AMHERST, N.Y. – Senior Caitlyn Abela (North Easton, Mass.) drilled six three-pointers and totaled 23 points to lead Saint Anselm College to a 77-69 victory over Daemen College here today in non-conference women's basketball action.

It marked the first-ever meeting between the two NCAA Division II East Region teams. Saint Anselm, a long-time member of the Northeast-10 Conference, improved to 7-4. The win capped a successful swing through Western New York for the Hawks, who posted a 78-70 win at Roberts Wesleyan College yesterday. Daemen dropped to 3-7.

As has been the case all season for Daemen, the Wildcats were led by senior Leah McDonell (North Tonawanda, N.Y./Cardinal O'Hara) and junior Sarah Saba (Lancaster, N.Y./Lancaster). McDonell connected on 9-of-12 shots and equaled her career-high for points (23)—which she posted in a season-opening win over Felician College. Saba added 17 points, a team-high nine rebounds and a team-high five assists in 27 minutes off the bench. She entered the game just 10 points shy of becoming the 23rd member of the program's 1,000-Point Club, and reached the milestone after draining a three-pointer with 28 seconds left in the third quarter.

Freshman Jordan Heinold (Hamburg, N.Y./Immaculata Academy) added eight points, seven rebounds and two blocks for the hosts.

All five starters scored in double figures for the Hawks. Senior Candice Andrews (Boston, Mass.) connected on 7-of-10 shots and totaled 14 points, seven assists and four steals, while junior Clairee Putman (Windham, N.H.) went 4-for-6 from downtown and totaled 12 points and five assists.

The score was 7-6 Saint Anselm after Heinold drained a three-pointer, but the Hawks ran off a 10-2 run over the next three minutes. A layup by Andrews with just over four minutes left in the quarter capped the run and gave the Hawks a 17-8 lead. The visitors later took their largest lead of the quarter, 21-11, after a nice feed from Andrews led to a layup by junior Erin Waters (Pawling, N.Y.) with 2:11 left in the frame. Back-to-back three-pointers by Daemen's Natalie Galus (Hamburg, N.Y./Frontier) quickly cut the lead to four points, and a jumper by sophomore Erin Egan (Williamsville, N.Y./Williamsville South) just before the buzzer made it a two-point game, 21-19, after one quarter.

Neither team scored for the first two minutes of the second quarter before a layup by Saba tied the game at 21-21. The Hawks then embarked on a 20-4 run over the next 4:15 that featured four three-pointers. Putnam and Abela both drilled two triples during the run and layup by Andrews with 3:36 left before halftime capped the run and gave the Hawks a 41-25 lead. The teams traded baskets the rest of the half and St. Anselm took a 44-27 lead into the break.

A 5-2 spurt by Daemen at the start of the third quarter cut the the lead to 14 points. The Hawks then got a desperation three-pointer by Abela just before the shot clock expired, and after a Daemen turnover Putnam drained her fourth three-pointer to give the Hawks a 52-32 advantage midway through the third quarter. St. Anselm took a 62-43 lead into the final quarter.

The Saint Anselm lead was 19 points, 67-48, midway through the fourth quarter when a layup by McDonell sparked the Wildcats on a 17-6 run. A three-pointer by McDonell with exactly two minutes to play capped the rally and cut the lead to eight points, 73-65. The teams traded layups, before a layup by Saba made it two possession game with 23 seconds left. Daemen then forced a St. Anselm turnover, but a 10-foot jumper by Saba was off the mark and the Hawks came up with the rebound. The Hawks made 2-of-4 free throws over the final 13 seconds to secure the win.

Daemen shot 53-percent (16-for-30) from the field in the second half and finished 27-for-62 (44%) from the field overall. The Wildcats connected on 10-of-23 three-point attempts and made 5-of-7 free throws. The Hawks shot a sizzling 61-percent (19-for-31) from the field in the first half and finished 32-for-59 (54%) from the field overall. The visitors made 6-of-11 from downtown over the first 20 minutes and finished 10-for-21 from behind the arc overall. The Hawks made 3-of-8 free throws. Both teams collected 10 offensive rebounds and the visitors finished with a slim 36-32 edge in total rebounds. Points-in-the-paint was a big factor in the outcome, as the Hawks finished with a 40-24 edge.

Daemen is idle until the end of the month when it begins a stretch of four home games in the span of six days by hosting Saint Michael's College in a non-league game on Dec. 30.

Follow Daemen College athletics on Twitter (@DaemenAthletics) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/daemencollegeathletics) to get live game updates and breaking news throughout the year.