CLINTON, N.Y.—With less than five minutes remaining, senior Melanie Patterson converted a traditional 3-point play that put William Smith College in front of host Hamilton College for good. Patterson was one of three Herons to finish with a team-high 12 points in a 67-60 win over the Continentals.
 
In addition to Patterson, sophomore forward Mia Morrison and sophomore guard Olivia Hughes also finished with a dozen points. Morrison also pulled down a game-high nine rebounds. Patterson and senior guard Alyssa DiCampli each dished out a team-high four assists.
 
Halie Serbent led all scorers with 14 points for Hamilton. Samantha Srinivasan added 12 points. Lauren Getman collected a team-high eight rebounds and Caroline Barrett paced the Continentals with four assists.
 
Hamilton (5-4) built an early 7-2 lead, but the Herons rallied to move ahead with a 9-2 surge. DiCampli capped the run with a 3-pointer. William Smith (6-3) led 17-15 at the end of the first quarter.
 
In the second quarter, Serbent tied the game with the first field goal of the period, but Morrison, Hughes, and Patterson made consecutive baskets to put the Herons back in front, 23-17. William Smith led by as many as seven and went into halftime with a 34-27 advantage.
 
Patterson and Hamilton's Mackenzie Aldridge both scored seven points in the first half.
 
The Herons ran their lead out to a game-high 11 early in the third quarter. William Smith still led by nine at the midway point of the quarter, but the Continentals closed the gap with a 9-2 run to end the stanza trailing by just two, 46-44.
 
As the game clock ticked under six minutes, DiCampli hit a mid-range jumper that put the visitors up 55-51. Srinivasan answered with a 3-pointer to make it a 1-point game. William Smith missed its next shot and the Continentals grabbed the rebound with a change to take the lead. The Herons were whistled for a foul, putting Carly O'Hern at the line. She made the first to tie the game, but missed the second. That's when Patterson made her critical 3-point play.
 
Hamilton got within one twice in the final four minutes, but each time William Smith answered with a bucket to keep the home team at bay.
 
The Herons dominated points off turnovers (16-6), bench points (24-16), and second chance points (11-8).
 
William Smith turns its attention to Liberty League play on Friday, Jan. 6. The Herons will visit Bard College for its conference opener. Tipoff is at 6 p.m.