BOX SCORE COLCHESTER, Vt. – Aquillin Hayes (Harlem, N.Y./Wings Academy) scored a career-high 27 points to lead the University of New Haven women's basketball team past host Saint Michael's, 71-53, on Tuesday evening in Colchester, Vt. The Chargers scored the final 21 points of the first half and coasted to the Northeast-10 road victory.
 
With the win, New Haven now stands at 11-4 overall and 6-3 in the NE-10. The Purple Knights drop to 3-10 on the season with a 2-7 conference mark. The Chargers hosted and defeated Saint Michaels', 74-66, as a part of the non-conference slate on Dec. 20, 2013.
 
Hayes netted 17 of her 27 points in the first half as the Chargers pulled away from the hosts. For the game, she shot 13-for-18 from the floor with seven rebounds, three assists and two steals. Hayes' previous career high was a 20-point performance at Adelphi on Nov. 20, 2012.
 
Briana Bradford (Waterbury, Conn./Holy Cross) added 10 points off the bench as all nine Chargers to take the court tallied at least two points. Elizabeth Cruso (Westerly, R.I./Westerly) knocked down three three-pointers to accumulate nine points, and Ashley LeBlanc (Methuen, Mass./Methuen) netted eight points to go along with a team-leading 10 rebounds. Rykema Stone (Bronx, N.Y./Wings Academy) posted six points, nine rebounds and five blocked shots.
 
Rounding out the offense were Bria Moore (West Haven, Conn./Hill Regional Career) with four points, three from Ayana Duncanson (Elmont, N.Y./Francis Lewis) and two apiece from Audrey Cunningham (Germantown, Md./Seneca Valley) and Lauren Hebert (North Reading, Mass./North Reading)
 
As a unit, New Haven shot 29-for-67 (43.3 percent) from the field, 4-for-13 (30.8 percent) from three-point range and 9-for-15 (60 percent) from the free throw line.
 
The Chargers controlled the boards with a 50-41 rebounding edge, and 16 offensive rips led to 20 New Haven second-chance points. The Purple Knights held a 15-14 edge in turnovers, but the Blue and Gold maintained a 14-13 advantage in points off of takeaways.
 
Maggie Sabine led Saint Michael's with 20 points and 12 rebounds.
 
A back-and-forth start to the contest ran the score to 24-23 in favor of the Chargers with 9:25 to go in the first half. However, the Cara Deroy jumper was the last time that Saint Michael's would score in the frame. Duncanson scored on the ensuing New Haven trip to start the visitors on a 21-0 run to extend the lead to 45-23 entering the intermission, as Hayes netted seven points and Cruso drained a pair of three-pointers during the stretch.

New Haven shot 18-for-33 (54.5 percent) from the field and 4-for-8 (50 percent) from beyond the arc en route to the 22-point halftime advantage.
 
Saint Michael's would end the drought with the first three points of the second half, but New Haven continued to roll to its 11th win of the season. A Cunningham jumper extended the cushion to a game-high 30 points at 59-29, and the Chargers capped the victory by a score of 71-53.
 
In the win, New Haven reached season bests in made field goals (29) and blocked shots (7).
 
The Chargers return to their home court on Saturday, Jan. 18 to host Franklin Pierce in a 3:30 p.m. contest. The Ravens, who will not play a midweek game this week, are currently 8-6 overall and 5-4 in the Northeast-10.