Box Score Box Score
NEW PALTZ, N.Y. – A 22-point halftime lead proved large enough for the State University of New York at New Paltz women's basketball team (11-7, 9-2 SUNYAC), as the Hawks dealt SUNY Plattsburgh (6-10, 3-7 SUNYAC) a 60-48 State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) setback on Saturday afternoon in the Hawk Center.
New Paltz, which extended its winning streak to four, prevailed in spite of poor shooting. The Hawks shot just 10-of-37 (37.0 percent) from the line on the night and fared similarly from the floor, shooting 36.7 percent (22-of-60). The Hawks, however, shot well from long range, draining 6-of-13 attempts (46.2 percent). New Paltz dominated the glass, winning the rebounding battle, 46-38. Plattsburgh struggled from the field, shooting 32.1 percent (17-of-53), and also committed 25 turnovers to the Hawks' 22.
New Paltz led from start to finish, but it took a while for the Hawks to establish the momentum. After New Paltz built a four-point lead with 17:33 to play in the first half, Lindsey Larivee cut the advantage to two on the ensuing possession to bring Plattsburgh within a bucket. The Hawks then scored 11 unanswered, and a jumper by junior guard
Caitlin Irwin (Brooklyn, N.Y.) on a fast break pushed the score to 17-4 in favor of the home team. Plattsburgh's Catherine Cassidy's made free throw with 1:27 remaining in the first stanza capped a 6-0 Cardinal run to put the visitors within 15, but the Hawks finished out the half on a 7-0 tear, which was capped by sophomore guard
Kahsyrah Bryant's (North Babylon, N.Y.) jumper at the buzzer.
Leading 44-22 at the intermission, New Paltz sat in the driver's seat the rest of the way, but Plattsburgh closed the contest hot. A three-pointer by junior guard
Zoe Cohen (Brooklyn, N.Y.) with 5:13 to play in regulation served as the Hawks' final points of the game, and the Cardinals finished the tilt by scoring nine unanswered behind the strength of contributions from Lindsey Larivee, Nora Campbell and Dana Nucaro.
Cohen keyed the Hawk offense with 12 points on 4-of-8 shooting from the floor—which included a 2-of-2 mark from long range—and 2-of-2 shooting from the free-throw line. Sophomore forward
Alex McCullough (Delmar, N.Y.) also reached double digits with 10 points and added four rebounds, an assist and a steal. Junior forward
Shanay Bradley (Bronx, N.Y.) had a well-rounded line that included four points, seven rebounds, two assists, a block and three steals.
All nine Plattsburgh players that saw action scored. Larivee, Campbell, Cassidy and Nucaro tied for the team-high in points with seven, while Campbell had nine rebounds, two assists, a steal and a block. Larivee caused problems for the Hawk guards, collecting five steals on the afternoon.
New Paltz, which is unbeaten at home in conference play this year, will put its four-game winning streak on the line on Tuesday when it travels to Cortland, N.Y., to take on SUNY Cortland in a SUNYAC clash. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m.
