Women’s Basketball (19-8/14-4 SUNYAC)
Feb. 24th vs. New Paltz, W 66-63 OT (SUNYAC Tournament Semifinals)
Exactly one week ago, the Oneonta State and New Paltz women's basketball teams waged an epic battle in the regular season finale to determine who would be the third seed for the SUNYAC tournament. Seeking to avenge its overtime loss to the Hawks, the Red Dragons worked overtime last Friday night before subduing New Paltz 66-63 in the semifinals of the conference tournament. This was the third straight year that the two have met in the semifinals of the tournament and the second straight year that Oneonta has eliminated the Hawks.
It appeared that Oneonta would run away with the game, but New Paltz wouldn't quit as they battled all the way back to overcome a 14-point halftime deficit to force the extra period. The Hawks actually had the lead late at 55-54 on a free throw by Maliqua Fisher.
“I could see it from the beginning of the second half,” said coach
Daphne Thompson. “New Paltz likes to play a hurried tempo and we got caught up in it. We were playing so controlled with a nice flow in the first half, but we turned the ball over early and allowed them to get back into the game.”
A jumper put New Paltz in front 57-54 with 2:05 remaining in regulation. One minute later a pair of free throws by junior
Gabi Regan (Troy/Columbia) pulled Oneonta back to 57-56. Senior
Samantha Szkotak (New York Mills/New York Mills) hit the second of two free throws to tie the score at 57 apiece with 39 seconds left.
New Paltz had the ball and they had two shots at a game-winner, but they couldn't convert. Oneonta sophomore
Kristin Pappalardo (Mahopac/Lakeland) grabbed the defensive rebound and raced to the other end only to miss a layup at the buzzer, which caused the game to go the extra period.
Pappalardo finished the game with 15 points, 10 rebounds and five steals.
“Kristin was on tonight,” said Thompson. “She plays at such a high intensity level and she is still learning how to harness her energy and she did that for us tonight.”
In overtime, it was Szkotak that led the way for Oneonta. She scored six of the nine points that the Red Dragons had in the extra session including the clinching free throws with one second left to secure the victory. Szkotak would finish with 16 points in the contest.
The Red Dragons scored five straight points to open the extra period, but the Hawks responded with a three-pointer. After
Madison Slagle (Rome/Rome Catholic) pushed the edge out to four, New Paltz drained a triple to pull to within one (64-63) with 1:54 to go in the period. That ended up being the last field goal of the evening for the Hawks. Slagle equaled Szkotak's 16 points as the third player in double figures for Oneonta.
New Paltz was hurt by a 43.5 percent (10-of-23) shooting night from the free-throw line and a 36.9 percent (24-of-65) mark from the floor. However, the Red Dragons committed 30 turnovers to the Hawks' 20, and New Paltz dropped in 33 points off Oneonta giveaways, 20 of which came in the second half, which aided in the comeback.
Oneonta couldn't have started any stronger as they jumped on New Paltz early and often in racing to a 37-23 lead at halftime. The Red Dragons were hitting just about everything as they finished the half shooting 52 percent from the field.
Szkotak got Oneonta off and running by burying a three-pointer to open the scoring and then followed with a layup for a quick 5-0 lead. It was 7-0 before the Hawks finally got on the scoreboard. Oneonta ran off eight unanswered to take a commanding 15-3 lead just seven minutes into the contest. The Red Dragons led by as many as 17 points late in the opening half and settled for its 14-point advantage at the break.
Feb. 25th at Buffalo State, W 50-41 (SUNYAC Tournament Finals)
The Oneonta State women's basketball team will be going to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2001 after defeating top-seeded Buffalo State in the championship game of the SUNYAC tournament 50-41. Oneonta proved why it is one of the top defensive teams in Div. III and, in the end; it was this component that brought them a conference title.
“We executed our defensive game plan and rebounded today,” said coach
Daphne Thompson. It was a total team effort on the defensive end. We had players that came off the bench and did the things that don't show up in the box score that helped us earn a great win. We outrebounded a more athletic team, which shows how this team believes in what we are doing.”
This was Oneonta's sixth appearance all-time in the championship game and its second straight. The Red Dragons were unsuccessful in its last two appearances in 2005 and last year, but last Saturday, they had the right formula for bringing home the trophy and earn the program's third NCAA berth. Oneonta secured one of the forty automatic berths that are awarded to conference champions.
