SUNY Oneonta Athletics

Men’s Basketball (12-14)
 
Feb. 21^st at Geneseo, L 63-68
Feb. 22^nd at Brockport, L 71-86
Despite dropping both games this past weekend, the SUNY Oneonta men's basketball team earned the No. 6 seed for the SUNYAC tournament that begins Tuesday night with quarterfinal games on campus sites. 

Oneonta lost its regular season finale at Brockport, 86-71, after falling last Friday night to Geneseo 68-63.

Oneonta trailed for most of the first half, but came back to take its first lead, 32-31, on a three-pointer by sophomore Seth Thomsen (South New Berlin/Norwich).  Another three by Thomsen gave Oneonta a 35-33 lead before Brockport closed the half with an 8-4 spurt to take a 41-39 lead into the break.

After scoring the first four points of the second half, Brockport put together a 24-8 run that put them ahead 65-51 with just over six minutes left in the game.

Oneonta freshman Seth Thomsen (Saratoga Springs/Saratoga Springs) led all scorers with 29 points.  Senior Dan Lee (Ballston Lake/Shenendehowa) added 11 points and six assists.

Against Geneseo last Friday night, Oneonta had four players in double figures led by McElroy, who scored 26 points.  The game came down to 12 second chance points and an 18-5 advantage for the Blue Knights from the free throw line.  The Red Dragons shot 47 percent from the floor and made 10 three-pointers in the contest.

Oneonta shot an even 50 percent in the first half and took a 32-27 lead into halftime.  McElroy scored 13 of his 26 points in the half and sophomore Jack Dignan (Brewster/Brewster) added seven points off the bench to help pace the offense.

A quick 7-2 run to start the second half by Geneseo tied the game at 34 apiece.  The two teams battled each other, taking turns with the lead over a seven-minute stretch until the Blue Knights gained the lead for good at 50-48 on a layup by James McKenna at the 8:06 mark.

Joining McElroy in double figures was senior Lee, who had 11 points, and Dignan and Thomsen, who each scored 10 points.
 
Women’s Basketball (18-8)
 
Feb. 21^st at Geneseo, L 46-56
Feb. 22^nd at Brockport, W 77-62
The SUNY Oneonta women's basketball team rebounded nicely from its loss to SUNY Geneseo last Friday night by defeating Brockport Saturday afternoon, 77-62, to end the regular season. 

Senior Alyshia Crawford (Oxford/Oxford) led four players in double figures on Saturday with a game high 24 points.  Classmate Grace Schilling (Northport/Northport) scored 17 points while grabbing six boards, dishing out three assists and collecting four steals.  Senior Kelly Mulligan (Pearl River/Pearl River) and junior Sarah Longto (Kingston/Kingston) each contributed 10 points.

After being tied 2-2, a three-pointer by Mulligan gave Oneonta the lead for good.  The Red Dragons led by as many as 18 points on two occasions in the second half, as they posted 45 points in the second half.

Oneonta shot 51 percent from the floor in the contest including 7-of-16 from long range.  They also had 18 assists and collected 11 steals.  The Red Dragons held a big advantage in points in the paint and points off turnovers.

Last Friday night against Geneseo, Oneonta had a tough shooting night which included only 1-of-16 from behind the arc.  The Red Dragons converted 26 Geneseo turnovers into 26 points and held a 30-18 advantage in the paint, but the hosts made five more three-point baskets than they did, which ultimately was the only difference.

The game was tied only once at 2-2, as Geneseo essentially led from wire-to-wire.  Oneonta was trailing by 15 points with just under 10 minutes remaining in the contest and nearly came all the way back for a second time this season against the Blue Knights.  In the first meeting between the two in January, Oneonta overcame a 19-point deficit in the second half to win by five points.

Trailing 45-30 with 9:40 to go, the Red Dragons scored 10 unanswered points capped by a Crawford layup at the 5:53 mark.  Oneonta could get as close as four points the rest of the way, as Geneseo scored the final six points of the game for the final margin of victory.

Crawford and Schilling reached double figures with 16 points and 12 points respectively.
 
Feb. 25^th vs. Cortland, L 58-67 (SUNYAC Tournament Quarterfinals)
For the third time this season, the SUNY Oneonta women's basketball team was facing its rival SUNY Cortland.  Oneonta had defeated Cortland in the first two meetings during the regular season and last Tuesday, the two were meeting in the quarterfinals of the SUNYAC tournament.  It was the first meeting between the two rivals in the tournament since 2008 in the semifinals.

The win would go to the visiting Red Dragons by the final of 67-58. 
Oneonta carried a 34-32 lead into the second half, but seven unanswered points by Cortland gave them the lead for good at the 14:51 mark.  A three-point play broke a 39-39 tie. 

