose team broke a three-game losing streak with tonight's victory. "Both teams had trouble with that tonight, but this is a tough place to play. The rivalry between these teams is intense, the games are always close. It's great to get the win over Hartford to open conference play, especially on the road."

            Bultron led Hartford (8-6, AE 0-1) with 10 points, going 3-of-7 from behind the 3-point line and 1-of-2 from the charity stripe. Elliott added nine points for the Hawks, while Gilbert grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds. UAlbany held the Hawks to 25.0-percent (11-44) shooting from the floor in the game.

            UAlbany (7-7, AE 1-0) got eight points and six rebounds, along with two steals, one assist and one block from Henry, while both Forster and Jones also recorded two steals. The Great Danes outrebounded the Hawks, 39-34, and recorded a 32.0 (16-50) shooting percentage.

            UAlbany will return to action on Wednesday, continuing America East play against UMBC at SEFCU Arena.