FREDONIA, N.Y. – Sophomore Cassidy Chapko (Valley Falls/Hoosic Valley) hit a jumper in the lane with 19 seconds left in overtime and Cortland slipped past host Fredonia, 66-65, in a SUNYAC contest.
With the win, Cortland (16-4, 10-3 SUNYAC) maintains its tie for second place in the SUNYAC standings with New Paltz. Fredonia dropped to 8-12 overall and 5-9 in the conference.
Cortland erased three deficits in the five-minute overtime period. Fredonia took its first lead since the game's opening two minutes when Jacque Law hit a layup just four seconds into overtime. Chapko made a 3-pointer with 4:29 left, but Sabrina Macaulay hit a shot with 3:14 left and another basket with 1:59 left to put the Blue Devils up 63-60.
The Red Dragons responded with an Erin Wolstenholme (Oneonta) baseline jumper at the 1:40 mark and a Lindsey Minor (Wheatley Heights/St. John the Baptist) driving jumper with 58 seconds remaining to grab a 64-63 lead. Macaulay got fouled on a drive during Fredonia's next possession and sank two free throws to give the hosts their final lead.
On Cortland's ensuing possession, Chapko drove into the lane, spun and hit a jumper to put the Red Dragons ahead 66-65. Fredonia nearly lost the ball with 7.5 seconds remaining, but kept the ball on an alternate possession after a jump ball. On its last opportunity, Fredonia got the ball to Law on the right side. She drove into the lane and missed a running bank shot on an attempt that appeared to not be released until after the buzzer sounded.
Cortland led 37-29 at halftime and took a 45-33 lead on a Minor steal and layup with 12:53 left in regulation. Fredonia fought back with a 16-5 run over the next seven minutes, capped by a Kathryn Halloran jumper, and pulled within 50-49.
Cortland took a four-point lead on two Brittany Rando (Owego/Owego Free Academy) 3-pointers, sandwiched around a Law 3-pointer, and Brittney Dumas (Easton, CT/Joel Barlow) hit a free throw with 2:26 left to give the Red Dragons a 57-52 lead. The hosts' Alexis Cheatham scored the period's final five points, however, on a 3-pointer with 1:03 left and a layup with nine seconds remaining. Chapko's off-balance jumper from the right side missed the mark before the buzzer to send Cortland to its third overtime in the last seven games.
Rando led Cortland with 16 points, including 4-of-6 accuracy from 3-point range. Dumas finished with 13 points and 11 reboudns for her 10th double-double of the season and Wolstenholme scored 12 points and grabbed five boards. Senior Rae Frasier (Schenectady) added six points and 10 rebounds and is averaging nearly 10 rebounds per game over her last four contests.
Cheatham paced four Fredonia double-figure scorers with 17 points. She made 5-of-15 3-pointers. Macaulay finished with 16 points and eight rebounds, Law scored 13 points and dished out six assists, and Halloran totaled 10 points and six rebounds.
Cortland will host Oneonta on Tuesday, Feb. 10 at 7:30 p.m.