ONEONTA, N.Y. -- The Oneonta women's basketball team fell to Cortland in the Battle of the Red Dragons, 50-43, Saturday afternoon in Dewar Arena. In a tough defensive SUNYAC battle, the Red Dragon contest was tied multiple times during the fourth quarter until Cortland scored a couple three-pointers to hold onto the final lead. Senior
Amanda Zuntag (Staten Island, NY/Notre Dame Academy) recorded the team-high 14 points and 11 rebounds for her fourth double-double of the season. Oneonta moved to 6-8 on the season, 3-4 in the SUNYAC, and Cortland improved to 12-3 overall and 7-1 in conference play.
Cortland took an early 12-2 lead to start the game, however Oneonta cut the deficit in half at 4:45 with a three-pointer from the wing by junior
Emma Schwarzbeck (Wallkill, NY/Wallkill Senior High School) and a layup from sophomore
Carlie Young (Baldwinsville, NY/Baldwinsville Central). Sophomore
Megan Desrats (Warwick, NY/Warwick Valley) knocked down a couple midrange jumpers before the end of the quarter, but Cortland went into the second ahead 17-11.
Oneonta locked Cortland down and kept them scoreless for over eight and a half minutes and tied the game at 17 with 2:45 remaining in the half. Zuntag scored the first basket of the quarter down low before she drained a deep baseline jumper, then Schwarzbeck tied the game when she took her defender straight to the hoop for the lay in. Cortland regained the lead with a three-pointer, however Zuntag made a turnaround jumper for Oneonta to close out the half down one.
Cortland had a 9-2 run at the start of the third quarter to go up 29-21 at 4:26. In the final minute of the third, Oneonta powered a 7-2 stretch to trail 34-32 heading into the fourth. Young and Zuntag each scored in the paint, then Schwarzbeck drained a catch-and-shoot three-pointer in the closing seconds to make it a two-point game.
Senior
Molly Coyne (Syracuse, NY/West Genesee) tied the game at 34 with a corner jumper at the start of the fourth, then again off a give and go with Desrats with 8:49 to play. Cortland took the lead for good when Mariah Huss and Jackie Funk scored back-to-back threes to go up 42-36 with 7:48 to go. Oneonta made it a one-possession game when senior
Nadia Brown (Troy, NY/Troy) knocked down a trey from the wing, and again when Zuntag scored off the glass with 1:12 to play, however Cortland used the free throw line to keep the game out of reach.
Schwarzbeck finished with eight points and five rebounds, and Brown ended with seven points, four boards, and two steals. Cortland had three players finish in double digits, Kayla Campbell led with 15 points and six rebounds, Funk had 13 points.
Oneonta shot 29.2 percent from the floor and had a 35-34 rebounding advantage, while Cortland shot 37.5 percent from the field.
Oneonta is back in action on Tuesday, January 21, for a SUNYAC match against Oswego at 5:30 pm in Dewar Arena.
