HAMBURG, N.Y.  – The Hilbert College women's basketball team improved to 4-1 in Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference action as the Hawks defeated Franciscan University 70-31 this afternoon.

Kelsi Ebert, who led the hosts with 15 points, became only the fourth player in the program's history to reach 1,000 points.  Ebert also added eight assists and five steals as Hilbert extended the program's fastest AMCC start .

Morgan McNeill went 3-for-6 from beyond the arc, scoring 13 points off the bench and Katelyn Proy added 12 points alongside Emily Gawlak who finished with 10.

Ebert slowly inched her way through a majority of the game going 6-for-6 from the charity stripe in the first half before she closed-out the third quarter (00:07) with her first basket collecting nine points.  The 5-7 senior guard knocked down her second "three" of the game just eighteen seconds into the fourth quarter which elevated her over the pivotal milestone in a player's career.

Hilbert jumped out to a quick 25-9 lead after ten minutes of play.  Both team struggled in the second quarter as they combined for just 12 points. The Hawks outscored the Barons 9-3 sending both teams to the locker room settled into a 34-12 half time score.

Hilbert earned 19 points off Franciscan's opening-half 15 turnovers.  Emily Gawlak led all scorers with 10 points while Ashley Repine posted five rebounds by intermission.

The Hawks gathered just 13, 3rd quarter points as they were tense trying to make things happen for Ebert.  Finally with just seven seconds left in the quarter, Ebert posted her first bucket in the game which broke the 10-10 third session score.

As stated before, Ebert knocked down her first shot in the fourth quarter which unleased the excitement and at the same time relieved the pressure.   The Hawks forced a Baron turnover and Ebert reached from deep again, making that her third consecutive 3-point shot in the span of 63-seconds. 

Morgan McNeil continued the team's success from beyond the arc, hitting her second long-ball on Hilbert's next offensive possession.  Natassia West squeezed in four-points before Alayna DeFazio found her range adding one more hit from downtown which created a 63-27 score with 2:50 remaining.

Proy closed the day hitting five of her seven shots while Maegann Mein and Jenna Castricone hit 50% of their attempts (2-for-4).  Repine and Abbey Monahan each added three assists in the win.

After today's game, Ebert is now 86 points away from becoming the Hawks All-Time scoring leader.  She became the #1 Steal leader last year and took over the top in Assists last week.  Her current numbers can be found (HERE).

Hilbert (6-4) returns to action after the new year.  The Hawks will travel to Pitt-Greensburg January 6 before they return to Hamburg for a non-conference match against Empire 8 foe, Nazareth College January 8.
 
Be sure to stay up-to-date on all your Hilbert Hawks scores and awards by following @HilbertAthletic on Twitter and by liking the "Hilbert College Athletics" Facebook page.  Additionally fans of the Hawks who have an Apple device can receive push notification from the newly created Hilbert College Hawks iOS SIDEARM mobile App which can be found in the Apple Store and ITunes.