ONEONTA, N.Y. – The State University of New York at New Paltz women's basketball team (17-8, 15-3 SUNYAC) wrapped up State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) play with a 49-44 overtime win over SUNY Oneonta (16-8, 14-4 SUNYAC) on Friday night at Oneonta. New Paltz's victory coupled with Buffalo State's win over SUNY Oswego assured the Hawks of the No. 2 seed in the 2012 SUNYAC Women's Basketball Championship Tournament against an opponent to be determined following Saturday's conference games.

The Hawks overcame shooting woes in their regular-season finale, shooting 25.8 percent (16-of-62) from the floor. New Paltz did shoot 8-of-19 (42.1 percent) from three-point range, which included a perfect 2-of-2 mark in overtime. The Hawks held a slight 46-43 edge on the glass and forced the Red Dragons into 22 turnovers. Oneonta was hurt by an 0-of-10 outing from distance, but it did shoot slightly better than New Paltz from the floor by making 32.6 percent (15-of-46) of its shots.

Senior forward Shanay Bradley (Bronx, N.Y./New Explorers) powered the Hawks on the boards with 18 rebounds and added two assists, two blocks and two steals to go along with four points. Junior forward Alex McCullough (Delmar, N.Y./Bethlehem Central) netted 13 points and had two steals, while senior guard Zoe Cohen (Brooklyn, N.Y./The Berkeley Carroll School) chipped in with 11 points coming off the bench.

For Oneonta, Madison Slagle had a double-double with 11 points and 12 boards, while Samantha Szkotak pitched in with 11 points and eight rebounds. Slagle boasted a well-balanced stat line in addition to her rebounding and scoring totals, adding three assists and two steals.

New Paltz led by as many as 10 in the first half, and a made jumper by junior guard Maliqua Fisher (North Babylon, N.Y./North Babylon) with 3:33 left in the period gave the Hawks their last 10-point edge of the stanza, as Oneonta closed with a 4-1 run to draw within seven at 25-18 at the break. During the first 20 minutes of play, New Paltz never trailed, and the score was only tied twice.

After Kristen Pappalardo cut the Red Dragon deficit to five at 18:19 of the second half, neither team was able to score for three minutes, and Grace Schilling pulled Oneonta within three (25-22) after breaking the scoring drought. The Hawk advantage fluctuated over the course of the next few minutes, with a pair of made free throws by Bradley with 9:16 left serving as the high-water mark. Her free throws pushed the New Paltz lead back out to seven, but the Red Dragons answered with a 13-0 spurt. Pappalardo made it a 38-32 game in favor of the home team with 5:50 to play in the contest after hitting a free throw.

Oneonta led, 40-37, with 2:18 remaining in the second half, but Cohen tied the score following a Red Dragon timeout with a three-pointer. Both teams played lockdown defense down the stretch, and neither side was able to score in the final 2:04 of regulation, forcing overtime.

Cohen opened overtime with a three-pointer with 4:24 to go in the period, but Slagle answered back with a layup. Cohen then swelled the Hawk lead to four with another trey, and Szkotak's layup on the ensuing Oneonta offensive possession drew the Red Dragons within two. Senior guard/forward Bridget Grover (Rockville Centre, N.Y./Holy Trinity) made one foul shot and senior guard Caitlin Irwin (Brooklyn, N.Y./Bishop Kearney) made two in the final 1:10 of play to escape with the 49-44 victory.

With the No. 2 seed in the SUNYAC Tournament in hand, the Hawks await tomorrow's results for the solidification of the No. 7 seed, which will serve as New Paltz's quarterfinal-round opponent. The Hawks will host a quarterfinal game on Tuesday, Feb. 21, at 7 p.m.