Utica College went on a 16-4 run during the final eight-plus minutes of the fourth quarter and the Pioneers remained undefeated with their 56-50 non-conference win against the Hamilton College Continentals at Utica's Clark Athletic Center on Monday afternoon.

Hamilton (6-4 overall) had won its previous four games and entered the contest with an eight-game win streak against the Pioneers. The Continentals' four losses are against teams that so far have a combined record of 34-2 this season. Hamilton opens its NESCAC schedule at home against Williams College on Friday, Jan. 7 at 7 p.m.

Utica, which is a member of the Empire 8 Conference, improved to 9-0. The Pioneers were 8 of 14 from the floor including 3 of 4 from 3-point range in the fourth quarter.

Maria Mercado Rengel '24 paced the Continentals with 11 points and Emma Sehring '23 added 10 before she fouled out in the final seconds. Tessa Cole '25 chipped in eight points, made a season-high six steals and handed out five assists. Kelcie Zarle '22, who leads the NESCAC in scoring with more than 22 points per game, finished with eight. Hamilton shot 36.7 percent from the field including 6 of 25 from beyond the arc against Utica's zone defense.

Brigid Johndrow led Utica with 13 points, six steals and four assists. Petrina DeMarco nailed four 3-pointers and finished with 12 points. Sydney Przygoda posted a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds and added five steals. Cora Sawyer went 8-for-8 at the free-throw line and ended up with 10 points, eight boards and four assists. The Pioneers shot 37.8 percent from the floor.

Free throw shooting was the difference as Utica went 17-for-20 at the charity stripe and the Continentals had just two attempts. The teams combined to commit 54 turnovers.

Hamilton led 42-34 after three quarters and still held a six-point advantage at 46-40 after a layup by Sehring with 8:27 left. The Pioneers scored the next eight points and took the lead with 3:42 remaining.

Sehring tied the score at 48-48 with a layup on a great pass from Cole with 2:31 to go before Johndrow's layup and a DeMarco trifecta put Utica ahead for good at 53-48 with 1:50 left. Sehring, who scored six of her 10 points in the fourth quarter, pulled the Continentals within three on a driving layup with just under a minute to go. The Pioneers clinched the win with three free throws in the final 30 seconds.

Hamilton led 18-17 after one quarter and Utica held a 28-26 edge at the half. After the Pioneers went up 31-29 early in the third quarter, the Continentals scored the next 11 points and took the largest lead for either team. A 3-pointer by Sophie Thompson '24 gave Hamilton a 40-31 advantage with 4:06 left in the third. The Continentals made four shots from beyond the arc in the quarter. Utica was a combined 3 of 19 from the field in the second and third quarters.