Jan 29, 2019
CORTLAND, N.Y. – Cortland grabbed a 15-point lead late in the second quarter and held off numerous Oneonta runs to earn a 69-61 win over the visiting Red Dragons in a SUNYAC women's basketball contest.
Cortland improved to 10-9 overall and took over sole possession of fifth place in the SUNYAC at 6-6 with six games remaining. Oneonta fell to 14-4 overall and is third in the league with an 8-3 mark.
Tanna Mohammed (Huntington/Elwood-John H. Glenn) scored a career-high 18 points and matched her career best with five made 3-pointers in nine attempts. Shannon McGuire (West Babylon) finished with 11 points, five assists and a career-high 13 rebounds. Kristy Vitucci (Deer Park) chipped in with 11 points, Meghan Flanagan (Rochester/Brighton) added eight points and five boards, and Justine Crespo (Monroe/Monroe-Woodbury) pulled down 10 rebounds.
Madeline Frank hit 7-of-13 shots from the floor and led Oneonta with 17 points. Leanne Corso posted a double-double of 13 points and 10 rebounds, Olivia Allrich scored nine points and hauled in six rebounds, and Teresa Anken handed out six assists.
Both teams were close in their overall field goal shooting – Cortland finished at 38 percent and Oneonta at 39 percent. Cortland, however, hit 12-of-30 shots from 3-point range and 15-of-20 free throws, while Oneonta was 5-for-19 from the arc and 6-for-11 from the foul line.
Cortland never trailed, and the game was tied just once at 5-5 midway through the first quarter. The hosts led 16-11 after one period and ran the margin to 13 two minutes into the second on a Vitucci 3-pointer, a Shana Crespo (Monroe/Monroe-Woodbury) layup and a Mohammed 3-point play.
Cortland was up 32-17 after a Mohammed 3-pointer with 2:27 left in the half, but Oneonta finished the stanza on a 9-0 run, including 3-pointers from Alexa Amalbert and Frank, and trailed by only six at the break.
During the third quarter Cortland slowly built its lead back to as much as 13 points on a few occasions, but another late-period run by the guests cut the gap to seven at 51-44 entering the fourth. Cortland's lead in the fourth fluctuated from six to 10 points over the first eight-plus minutes.
Oneonta closed to within five when Frank hit the first of two free throws with 1:27 left. Alaina Lynch (Staten Island/Staten Island Tech) made one foul shot at the 1:12 mark and Flanagan grabbed a key offensive rebound after the second attempt missed. McGuire was fouled with just under a minute left and sank two foul shots to put Cortland ahead 67-59, and she also made two free throws with 24 seconds remaining for the game's final points.
Cortland will travel to Oswego on Saturday for a 2 p.m. game.