Box Score 

GENESEO, N.Y. – The State University of New York at New Paltz women's basketball team snapped No. 16-ranked SUNY Geneseo's 26-game winning streak on Saturday afternoon in Schrader Gymansium as the Hawks edged out the host Knights, 58-57, in the championship game of the 2017 State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) Tournament for its second-consecutive, and third overall, conference title.

"The win today was credit to our players; they really fought and did not back down," said head coach Jamie Seward. "We knew we would hit some adversity today and Geneseo would go on a run, but we did not blink and made big plays.

"I am happy to keep working this season with this team and we are excited for next week."

Senior guard Kit Small (Slingerlands, N.Y./Academy of the Holy Names) and sophomore guard Lindsay Bettke (Pelham, N.Y./The Ursuline School) were named to the SUNYAC All-Tournament Team.

Although New Paltz held a slight lead from the start of the opening period, Geneseo responded to every move to keep the score well within two points (8-6). However the Hawks found their stride with under three minutes to play, pushing a 9-3 run for a comfortable 17-9 heading into the second period.

The Knights were able to regroup in the following quarter, quickly closing the gap to 17-14 at the 8:22 mark. Despite the Hawks' efforts to shake off the Knights, Geneseo continued to push forward and eventually tied the score to 22-22 with 3:04 left to play. However, back-to-back 3-pointers by Bettke placed the Hawks ahead once again and headed into the locker rooms with a 33-29 advantage.

Coming out of the break, Geneseo put on the pressure and climbed its way out of the deficit, tying the score to 37-all at the 5:32 mark before grabbing its first lead of the game shortly afterwards (39-37). New Paltz fought back with just as much force, leveling the score several times before taking back the advantage (45-44) off of a made free throw by senior forward Courtney Irby (Farmingdale, N.Y./Farmingdale). The Hawks maintained the lead throughout the rest of the quarter but Geneseo only trailed by one (47-46) as the fourth period began.

The Knights briefly took the lead in the start of the final quarter before freshman guard Marion Dietz (Hopewell Junction, N.Y./John Jay-East Fishkill) hit a three to keep the score in favor of New Paltz. However, Geneseo was right on New Paltz's tail and was able to catch up with 4:24 left to play (54-54) but the Hawks escaped the Knights' grasp once again as time started to wind down. Geneseo roped the score to 58-57 with under a minute left but New Paltz held off the Knights as the clock expired, declaring the Hawks SUNYAC champions for the second year in a row.

Bettke paced the Hawks with 18 points, going 6-of-11 from the field and 4-of-7 from 3-point range, and added two steals. Irby and freshman guard Sandi Harris (Georgetown, Texas/Georgetown) each recorded eight points for New Paltz while Small pulled down a team-high six boards and distributed four assists.

Senior guard Katie Durand led Geneseo with 16 points while sophomore forward McKenna Brooks chipped in 15 points, converting 7-of-10 shots from the line, and senior guard Kara Houppert added 10 points of her own. Defensively, Brooks and senior forward Katie Vienneau totaled nine boards apiece in the loss.  

With the win, the Hawks (18-8) earn an automatic bid into the 2017 NCAA Division III Tournament, marking their third appearance in four years. The NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Selection Show will be held on Monday, Feb. 27 at 2:30 p.m.