Cortland, NY — The State University of New York at New Paltz suffered its first conference loss in an overtime thriller against the Cortland Red Dragons on Friday, 68-65.

The Hawks (8-2, 2-1 SUNYAC) came back from a 22-11 first-period deficit with a phenomenal second quarter showing, outscoring reigning SUNYAC champion Cortland (9-2, 4-0 SUNYAC) 24-8 to enter halftime up 35-30. However, their efforts were not enough to keep the Red Dragons at bay, as the hosts secured the win in overtime.

While SUNY New Paltz welcomed back sophomore Sierra Carter in their starting lineup after missing the last game against the Oswego Lakers, the Hawks once again had to play without head coach Jamie Seward. However, Cortland was also missing pieces, with standout guard Jackie Funk not dressing for the game. Funk averages 12.6 points per game this season and helped lift the Red Dragons to a victory over Fredonia on Jan 6 with a 19-point performance.  

Despite missing Funk from the lineup, the Red Dragons got on the board first with an and-1 play by junior Sophie Bissaillon. The Hawks could repay the favor and turned over their second straight possession with the Red Dragons knocking down a free throw on the other end for an early 4-0 lead. 

SUNY New Paltz logged its first points just before the third minute of play with a turnaround jumper by Brianna Fitzgerald, stopping Cortland's run at 6-2. Freshman Macie Perry followed with a triple before the Hawks forced a Red Dragon turnover on the other side. 

However, Cortland's foot stayed on the gas and the hosts scored five straight before being interrupted by Fitzgerald again, who drained two free throws to cut the deficit to 13-7. Fitzgerald showed off her veteran experience from the line all game, going 10-11 in free throws.

Back in action, Cortland continued to push the pace. With just under a minute remaining, Bissaillon drilled another three to elevate Cortland to a lofty 21-9 lead, which forced the Hawks to take their first timeout of the game. Out of the break, SUNY New Paltz's Karly Wittenbauer hit a jump shot to bring the Hawks within 10, but Cortland was able to get off a free throw before the end of the quarter and headed to the bench up 22-11. 

But the second quarter was all the Hawks. 

SUNY New Paltz scored early on in the second, and outshot Cortland 4-2 in the first two minutes alone. Hannah Vanderzee registered her first points of the game with just under seven minutes remaining in the half and was followed up by a contested lay by Wittenbauer. Vanderzee and Wittenbauer continued to find success in the paint, scoring a combined four straight for SUNY New Paltz to bring the Hawks within one, 26-25. 

With just under four minutes remaining, Summer Perry evened the score 26-26 with a made free throw, but not even a minute later, Cortland broke its near four-minute scoring drought with two made free throws. Fitzgerald soon earned another trip to the line and sank the first, but her missed second was rebounded and put back in by Wittenbauer, which regained SUNY New Paltz the lead, 29-28. Vanderzee added on to the campaign with a fast break layup off a steal, followed up by two free throws apiece from Wittenbauer and Fitzgerald. 

In a last-ditch effort to gain momentum, the Red Dragons made their first field goal in seven minutes following an offensive rebound. Both teams headed into halftime with a 35-30 score, with the Hawks in the lead. 

Cortland scored first out of the half to begin a back-and-forth third quarter. The Red Dragons began to chip away at the Hawks' lead, regaining the advantage halfway through the quarter off a layup to lead 39-37. SUNY New Paltz did not pull back and continued to battle with Cortland, never letting the hosts lead by more than a basket the entire third. 

At the end of the quarter, Cortland drained a free throw to even the score once again, the teams entering the fourth neck and neck, 48-48. 

The opponents had their lowest offensive productions in the fourth, neither team scoring until three minutes in, when Macie Perry banked a layup to regain the lead. However, Cortland answered back with a 3-pointer for a 51-50 advantage.

With just over two minutes remaining, a layup by Carter elevated SUNY New Paltz to a four-point lead, which was quickly responded to by Cortland who cut their disadvantage to only two points. The team's continued to battle until seconds remained on the clock, when a foul by Carter sent senior Kaeli McAnally to the line. McAnally sank both free throws to tie the game up 57-57 — and force overtime. 

In the final period, the Red Dragons came out hot, scoring five straight points before Fitzgerald layed one in to stop the run. Bissaillon scored again to re-up Cortland's lead, but Vanderzee answered with four points to trail by one, 64-63, with under two minutes remaining in overtime. 

But the Hawks' efforts were not enough, and the Red Dragons secured the win with four straight points of their own, outlasting SUNY New Paltz 68-65. 

Fitzgerald led the team in scoring, posting 25 points and a game-high four blocks and six steals. Wittenbauer, who was the catalyst off the bench in the Hawks' first-half comeback, scored 12 of her 16 total points in the first alone. The senior also contributed five rebounds, three assists and two steals to her stat line, while Vanderzee added 10 points, five rebounds, five assists, and five steals. 

The Hawks return to action tomorrow as they will take on the Morrisville Mustangs at 2 p.m. 


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