Defense propels Hawks to win over Geneseo

NEW PALTZ, NY- The SUNY New Paltz women’s basketball team defeated conference opponent Geneseo, 76-48, Saturday night in the Hawk Center.  The defense of the Hawks propelled them to the victory and Bridget Grover scored a career high 14 points.

In the first half, the Hawks jumped out to a 9-4 in the first three minutes and eights seconds, but the Knights were able to pull within 13-12 with 14:07 remaining.  The Hawks responded with a 9-2 run to push the lead to 22-14 at 11:41 left.  The Hawks were able to take a 39-27 advantage at the half forcing 21 turnovers.

The Hawks were led by freshman forward Bridget Grover (Rockville Centre, NY/Holy Trinity) with ten points and three rebounds.  Chelsea Clarke (Ithaca, NY/Lansing) chipped in with nine points and four rebounds and Maggie Farrell (Hillsdale, NY/Immaculate) added seven points and four rebounds.

The Knights were led by Tracy Wangelin with six rebounds and Bri Dunton added five points.  Bridget Riley had 11 rebounds for the Knights in the first half.

In the second half, the Hawks opened with a 10-3 run in four minutes and forty-seven seconds to push the lead to 49-30.  With 13:55 remaining, the Hawks went on a run of 14-6 over a five minute span to give the Hawks a 65-40 lead.  The Hawks pushed the lead to as much as 29 on their way to a 76-48 victory.

The Carly Minehan (Albany, NY/Albany) recorded a double-double with a game high 15 points, 11 in the second half and ten boards.  Grover tallied 14 points, five rebounds and a career high six steals.  Caitlin Irwin (Brooklyn, NY/Bishop Kearney) added 13 points, three rebounds and three steals.  Nicole Sarcone (Staten Island, NY/Notre Dame Academy) dished out a game high seven assists.

The Knights were led by Wangelin with nine points and three rebounds.  Stephanie Ruback and Dunton each added eight points and Riley added eights points and a game high 19 rebounds in the efforts.  The Knights fall to 2-9 overall and 0-5 in SUNYAC competition.

The Hawks improve to 9-3 overall and 5-0 in the SUNYAC.  The Hawks return to the court Friday, January 16 at conference opponent SUNY Potsdam at 6 p.m.