Cortland continued to build its lead and raised it to double digits on a three-point play at the 7:03 mark, which put Cortland ahead 57-47.

Cortland led by as many as 13 points late in the game before Oneonta made a final push.  A Longto put back and a coast-to-coast lay up by Crawford cut the lead to nine points with 1:40 remaining in the game.  Oneonta continued to battle in the final minute, but couldn't get a shot to fall to get any closer.

Crawford led all scorers in the game with 26 points to go with eight rebounds and two steals.  Classmate Schilling added 11 points and four assists.

Cortland hit its first three shots of the game, all from long range to grab an early 9-6 lead. 

Cortland held its largest lead of the first half at 21-16 with just over 10 minutes to go before Oneonta scored 11 unanswered to take a 27-21 lead with just under seven minutes left.  Crawford scored six points and Lyteshia Price (Liverpool/Liverpool) added four points to lead the run.  Crawford led all scorers with 15 first half points.

Cortland would battle back to tie the game at 29 apiece. Cortland made eight three-point baskets in the opening half and 11 field goals overall.

Neither team would score a point for nearly three minutes until Schilling made a pair of free throws to break the 29 all tie.  A pair of foul shots by Longto with no time on the clock would give Oneonta a 34-32 lead at halftime.


Men’s Swimming & Diving
 
Feb. 20-22^nd at SUNYAC Championships, 3^rd with 492 points
The SUNY Oneonta men's swimming and diving team finished third with 492 points at the SUNYAC Championship meet hosted by Erie C.C. This marks the third consecutive year with a third place finish. 

Junior Colton Roe (Middletown/Pine Bush) earned SUNYAC First Team All-Conference honors for his performance at the three-day event. Last Saturday, Roe took second in the 200 backstroke while hitting the NCAA “B” cut time. On Friday, Roe would call himself a SUNYAC Champion when he won the 100 backstroke.
 
Jermaine Miller (Elmira/Southside) and Lucas Santiago (Amsterdam/Amsterdam) would also be honored as they were named to the SUNYAC All-Conference Second Team. Miller finished second on the 3-meter board and third on the 1-meter board. Santiago touched the wall in second place in the 200 butterfly.
 
The men broke three school records at the meet, one individual and two relays.
 
In the 50-yard freestyle on the opening day, Roe broke his own school record set at last year’s championship meet with a time of 21.64.
 
On the first day, the first event of the evening session, the quartet of Anthony Franchi (Canajoharie/Canajoharie), Kevin Flessa (Middletown/Middletown), Daniel Condon (Middletown/Middletown) and John Rein (Holbrook/Sachem North), broke the 200-yard freestyle relay school record, initially in the preliminaries and out-doing it in the finals.
 
Roe and Franchi would team up with Santiago and Ryan Walsh (Wingdale/Arlington) to break the 400-yard freestyle relay school record in 3:12.46, a half second faster than the old record.
 
Women’s Swimming & Diving
The SUNY Oneonta women’s swimming & diving team had their best finish at the SUNYAC Championship meet as they finished in fourth place with 409 points over the three-day event. The women broke nine individual school records and all five of the relay records in the process.
 
The Red Dragons had two members named to the SUNYAC All-Conference Second team for their performances this past weekend. Senior Chandler Shepard (Delhi/Delaware Academy) and sophomore Lauren Zentko (Glenville/Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake) were both honored.

Zentko had hand in breaking seven school records during the championships including three last Saturday. She started her evening off with a second place finish in the 1650-yard freestyle. Her time of 17:33.06 was 22 second faster. In the process, she set a new school record in the 1000-yard freestyle with her split of 10:33.33. Her time also met the NCAA "B" cut.

Zentko and Shepard would pair up with Taylor Waldrop (Fairport/Fairport) and Kristin Higgins (Queensbury/Glens Falls) for the final event of the evening, the 400-yard freestyle relay. Their time of 3:38.10 broke the old school record set last year at the championship meet.

Shepard would take home a medal in the 100-yard freestyle as she placed third in the event while setting a news school record as well. She swam the event in a time of 52.81, almost a second and a half faster.

Waldrop and Hillary Chocko (Queensbury/Queensbury) would also set school record in their respective events. Waldrop broke the 200-yard backstroke record with a time of 2:09.39 while Chocko would break the 200-yard breaststroke touching the wall in 2:31.19.
 
Opening the evening session last Friday was the quartet of senior Alexxa Poliachik (Niagara Falls/Niagara Wheatfield), juniors Carly Cahill (Troy/Troy) and Chocko and freshman Sarah Greco (Merrick/Sanford H. Calhoun) who finished sixth in the 200-yard medley relay while breaking the first school record of the evening. They touched the wall in a time of 1:51.97, almost a second faster than the previous record set at the SUNYAC Championships last year.

