Fredonia, NY — The State University of New York New Paltz bounced back from a two-game losing skid with a 71-53 road win over Fredonia Saturday.
 
After a tied first half, the Hawks offense picked up in the following 20 minutes thanks to a 25-point second half performance by Hannah Vanderzee and Abby Korzekwinski who combined to shoot 16-for-26 to lead their team to an 18-point victory.
 
Vanderzee scored 15 of her 17 points in the final 20 minutes and gave her team the lead to open up the second after the two opponents went into the break tied at 29. Vanderzee connected on her first two attempts to push SUNY New Paltz ahead, 33-31 and then continued to score six of her team's points in a 15-4 run that brought the cushion to 12 with three minutes to go in the third quarter capped by a Sophia Bonnell 3-pointer.
 
The Blue Devils scored on consecutive baskets to end the period and brought the difference down to six entering the fourth. Vanderzee made sure to create more of a cushion for the Hawks to start the final quarter, as she got her hands in the passing lane to earn a steal and go coast-to-coast for an easy two points. She doubled-down on the next offensive possession, working her way into the paint and earning an and-1 to bring the lead to 11 with more than eight minutes to go.
 
SUNY New Paltz held Fredonia scoreless for four-plus minutes where it then piled on 12-straight points to build a comfortable 18-point advantage with 4:37 remaining in the game. The Blue Devils couldn't recover from the deficit with the Hawks holding on with 3-pointers made by Madison Mullman and Bonnell to maintain the near 20-point lead.  
SUNY New Paltz shot 42 percent from the field in the game, including an efficient 49 percent in the second half where it hit 4-for-9 from behind the arc. The Hawks scored more than half of their points in the paint, accumulating 44 under the hoop while adding 22 second-chance points as they out-rebounded Fredonia, 31-29 in the game, including 17-8 on the offensive glass.
 
Korzekwinski finished with a game-high 18 points in 35 minutes, shooting 8-for-12 from the field with eight rebounds, five steals and three assists. Vanderzee followed with 17 points on 8-for-14 shooting with four rebounds, an assist and three steals. Julia Sabatino tallied 12 points on 5-for-11 shooting with five rebounds, three assists and five steals in a full 40 minutes of action, while Mullman contributed 10 points, five rebounds, two assists and a steal in 21 minutes off the bench.
 
SUNY New Paltz returns home next weekend, hosting Plattsburgh and Potsdam in the Hawk Center Feb. 7 and Feb. 8 at 5:30 p.m. and 2 p.m., respectively.


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