New York, NY – The women's basketball team lost a heartbreaker earlier this evening against longtime CUNYAC rival, Baruch College, by a score of 75-74. Despite having four in double digit scoring and leading for nearly the entire game, the Hawks (16-7, 9-5 CUNYAC) were unable to hold off the Charging Bearcats (5-14, 5-9 CUNYAC) in the final seconds of the contest.
 
Jade Aponte lead the offensive attack for the Purple and Gold, tallying 15 points while Theresa Leung did her part with a 12 point effort. Christine Patterson nearly recorded a double-double but fell just shy with 10 points and nine boards while teammate Maya Patterson had the reverse stat line; nine points and 10 rebounds. Ashley Arias reached double figures in both rebounds and points with 10 and 12 respectively.
 
Aponte knocked down a triple to start the game with Leung connecting on a jumper on the ensuing possession for the early lead. On two occasions, the Purple and Gold held a seven point upper hand, but Baruch managed to pull within one at the 4:21 mark. Two late free throws from the hosts made it a five point contest at the end of the first in favor of Hunter.
 
In the second, a lay in by Arias and a trey from Selina Lim gave their team a nine point cushion; the largest of the first half. With 39 seconds left, Aponte drilled a three pointer while their defense held steady on the last possession to send the game into halftime with the score reading 41-33.
 
With the help of six unanswered points in the third, Hunter quickly built their lead to 12 at the 7:26 mark; the largest of the game. The two teams each managed to score 18 in the third quarter to keep the eight point differential heading into the final 10 minutes.
 
The hosts gradually chipped away at the deficit and eventually came within two points at 69-67 with 2:50 left to play. Five straight Baruch points gave them their first lead of the game with 25 seconds showing on the clock. Leung muscled a layup and earned the three-point play the hard way to put the Hawks back on top by one. A late foul sent the Bearcat's Shannon Barrett to the line with seven seconds remaining and she made both attempts. A final effort by Leung fell just shy as her shot rattled off the rim resulting in the 75-74 loss.
 
The Hawks return to action on Saturday, February 10 when they host CCNY at the Sportsplex on senior day. Tip-off is slated for a 1pm start.