2013 POSTSEASON WNIT BRACKET

West Hartford, Conn. – The University of Hartford women's basketball team heads to the WNIT for the fourth time in program history earning an at-large bid into the field of 64 for the second-straight season. Hartford will host the Harvard Crimson on Thursday at 7:00 p.m. at the Chase Family Arena at the Reich Family Pavilion. For ticket information contact the Malcolm & Brenda Berman Athletics Ticket Office at (860) 768-HAWK (4295) or email tickets@hartford.edu.

The bid to the WNIT is the ninth straight season the Hawks have advanced to the postseason, four WNIT bids and five trips to the NCAA Tournament. Last season's appearance in the WNIT lasted one game as the Hawks dropped a home decision to the Syracuse Orange 59-42. Prior to last season, the Hawks most recent appearance was in 2009 when they earned their first at-large invitation.

The Hawks and Crimson meet for the 10th time in the history of the two programs in the WNIT First Round. Last season, Hartford posted a 72-61 home victory over the Ivy League foe, putting the all-time series at 5-4 in favor of Harvard. The 2011-12 meeting was the second in a home-and-home set that renewed an all-time series not played in the 18 previous seasons. The series began during the Hawks first year in Division I 1984-85, with Hartford winning the first two meetings and four of the first five.

Hartford enters the postseason after falling in the title game of the America East Championship 61-52 at Albany. In that game, the Hawks were led by Nikkia Smith who finished with a game-high 18 points on 8-of-20 from the field. Hartford enters Thursday's WNIT game with a 21-11 overall record, the seventh time in women's basketball history at Hartford that the Hawks have won 20 or more games.  

Smith enters the Postseason WNIT as the Hawks leading scorer and rebounder at 10.6 points-per-game and 5.3 rebounds-per-game. She is also among the top-10 in the America East in field goal percentage (43.7 percent) and leads the team and the America East in free throw percentage at 79.2 percent on 76-of-96.