The senior duo of
Szkotak and
Slagle did what head coach Thompson thought they were capable when she recruited the two four years ago. She thought they would be difference makers and they were exactly that today in leading the program to the top of the SUNYAC.
“We thought that Sam and Madison were capable of being blue chip players for us,” said Thompson. “They are determined individuals who can lead by example. They played in big games in High School and, when the game is on the line, they want the ball and they want to make the shot. Those are the types of players you need in your program if you want to be successful.”
Thompson continued, “They are great leaders for us and they make the rest of the team, which is young, believe in what we are trying to accomplish.”
Both players recorded a double-double. Szkotak, the tournament MVP, had 20 points and 11 rebounds while Slagle, an All-Tournament selection, added 10 points and 12 boards while holding Buffalo State's leading scorer Staci McElroy to just seven points. Sophomore guard
Pappalardo was also named to the All-Tournament Team after registering 10 points in the game after scoring 15 points last night in the semifinals along with grabbing a team high 10 rebounds.
Oneonta never trailed in the second half. Buffalo State did battle back to tie the score at 36 apiece on a pair of free throws at the 10:49 mark. The Red Dragons gained the lead for good with six unanswered points while not allowing the Bengals to score a field goal over the final 12:13 of the game. Oneonta, who is No. 16 in Div. III if field goal percentage defense, clamped down and held Buffalo State to 21 percent in the game.
It was Szkotak who hit a layup at 6:52 that gave Oneonta its six-point bulge at 42-36. Down the stretch she converted 4-of-4 from the line including the final points in the nine-point victory.
A couple of first half runs helped each team gain momentum at different points in the opening twenty minutes. After Slagle got things started with a jumper, the Bengals countered with eight unanswered points en route to building an early 12-4 lead. A pair of free throws by Bianca Smiley at 13:49 gave Buffalo State the largest lead by either team in the opening half.
Oneonta countered with a 10-0 run of its own to gain the lead back at 14-12. The run was capped by a
Regan layup at 8:10.
The score was tied twice during the final eight minutes of the first half, the last at 16 apiece before Slagle drained a three to give Oneonta the lead that they would build to 25-20 at the break. Szkotak closed the half with a put back of her own miss as time ran out. Szkotak had eight points and five rebounds at halftime. The Red Dragons held a 26-15 advantage in the first half of the glass including a 10-6 edge on the offensive end. Oneonta finished the game with 51 rebounds, one shy of its season high of 52 versus Cortland back on Feb. 11.
Wrestling (9-9)
Feb. 25th at ECWC Championships, 5th place with 81.5 points
The Oneonta State wrestling team finished fifth last Saturday at the ECWC championships, which is the qualifying event for the NCAA Div. III championships. The Red Dragons scored 81.5 points as a team, well ahead of sixth place Lycoming and just out of fourth, which went to Messiah with 97 points. Despite winning six weight classes, Ithaca was narrowly edged by SUNY Cortland 128.5 to 127 as the rival Red Dragons won the team championship.
The conference has 10 automatic qualifiers, one for each weight class and, at the conclusion of the event; the coach's select six more at-large wrestlers to represent the conference at the national championships.
Earning one of those six at-large spots was Oneonta junior
Joey Hauser (Yorktown Heights/Lakeland), who was the runner-up at 149 lbs. Hauser lost in overtime to the 2011 Div. III national champion, Jeremy Stierly of Ithaca College. Hauser was seeded second in his bracket and, true to form, the two top seeded wrestlers met in the final bout for the title. After battling to a one-all tie through the seven-minute bout, Stierly scored a take down in the first overtime period for the win.
Hauser got to the final bout with wins versus Adam Hugunine of RIT and Robert Troy of Brockport. He recorded a major decision (13-3) against Huguinine and a 5-3 decision versus Troy.
Hauser was one of nine place winners for Oneonta today. The exciting news is that seven of the eight will be back for the Red Dragons next season.
