ONEONTA, N.Y. - Cortland cut a 17-point second-half deficit to five but couldn't get any closer in the closing five minutes as the Red Dragons lost at Oneonta, 67-57, in a SUNYAC women's basketball contest.
Cortland dropped to 6-3 in league play and 7-9 overall with the loss. Oneonta (8-7 overall) moved to within a half game of third-place Cortland in the league standings at 5-3, but has now swept Cortland this season.
Alexa Amalbert led the hosts with 18 points. Cara Adams and Samantha Lisikatos added 12 and 11 points, respectively, and Leanne Corso grabbed 10 rebounds. Sara DiPasquale contributed seven points and four blocked shots to the winning cause.
Cassidy Chapko (Valley Falls/Hoosic Valley) led Cortland with 23 points, all in the second half. She was 0-for-8 from the field in the first half, but rebounded by going 8-for-10 with five 3-pointers over the final 20 minutes. Stephanie Rice (Duanesburg) finished with 10 points, eight rebounds and three assists, and Kristy Vitucci (Deer Park) scored nine points. Danielle Levine (Holbrook/Sachem North) and Alyssa Crosby (Brier Hill/Hammond) shared the team lead with Rice with eight rebounds apiece, and Taylor Miller (Freeport) finished with seven rebounds.
The teams were tied 11-11 after one quarter, and Oneonta outscored Cortland 10-2 over the final four minutes of the second quarter to take a 27-19 halftime lead. The hosts increased their lead to 17 points twice in the third quarter, the last at 47-30 on an Adams layup with 1:34 left.
Chapko, however, made two 3-pointers to pull Cortland within 11 after three quarters. Oneonta briefly extended its lead to 14 on a Lisikatos trey on the first possession of the fourth, but Chapko nailed two more threes to quickly cut the deficit to eight. On Cortland's next possession, Crosby was fouled and hit the first of two free throws. Miller rebounded the missed second free throw and quickly set up Crosby for a layup that reduced Oneonta's lead to 50-45 with 7:39 remaining.
Cortland had a chance to get even closer, but missed four 3-pointers over a series of possessions spanning the next two and a half minutes. A jumper by Amalbert was answered by Levine's layup at the 4:59 mark to keep the game at a five-point margin, but Oneonta used 3-pointers by Amalbert and Teresa Anken to extend its lead to 11 with 4:07 left.
Down 13, Cortland made one final push to within seven on two Crosby free throws with 49 seconds remaining, but Oneonta salted the game away by making five of its six free throws the rest of the way.
Cortland will host Oswego in a league contest Saturday at 4 p.m.