Oneonta, NY — An explosive second half carried the State University of New York at New Paltz to a series sweep over SUNY Oneonta after a 66-54 win Tuesday night.
 
The Hawks (10-4 overall, 6-2 SUNYAC) out-scored the Red Dragons (8-7, 5-3) 33-21 in the second half, including 22-6 in a game-deciding third quarter where SUNY New Paltz connected on 40 percent from the perimeter. Jenny Walton was the x-factor as the sophomore came off the bench and scored all eight of her points in the period.
 
"I didn't want to say "must-win" but it was as close to that as can be for a game in mid-January," said Hawks coach Jamie Seward. "Didn't like the way we played in the first half at all, but they did a good job executing against Oneonta's zone in the second half."
 
The game was tight through two quarters with SUNY New Paltz again having a rough opening period. The Hawks suffered just their second SUNYAC loss of the season Monday against SUNY Geneseo after a horrific 21-7 start and again was slow to get going defensively Tuesday against Oneonta. The Red Dragons netted seven of their first 10 attempts from the floor to help get out to an early lead. 
Following a media timeout with 3:30 remaining in the period, the Hawks picked up their play and went on a 6-0 run to take a four-point lead. However, Oneonta ended the quarter strong and scored four unanswered to tie the score at 18 entering the second and continued with a 5-0 run to start the following period. Lexi Van Vorst put an end to the scoreless streak with SUNY New Paltz's first basket of the quarter four minutes in.
 
Van Vorst gave her team the lead about three minutes later, knocking down back-to-back 3-pointers following two big defensive plays by Semaiah Williams, getting a block and then contesting to force a tough shot by Oneonta, helping the Hawks to a defensive stop. Brianna Fitzgerald added on, burning her defender with a crossover before finishing at the basket to push the lead to four. But again, Oneonta ended the quarter strong and scored in the final seconds to tie the game at 33 entering the second half.
 
Van Vorst got the prolific third quarter started, draining another 3 to ignite a 7-2 start to the period. Walton added five-straight points on a 3-ball and a runner in the lane to push the advantage to 47-39 and then made a play on the defensive end as well, forcing a turnover on a steal that led to a Cassidy Deaver triple to give the Hawks their largest lead up until that point at 50-39. Victoria Venus was active off the bench as well, getting in on the action with a steal on a bad pass by the Red Dragons. She got fouled immediately and with the hosts in the penalty, she added two from the foul line to extend the cushion to 52-39. Walton then put the finishing touches on a break-out third quarter with her second 3-pointer of the game to help SUNY New Paltz to a 16-point advantage entering the fourth.

"Bri and Lex kept us afloat in the first half and then a much more focused team effort in the third quarter," Seward said. "Vickie played well, really rebounded and played with poise when the ball was in her hands. Jenny probably had her best defensive performance in the second half and we know what she's capable of on offense."
 
Oneonta trimmed the deficit but never overcame the double-digit hole with Van Vorst and Maddie Gillis hitting two key 3's to keep the cushion when the Red Dragons started gaining some momentum midway through the quarter, which helped close out the win.
 
Van Vorst led all scorers with 18 points on 6-for-10 shooting from the field, including 5-for-9 from beyond the arc. Fitzgerald followed with 17 points, four rebounds, three assists and a team-leading four steals. Serravillo added a team-best four assists to go along with six rebounds and two stelas. Williams finished with six boards as well and a team-leading three blocks. Venus led the team on the glass with seven rebounds, while adding two assists, a block and a steal in 18 minutes off the bench.
 
After finishing up back-to-back games on the road, the Hawks return to the Hawk Center with two days to prepare for another SUNYAC back-to-back against The College at Brockport and SUNY Geneseo. Both games are scheduled for 2 p.m. starts.

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