UTICA, N.Y. -- The Oneonta women's basketball team started their 2025-26 season with a 66-50 road victory against SUNY Poly, Friday evening. Oneonta trailed by a basket at halftime then they came out and outscored Poly 37-19 in the second half for the win. Senior
Lidia Boucher (Delmar, NY/Bethlehem Central) shot 6-for-13 from the field and led the team with 19 points, eight rebounds, three steals and two blocks, while junior
Carlie Young (Baldwinsville, NY/Baldwinsville Central) secured a double-double with 18 points and the team-high 10 rebounds.
Boucher and Young combined for 25 of the team's 37 points in the second half, and each knocked down two three-pointers. Freshman
Kayla Beaudoin (Brunswick, N.Y./Tamarac) knocked down three treys in the game and shot 5-for-9 from the floor to finish with 13 points in her collegiate debut as the Red Dragons started the season 1-0 and the Wildcats 0-1.
Beaudoin scored the first basket of the game, and her career, with a corner three and sparked a quick 7-0 run, where Boucher drove in for a basket, and freshman
Addy Eckert (Bloomville, N.Y./South Kortright) recorded her first collegiate points with a post move inside the paint. Both teams began to trade baskets, but a couple more three-pointers from Beaudoin helped maintain Oneonta's 24-17 lead heading into the second.
SUNY Poly started the second quarter with a 9-2 run and tied the game at 26 with 6:35 left in the half. Sophomore
Kendall Mack (Cortland, NY/Cortland) drove hard into the paint for the and-one to give the Red Dragons back the lead, however the Wildcats scored the final five points of the half and went up 31-29 at the break.
After the teams went back-and-forth to start the third, Oneonta regained the lead for a moment on a triple from Boucher, then Alysa Jackson answered back with a three to tie the game, 36-36 at 6:16. The Red Dragons used the remaining minutes in the third quarter to go on a 17-4 run and created a 53-40 advantage. Junior
Megan Desrats (Warwick, NY/Warwick Valley), who had six points in the quarter, scored four points during the stretch, while Young led with seven points and Boucher contributed six.
The Wildcats got the deficit down to 10 points, until Young scored on a give-and-go with Beaudoin, then the Baldwinsville, N.Y. junior and Boucher each knocked down a three-pointer to give the Red Dragons their biggest lead of the game, 63-45, with 4:35 to play. Poly scored a few more points, then junior
Maddie Hoy (Canton, NY/Canton Central) drilled a triple for the final basket.
Desrats finished with eight points, the game-high seven assists, four rebounds and three steals. Eckert totaled nine rebounds and had a block in her debut.
Jackson led SUNY Poly, and the game, with 22 points, while Bryanna Lucas recorded 11 points and four assists.
Oneonta shot 39.7 percent from the field, 32.0 percent from three, and held a 40-34 rebounding advantage. Poly shot 30.2 percent from the floor and 34.8 percent from deep. The Red Dragons also went 12-for-13 from the line (92.3 percent), while the Wildcats went 10-for-19 (52.6 percent).
Oneonta's next game will be their home opener with the Battle of the Hills on Wednesday, November 12, against Hartwick at 5:30 pm.
