ALFRED, NY – A collective effort from the Alfred University women's basketball team resulted in a 61-43 win over Houghton College on Tuesday evening from the Terry S. Galanis Family Arena.

The Saxons (7-9, 2-5 Empire 8) outrebounded the Highlanders (7-9, 1-6 Empire 8) by a 53-36 margin, while the defense held Houghton to 23.3 percent from the field.

Ana Ion (Bucharest, Romania/Episcopal School of Jacksonville) led the Saxons with 15 points and nine rebounds. Leah Harkenrider (Hornell, NY/Hornell) totaled 14 points and six boards. Anne Spila (Mechanicsburg, PA/Trinity) finished with a season-high 12 points.

"We were put in a tough situation due to COVID-19 protocols," Head Coach Mike Moskowitz said. "We struggled with practice earlier in the week, and I told our team that no one felt sorry for us. There are teams around the country that would love to play, even if it was just with eight players. From that moment on, our team played with a different level of intensity. I talked about the land of opportunity and how everyone had the chance to prove themselves. We put up a lot of great minutes tonight, especially from Anne and Ralie off the bench."

The AU offense got into early rhythm in the first quarter, opening with an 11-2 run that included five early points from Harkenrider. Late free throws from Ion and Karly Welty (Portville, NY/Portville Central) were answered by quick baskets by Houghton, as Alfred University led 13-7 at the end of the first quarter. The Saxons offense put together a 6-0 run with baskets from Harkenrider, Ion, and Spila in the early moments of the second quarter to lead by as many as 11 points. Gillian Flint (Caledonia, NY/Caledonia-Mumford) scored four of the team's final six points of the half, as the Saxons led the Highlanders 29-18 at the break.

Consecutive layups from Ion and Welty to open the second half of action extended AU's lead to 15 points. An 11-3 run from Houghton cut Alfred University's lead down to seven points. Spila totaled six points during a 15-0 run by the Saxons to end the third quarter, as AU led 51-29 entering the fourth quarter. Houghton continued to hit their shots, but five Saxons scored in the final quarter of action to seal the victory.

"We'll be completing a mental conditioning session with Sam Graver, watch some film, have a light practice, and focus on what we can do better from here," Moskowitz said. "We're moving into a tough opponent in Nazareth, so we'll focus on them throughout this week. As a coaching staff, we just need to get creative with our limited bodies. That being said, there's no group I'd rather go to battle with."

Alfred University will next travel to play Nazareth College on Friday with tip-off scheduled for 5:30 PM.