ONEONTA, NY – Two blocked shots with under 10 seconds left and two late free throws would cast the game's outcome between local rivals Hartwick and host Oneonta on Tuesday night at Alumni Field House. Empire 8 Player of the Week Jake Sinicki(Endicott, NY/Maine-Endwell HS) split a pair at the stripe with less than four seconds to go and a desperation heave by the Red Dragons would be off the mark to allow the Hawks an 85-83 win.
The win elevates the Hawks to 4-2 on the year while serving as the Red Dragons' third straight loss (1-3).
The Red Dragons were in front by as many as nine, 57-48, at the 16-minute mark. Still close enough in reach, the Hawks rallied back, bringing the game to a tie three minutes later, 60-up.
From there, both clubs exchanged leads including one in the Hawks' favor, 84-81, with under two minutes to go. Joey Lufkin(Argyle, NY/Argyle) netted the long ball (1:20) for the three-point advantage and after an empty possession for Oneonta, the host committed a foul sending Sinicki to the line.
The Hawks' swarming defense was in full effect forcing the foe into its lowest shooting performance this season. They managed to contain the Red Dragons' frontcourt Lawrence Coleman and Mikey McElroy to only 17 and 18 points, respectively, both short of their season averages. Hartwick also held its rival to just 8-of-26 (30.8%) from the perimeter and 33-of-80 (41.3%) from the field. Oneonta only connected on 9-of-15 (60%) of its free throws.
'Wick mirrored much of what it's been able to do this season offensively, shooting 47.1 percent from the field (32-of-68) and 47.6 percent from behind the arc (10-of-21).
Six Hawks scored in double-figures getting a team-leading 16 points and seven boards from junior forward Marc du Moulin(Altamont, NY/Guilderland HS) and 11 from sophomore guard Ned Bakic (Garfield, NJ/Garfield HS), both off the bench. Fourteen-point games came from sophomore guard Brandon LaForest (Cohoes, NY/Cohoes HS) and Sinicki. LaForest also added two blocks, five dishes and two steals to his stat line.
Eleven-point productions hailed from the duo of senior forward Justin Pratt (North Kingstown, RI/North Kingstown HS) and Lufkin, who also registered two and three helpers, respectively.
Sophomore forward Justin Carruthers (Greenwich, NY/Greenwich HS) also pulled down seven rebounds with a big block down the stretch for the Hawks.
Men's basketball returns to Lambros Arena this Thursday, December 1st when it hosts the Bard College Raptors at 7 p.m.