Cortland, NY — The State University of New York at New Paltz suffered a 74-71 loss Saturday on the road against SUNY Cortland.
 
The Hawks dropped to 10-10 overall and 8-6 in the SUNYAC, splitting the regular season series with the Red Dragons and ending the weekend fifth on the conference leaderboard.
 
The game was tight throughout with the two teams entering the second half tied at 40. Cortland took the lead in the opening minutes of the second and sustained the advantage down the stretch, leading by no more than eight in the last 20 minutes.
 
Isaiah Bien-Aise cut the deficit to two after two made free throws with 1:30 remaining, but the Red Dragons answered with a jumper by Aaron Coston. After trading turnovers, Rylan Blondo got the ball back for SUNY New Paltz with a steal leading to a timeout by Hawks coach Keith Kenney. Blondo had a look out of the break, but his attempt in the paint was off the mark. Tyreik Frazier was there for the offensive board, giving SUNY New Paltz a chance to create a one-possession game, but Lucas Seyoum's attempt from the perimeter was short and with 20 seconds remaining, Cortland's Austin Grunder picked up the rebound forcing SUNY New Paltz to foul.  
Grunder made just 1-of-2 to create a five-point lead at 74-69. Blondo grabbed the rebound and quickly moved the ball up the floor to Seyoum who scored in the lane to bring the deficit down to three with seven seconds to go. The Hawks intentionally fouled out of the timeout and Coston missed the ensuing one-and-one, giving SUNY New Paltz life but the Red Dragons stood their ground defensively and didn't let the Hawks get off a shot in the final seconds to claim the win.
 
SUNY New Paltz had a balanced offensive night with five players finishing in double-figure points. Seyoum led the way with 15 points on a perfect 6-for-6, including 3-for-3 from 3-point range, with four rebounds, a block and a steal. Sean St. Lucia followed with 12 points, four assists and a steal. Bien-Aise and Blondo added 11 points apiece, with Bien-Aise finishing with his second double-double on the season after pulling down a team-leading 13 rebounds, while Blondo registered six boards and a team-best six assists with one block and a steal. Jonah Bevacqua chipped in with 10 points and three rebounds.
 
The Hawks are back in action Tuesday with a tough road non-conference matchup against No. 17 Williams before hosting SUNY Brockport and SUNY Geneseo in the Hawk Center Friday and Saturday, respectively, for their final regular season games in the Hawk Center.

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