Score: Elmira College 70, SUNY Cortland 68
Records: Elmira (3-4), Cortland (1-3)
Location: Elmira, N.Y. -- Speidel Gymnasium

ELMIRA, N.Y. -- The Elmira College women's basketball team snapped a 15-game winless drought against non-conference rival SUNY Cortland, as a last-second layup off of the fingers of Lindsey Heaton '19 secured an exhilarating 70-68 upset over the Red Dragons at Speidel Gymnasium on Thursday night.

The Soaring Eagles led by as many as eight points in the second half, but a determined Cortland squad opened the fourth quarter with a 12-6 run to draw the game even at 58-all with approximately four minutes remaining in regulation. A bucket from Cassidy Chapko at the 3:19 mark briefly put the Red Dragons ahead, 60-59, their first lead since halftime.

Danielle Cleary '18 regained the lead for Elmira with a clutch 3-pointer 30 seconds later, a field goal that put the Purple and Gold up 62-60 inside the final three minutes of play. The two teams exchanged free throw attempts from there, but Cortland had its eyes on a comeback inside the final minute. Chapko sparked a mini 6-2 run with the first four points of the rally. An untimely foul then sent Kristy Vitucci to the line and the sophomore guard made good on both attempts to even the score again, 68-68.

Elmira Head Coach Shannon Howley called for a timeout with 11.6 seconds on the clock to draw up one final play. According to Howley, that play called for forwards Rachel Vespucci '19 and Emily Breheny '20 to seal-off their defenders down low, leaving Heaton the option to either dish the ball into the paint or drive through the lane herself. With Vespucci boxing out Vitucci, Heaton chose to drive through the lane herself. Her layup kissed off of the glass, sending the entire bench and the Elmira faithful into a frenzy.

Three-point plays proved to be the difference maker in the second half. Trailing by one following the halftime intermission, Heaton and Emily Green '18 drained a pair of treys to swing momentum in Elmira's favor and turn the 29-28 deficit into a healthy 36-29 cushion.

Although the Red Dragons chiseled the lead down to a single point on a couple of occasions, Green converted a pair of three-point plays in the fourth to keep EC ahead. Her first was a traditional jumper from beyond the arc, but the latter was scored via three made free throws following a foul on an attempted 3-pointer. Those two plays in a span of 30 seconds had Elmira leading by five, 58-53, at the 5:58 mark of the final period. That set up Cleary for her 3-point field goal three minutes later, one that positioned the Soaring Eagles for the win with the 62-60 lead.

The thrilling victory prolonged and halted a handful of streaks for the Purple and Gold. Vespucci continued her record-breaking run with her fourth straight double-double, as she scored 15 points and hauled in a game-high 15 rebounds. Additionally, the win on the home hardwood made it four in a row at Speidel Gymnasium for EC.

On the other hand, the Soaring Eagles ended an ugly losing streak to the traditional New York region power that began in the 2001-02 season. Elmira's last triumph over Cortland was in the 1997-98 campaign.

Turning Point
Elmira saw its lead over the Red Dragons shrink to one point on several occasions in the fourth quarter. Eventually, Cortland rallied to draw the score even, doing so twice, and even talking a slim one-point advantage of its own for a brief moment. However, after in-bounding the ball, Heaton dribbled to the key and found an open lane down the right side. The seal from Vespucci gave her enough room to drive to the basket and lay-in the game-winner.

In Their Own Words...
Head Coach Shannon Howley on Elmira's thrilling victory over a non-conference rival...
"I'm just so excited for them. It's been a long week. I am just happy to see them finally reap the rewards of the hard work that they have been putting in. They finally believed that they could beat this team, they finally believed they could play with a good team. It's an important win for us and for our program." 

Coach Howley on the game-winning play drawn up in the last timeout...
"We had Emily Breheny and Rachel in there sealing and looking for the ball as an option. Rachel had the seal, so Lindsey had an easy layup when she got in and blew by her defender. She's physical and can finish with contact, so we wanted the ball in her hands for the last possession."

Coach Howley on the Lindsey Heaton's progression in her second season...
"I think that she is growing as a leader, first and foremost. She's growing as a leader on the floor, and she has a better understanding of what we want and when we want it. It was important for us to show some trust in her."

Coach Howley on the contributions from Rachel Vespucci throughout her stellar double-double streak...
"We were at practice at VCU (during the Shenandoah road trip) and she was a little down on herself. I told her that we don't need anything more than what she is capable of doing. Just be yourself, just play your game. I think that she's relaxed a little now and she has earned the trust of her teammates."

Inside the Box Score

• Elmira shot 21-for-53 (39.6-percent) from the field, while the Red Dragons finished 22-for-52 (42.3-percent).
• The Soaring Eagles went 8-for-24 (33.3-percent) from beyond the arc, including a 4-for-8 (50.0-percent) effort in the second half.
• Cortland shot 4-for-14 (28.6-percent) from 3-point range.
• The two programs combined for 57 free-throws in the contest, with the Soaring Eagles hitting 20-of-29 (69.0-percent) and the Red Dragons converting 20-of-28 (71.4-percent).
• Elmira out-rebounded Cortland by a 40-to-29 margin.
• Green led Elmira in scoring with 21 points with a team-high seven made field goals and three treys.
• Heaton (16), Vespucci (15), and Cleary (10) also scored double digits for the Soaring Eagles.
• Vespucci registered a double-double with a game-high 15 rebounds to go along with her 15 points.
• Vespucci made 9-of-12 (75.0-percent) attempts from the charity stripe.
• Heaton turned in an impressive stat line with 16 points, six assists, four rebounds, and a trio of 3-pointers.
• Cleary also recorded seven boards, four steals, two assists and two blocks.
• Chapko paced the Red Dragons with a game-high 28 points.

 
News and Notes

• Elmira improved its overall record to 3-4 on the season.
• After starting the season 0-4 on the road, the Soaring Eagles have won three in a row this week, all at home.
• EC has won four straight home contests dating back to the 2015-16 season.
• The victory was EC's first over SUNY Cortland since the 1997-1998 season, snapping a 15-game losing streak to the Red Dragons.
• The win is Elmira third in a row and the first three-game win streak since the Soaring Eagles did so during the 2013-14 season.
• Heaton's last second shot was the latest game-winning shot by a Soaring Eagle since Liz Forrest '14 hit two free-throws with 1.2 seconds remaining in a 61-59 win over St. John Fisher College on January 4, 2014.
• Vespucci recorded her fourth consecutive double-double, making her the first Soaring Eagle in over 15 years to accomplish that feat.
• Green's 21 points mark a new single-game career high.
• Heaton's 16-point total is her second highest of the year.

 
Up Next
Elmira welcomes Hartwick College to Speidel Gymnasium to open the 2017 portion of the schedule and start play inside the Empire 8 Conference with a home contest on Tuesday, January 3rd. The E8 opener is scheduled to start at 6:00 p.m.