Columbia, MD - A defensive battle of attrition saw the Howard Dragons be able to pull away at the end against a depleted Hagerstown squad to come away with a 51-32 victory.

The first half saw both teams struggling to shoot from the floor as halftime came with Hagerstown ahead 20-18. The Hawks built up a five point lead early in the third quarter, but the Dragons defense held Hagerstown scoreless for seven minutes straight and finally took the lead back on a big Sydnei Harmon (Largo, MD/Charles H. Flowers) layup with a minute left in the third.

As injuries piled up on both teams, it was the Dragons who found their offensive rhythm in the fourth quarter as they pushed the pace and worked the ball inside. The Hawks foul trouble caught up to them late in the fourth as they had three players foul out, forcing Hagerstown to finish the game with just three players on the court allowing Howard to outscore Hagerstown 23-5 in the final period.

Mikiyah Mallett (Pasadena, MD/Old Mill) and Sydnei Harmon (Largo, MD/Charles H. Flowers) each had 11 point, 10 rebound double-doubles while Nhaikyia Smith (Waldorf, MD/St. Vincent Pallotti) scored 12 points despite a tough shooting night. Julia Harrington (Baltimore, MD/Baltimore City College) added nine points as part of 32 points in the paint for the Dragons.

Howard will play their final home game of the year and their last game ever in the old Athletic & Fitness Center on Saturday, December 10 at 12 PM against Beaver County.