Sophomore
Dan Graff (LaGrangeville/Arlington) (157) was the next highest place winner with a 3rd place finish. Senior
Jimmy Neal (Glens Falls/Glens Falls) (174), sophomore
Stephen Provenzano (Islip/Islip) (184) and freshman
Alex Pugh (Morrisville/Peru) (125) were fourth in their respective weight classes. Sophomores
Ben Mikac (Lackawanna/Williamsville East) (133) and
Jake Smith (St. James/Smithtown) (197) finished fifth. Junior
Matt Eberlein (Levittown/Island Trees) (165) and freshman
Michael Almaviva (Clifton Park/Shenendehowa) (285) were both sixth.
Graff, Provenzano and Pugh all finished higher than their initial seed in their brackets. Graff was the fourth seed at 157 lbs. while Provenzano was seeded fifth at 184 lbs. Graff defeated Nick Rogers of Oswego, 2-0, in the championship bout of the consolation bracket. Provenzano fell 11-2 to Tyler Cunningham of Lycoming in the championship bout of the consolation bracket. Pugh was unseeded and came back in the consolation bracket where he fell in the final to Ricardo Gomez, the No. 3 seed, 9-5.
Hauser will now have two weeks to get ready for the Div. III national championships hosted by the University of Wisconsin La Crosse during the weekend of Mar. 9-10. Hauser is the first NCAA participant for Oneonta since 2010 when the Red Dragons sent Josh Wake and Chris Wade to the championships. Both wrestlers came home All-Americans.
Men’s Indoor Track & Field
Feb. 26th at SUNYAC Championships, 4th place with 86.5 points
The Oneonta State track & field teams competed last Sunday at the SUNYAC championship meet on the campus of Hobart & William Smith Colleges. The men scored 86.5 points and came away with a fourth place finish.
Highlighting last Sunday’s performance was a pair of SUNYAC titles by junior
Sean Bernstein (Baldwinsville/C.W. Baker). Bernstein entered the meet as the top seed in both the 60 and 200-meter dashes. He left Geneva with the fastest times in both events including a meet record in the 200. He won the 60 in a time of 6.92 while he crossed the line in the 200 in a time of 21.67. His time in the 200 broke the meet record set last year by Justin Allen of Buffalo State, who ran a time of 21.76.
Bernstein was also the lead leg for the 4x400-meter relay that missed a SUNYAC title by .01 seconds as they came in second in a time of 3:24.09. Freshmen
Kevin Wren and
Rob Farrell (Carmel/Mahopac) ran legs two and three respectively while senior
Jesse Dobson (Farmingville/Sachem East) ran the anchor leg.
Individual medalist honors on the men's side, which go to the top-3 in each event, included Farrell and classmate
J.D. Roth (Pearl River/Nanuet) and
junior John Longo (Endwell/Maine-Endwell). Farrell finished second in the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 8.53, which equaled his personal best in the event. Roth was runner-up in the 35-lb. weight throw with a distance of 15.18m (49'-9.75”). Longo took third in the 3,000-meter run in a personal best time of 8:42.01.
The final medal for the men came in the distance medley relay in which sophomores
Michael Marinello (Slingerlands/Bethlehem) and
Tom Haskins (Tully/Tully) and freshmen
David Bohunicky (Johnson City/Maine-Endwell) and
Bobby Gallant (Scotia/Scotia-Glenville) ran third in a time of 10:37.60.
Women’s Indoor Track & Field
Feb. 26th at SUNYAC Championships, 5th place with 52.5 points
The Oneonta State track & field teams competed last Sunday at the SUNYAC championship meet on the campus of Hobart & William Smith Colleges. The women accumulated 52.5 points to finish in fifth place.
Highlighting last Sunday’s performance was a SUNYAC title by senior
Sarah Timmons (Schodack/Maple Hill). Timmons successfully defended her conference title in the 20-lb. weight throw. She recorded a distance of 17.31m (56'-9.50”), which was six feet better than the second place thrower from Brockport.
The only other medalist on the women's side also came in the weight throw with a third place finish by junior
Kate Parsons (Valatie/Ichabod Crane). Parsons recorded a personal best distance of 13.63m (44'-8.75”).
The other top performer for the women was sophomore
Danielle Kennedy (Stony Point/Albertus Magnus), who doubled up today and came away with a pair of fourth place finishes. She ran a personal best time of 5:11.47 in her first event of the day before coming back to run 10:25.52 in the 3,000 meters.