The Red Dragons would end the evening with a new school record in the 800-yard freestyle relay with a time of 7:56.07 while finishing in third place. The group of Cahill,Waldrop, Zentko and Shepard beat the old record by over five seconds.

Zentko took second in the 400-yard individual medley while setting a new school record in the process with a time of 4:37.60.

Chocko would follow suit by setting a new record in the 100-yard breaststroke with a 1:08.99, touching the wall in seventh place.

Junior Kelly Ruf (Poughkeepsie/Roy C. Ketcham) set the final school record in the 100-yard butterfly.  Ruf set it in the preliminaries with a time of 1:00.58.
 
The 200-yard freestyle relay squad also set a new record by over two seconds. The old record was set back in 2008. The group consisted of seniors Poliachik and Shepard and freshmen Nicole DiFilippo (Danville,PA/Danville ) and Greco as they touched the wall in a time of 1:39.42 and finished the event in sixth place.

Shepard repeated her performance in the 50-yard freestyle by breaking her own school record with a time of 24.37 and touching the wall in fourth place.


Zentko swam a 2:11.74 in the 200-yard individual medley and breaking a three year old record.

The women closed out last Thursday evening’s session by setting a new school record in the 400-yard medley relay and posting their best finish of the first day in third place. The quartet of Cahill , Chocko, Zentko and Shepard touched in 3:59.69 almost eight seconds faster than the old record set back in 2010.
 
Men’s Indoor Track & Field
 
Feb. 22^nd at Marc Denault Invitational hosted by Cornell University
One week out from the 2014 SUNYAC indoor track & field championships and the SUNY Oneonta men's team got its final tune up last Saturday at the Deneault Invitational hosted by Cornell University.  The performances were solid overall with two school records being set, as the athletes worked out the final kinks.

Topping the list of performances for a second straight week was junior J.D. Roth (Pearl River/Nanuet) breaking two records while moving up the NCAA Division III performance list in both the shot put and weight throw.  Roth eclipsed the 17 meter mark for the first time in the shot put while taking back the school record in the weight throw from classmate Patrick Weinert (Schenevus/Schenevus).

Roth placed second in both events yesterday with distances of 17.02m (55'-10.25") in the shot put and 18.39m (60'-4") in the weight throw.  Both distances are at the top of the SUNYAC entering next week's championships.  His distance in the shot put has moved him into sixth nationally while his performance in the weight has him at No. 8.

In the sprints, sophomore Joe Carr (Burnt Hills/Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake) won the 300m dash while qualifying for finals in the 60m dash.  He ran a personal best time of 35.04 in the 300m while he crossed the line in the 60m in 7.09 seconds to finish fifth.

Classmates Micah Patterson (Plattsburgh/Saranac) and Thomas Wheeler (Rocky Point/Rocky Point) were third and fifth respectively in the 300m.  Wheeler's time of 36.45 was a personal best performance for him in the event.

Sophomore Jake Alviene (East Greenbush/Columbia) was a finalist in the 60m hurdles while finishing third in the 200m dash.

Freshman David Busby (New Paltz/New Paltz) ran an ECAC qualifying time of 8:55.84 in taking ninth place in the 3000-meter run.
 
Women’s Indoor Track & Field
 
Feb. 22^nd at Marc Denault Invitational hosted by Cornell University
The SUNY Oneonta women's track & field spent its final week of competition prior to the SUNYAC championships at the Deneault Invitational last Saturday hosted by Cornell University.  The Red Dragons had multiple season best and personal best performances, as they tune up for a run at the top of the conference next Saturday at Brockport.

In the short sprint events and hurdles, senior Shana Ventresca (Niagara Falls/Niagara Falls) turned in a personal best performance in the 60m dash with a time of 8.16 while freshman Carrie Small (Rockland County/North Rockland) had a season best time of 9.61 in the 60m hurdles.  Small's time move her into the top-10 in the event in the SUNYAC entering next week's championship.  Small was also fourth in the 300m dash in a time of 43.65.

Junior Chelsea Christonikos (New City/Clarkstown South) and senior Kaitlyn Brandt (West Islip/West Islip) were right behind Small in the 300m in fifth and sixth place respectively.  Christonikos recorded a personal best time of 43.76 in the event.

Freshman Amanda Knox (Gloversville/Goversville) recorded a season best time of 26.62 in finishing 11th in the 200 meters.  She also ran an ECAC qualifying time in the 400 meters of 1:01.19, which was also a season best time.

Senior Brittany Cocchieri (Airmont/Suffern) was second in the 500m dash with a personal best mark and ECAC qualifying time of 1:20.45.

