NORWICH – After three years watching another team hoist the championship trophy, Norwich reclaimed the top spot in the Norwich Pennysaver Tournament.

The Purple Tornado (2-0) held Oxford scoreless for 8 1/2 minutes in the second half, and went on to a 46-37 victory on Saturday night.

“We played absolutely lights-out on defense in the second half,” said Norwich first-year coach Josh Bennett. “I can’t say enough about how hard these girls work. If we can play the kind of defense we played tonight, I think we can compete with anyone.”

In no uncertain terms, Oxford was equal to Norwich for the majority of three quarters, and led 31-29 with 5:15 left in the third quarter on Kelli Whitehill’s layup.

That hoop was the last of the quarter for Oxford, and foul trouble to starting forward Haley Witchella further impacted the Blackhawks’ offense.

Witchella picked up her fourth foul with the scored tied at 3-31-31 with just over two minutes left in the third quarter. Norwich quickly pounced on the opportunity as tournament MVP Hannah Runyon hit a 15-footer after a feed from Bryn Loomis to unlock the tie. Runyon then pulled up and hit a three-pointer to make it 36-31 with 17 seconds left in the quarter.

“Haley wasn’t out for very long, but that was enough for Norwich,” said Oxford coach Chris Palmer. “Hannah stepped up and hit a couple of shots, and she definitely deserved the MVP award.”