Box Score Box Score

OSWEGO, N.Y. – Junior guard Zoe Cohen (Brooklyn, N.Y.) dropped in a career-high 19 points off 7-of-12 shooting from the floor—which included a 4-of-5 mark from long range—and 1-of-2 shooting from the free-throw line coming off the bench to lead the State University of New York at New Paltz women's basketball team (15-9, 13-4 SUNYAC) past SUNY Oswego (10-13, 7-9 SUNYAC), 68-53, on Tuesday evening in State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) action at Max Ziel Gymnasium.

Cohen's previous career-high also came against the Lakers, as she poured in 17 points when the two teams met up on Jan. 25 in New Paltz, N.Y.

Oswego never led, and despite its efforts midway through the first half, the Lakers were taken out of the game by a debilitating 15-0 Hawk run to close the first stanza.

A layup by sophomore forward Alex McCullough (Delmar, N.Y.) put New Paltz up by eight with 11:48 to go in the first half, but the Lakers embarked on an 8-0 run to knot the tally at 13-all, during which Meagan Stover scored four points. Oswego tied the score three more times in the following 3:21, but the Hawks began catching fire, as Cohen's 11 points ignited New Paltz's strong finish to the period.

After leading 35-19 at the break, the Hawks kept their foot on the gas pedal, never holding an advantage fewer than 12 points in the second half. The Lakers' 9-of-25 shooting (36 percent) in the final 20 minutes of regulation was not enough to overcome the New Paltz offense, which hit 46.4 percent of its shots off 13-of-28 shooting in the second half to run away with the SUNYAC victory.

Oswego was doomed by its inability to knock down three-point treys, as it shot just 7.7 percent (1-of-13) from long range. The two teams combined for 56 turnovers on the contest, which paled in comparison to the 66 giveaways between the two when they met earlier this season. New Paltz dominated the glass, outrebounding the Lakers by a 46-28 margin, and as a result, scored 22 second-chance points to Oswego's four.

Sophomore guard Maliqua Fisher (North Babylon, N.Y.) joined Cohen in double figures with 15 points, while junior guard Caitlin Irwin (Brooklyn, N.Y.) reeled in 11 rebounds, six of which came off the offensive glass. Irwin helped direct the offense with four assists, while sophomore guard Kahsyrah Bryant (North Babylon, N.Y.) was busy on the defensive end of the floor with three steals coming off the bench. Junior forward Shanay Bradley (Bronx, N.Y.) was a force inside once again, swatting away two shots.

For Oswego, Kayla Ryan eclipsed the 1,000-point mark on her career, as she entered the evening just 11 points away from the milestone. Ryan netted 12 points in the loss and finished the night with 1,001 career points to her credit. Stover scored a team-high 13 points, while Ryan stood one rebound shy of a double-double with nine on the evening. Stover also had four steals.

New Paltz finishes up its 2010-11 SUNYAC slate with an important game against SUNY Oneonta on Friday, Feb. 18, at 6 p.m. in Oneonta, N.Y. The Hawks are currently a half game up on SUNY Cortland for second in the conference standings and hold a one-game lead on Oneonta. The blue and orange will host a quarterfinal contest in the 2011 SUNYAC Tournament on Tuesday, Feb. 22, at 7 p.m. against an opponent to be determined.