W. Hartford, Conn. -- The University of Maine women's basketball team put together one of its most complete performances of the year as the Black Bears earned a 65-44 victory at Hartford on Wednesday evening.

Four Black Bears tallied double-digit scoring totals in the victory as Maine posted its best rebounding performance of the season to date with 43 boards while shooting 40.3 percent from the floor. Defensively, Maine forced 20 Hartford turnovers, turning the mishaps into a 26-5 advantage in points off turnovers, with 11 steals in the contest.

Alba Orois paced Maine with 15 points, six rebounds, and four assists while Anne Simon added 13 points, six rebounds, six assists and three steals. Caroline Bornemann posted her third double-digit scoring performance in her last four games with 13 points while adding a career-high matching seven rebounds. Maeve Carroll rounded out the double-figure scorers with 12 points and seven rebounds.

Maine jumped out to an early advantage thanks to some impressive shooting in the opening quarter. The Black Bears finished the first 10 minute stretch 11-for-14 (78.6) from the floor, including a 5-for-7 showing from three point range.

Maine led by one late in the first half before Orois' triple off a turnover completed a 7-0 run, giving Maine a 17-9 edge. The Black Bears closed out the first quarter on an 9-0 run, with Simon's triple at the buzzer, to take a 28-14 lead into the second.

Orois opened the scoring in the next quarter with a triple followed by a bucket from Paula Gallego. The five points stretched Maine's run to 14-0 as the Black Bears grasped their largest lead of the half, 33-14.

Hartford responded with a run of its own, cutting the lead down to 12 at the half.

The Hawks would get as close as nine in the third quarter before Maine looked to put the game away. The Black Bears pieced together an 11-2 run as back-to-back buckets from Simon and Orois stretched Maine's advantage out to 18 with under three minutes left in the third.

A three from Rockwood and a bucket from Bornemann gave Maine a 5-0 run to end the third. The run stretched to 12-0 as the Black Bears took their largest of the night, 59-32, with 7:39 to play.

The lead would not dip below 21 the rest of the way as Maine earned its second America East victory of the season, 65-44.

The Black Bears return home on Sunday for a rematch of the 2021 America East title game when they host Stony Brook at the Cross Insurance Center at 1 p.m. Tickets for the game are available at TicketMaster.com or by visiting the Cross Insurance Center box office.

-UMaine-