A trio of freshmen ran well enough in the 600-meter run to reach the ECAC qualifying standard in the 500 meters.  Elizabeth Jewiss (Marathon/Marathon), Rachael Shine (Clifton Park/Shenendehowa) and Megan Ottati (Amsterdam/Amsterdam) finished fourth, fifth and sixth respectively in the event.

The final personal best mark recorded was by senior Danielle Kennedy (Stony Point/Albertus Magnus) in the mile.  She finished fourth overall with a time of 5:09.99, which places her third entering the SUNYAC championships next week.

In the field, the throwers and jumpers had season best performances in their final tune up prior to next week's conference meet.

Freshman Alexandria Kober (Webster/Webster Schroeder) and sophomore Kaitlyn Kieser (Westbury/W.T. Clarke) had season and personal best performances in the long and triple jump events.  Kober had a season best performance of 5.04m (16'-6.50") in the long jump where she finished seventh.  Kieser recorded a pair of personal best performances yesterday in both events.  She went 5.02m (16'-5.75") for an eighth place finish in the long jump and then went 10.14m (33'-3.25") in the triple jump.

In the high jump, freshman Hannah Baker (Marlboro/Marlboro Central) recorded a personal best mark of 1.60m (5'-3") to place sixth in the event.  Her height has her in the No. 2 spot for next week's SUNYAC meet.

In the throws, freshman Taylor DeClerck (Goshen/Goshen Central) moved into the top-10 on the SUNYAC performance list.  She had a personal best throw of 13.13m (43'-1") in the weight throw, which has her in the No. 8 spot in the conference.
 
Baseball (1-2)
 
Feb. 22^nd at Lynchburg, W 5-4, L 12-21
The SUNY Oneonta baseball team opened its 2014 season last Saturday at Lynchburg College and came away with a split.  The Red Dragons got a solid pitching performance from starter, Steve Ascher (Cutchogue/Mattituck), in game 1, but was pounded in the nightcap.
 
Ascher was solid in his initial outing of the season, recording 11 strikeouts in 5-2/3 innings.  He allowed four hits and three earned runs in picking up his first win of 2014.  Sophomore Kyle Jordan (Levittown/Division) finished the final 1-1/3 innings to pick up his first collegiate save.  Ascher struck out the side in the first, fourth and fifth innings.

Offensively, freshman David Wright (Oneonta/Oneonta) and junior Matt Mastroianni (Somers/North Salem) each had a pair of hits in the game.  Wright had a double and three runs batted in while Mastroianni had a triple and one run batted in.  Mastroianni's RBI single in the top of the fifth gave the Red Dragons a 4-3 lead.

Mastroianni led off the game with a triple to right center field and came home when Wright singled in the infield in the next at-bat.

Lynchburg scored three runs in the home half of the second inning to go ahead 3-1.  A couple of extra-base hits fueled the inning while a passed ball led to the third run crossing the plate.

Wright struck again in the top of the third inning when he hit a double down the left field line to score a pair of runs to tie the game at three apiece.

Oneonta added an insurance run in the top of the sixth inning on a fielder's choice RBI by sophomore LJ Gizzarelli (Newburgh/Newburgh Free Academy).  Sophomore Dylan Stamile (Long Beach, NY/Bowie (Austin, TX)) scored from third on the play.  Stamile led off the inning with a single to center field and went to third on a single to right center by freshman catcher Billy Riedel (East Northport/John Glenn).
 
In game 2, Lynchburg jumped on Oneonta starter, Alex Mastrianni (Valatie/Ichabod Crane), and chased him from the game with two outs in the third inning.  Mastrianni was touched up for six hits and seven earned runs in taking his first loss of the season.

The Red Dragons actually scored four runs in the first and two more in the second to carry a 6-3 lead into the third inning.  Oneonta loaded the bases with no outs and scored the first run when junior, Nate Eastman (Oneonta/Oneonta), drew a walk to force in Mastroianni from third base.  Stamile drew another walk to force in the second run before freshman Casey Kerdesky (Cornwall/Cornwall) drove in his first two collegiate runs with a single to left field.

Oneonta loaded the bases again in the second inning when Mastroianni doubled, Wright singled and senior Christopher Orlando (Putnam Valley/Putnam Valley) walked.  With two outs, Stamile singled to left field to drive in Mastroianni and Wright.

Lynchburg then rallied to score five runs in the bottom of the third inning and plated another 10 runs in the fourth to take a 19-6 lead.

Oneonta scored four runs in the fifth inning on the strength of junior Jon Halligan (Cornwallville/Cairo Durham)'s grand slam.  The Red Dragons' final two runs came in the seventh inning.

Wright finished the game with three hits for Oneonta while Mastroianni and Stamile each had two hits.
 
Feb. 23^rd at Washington & Lee, L 2-8
A four-run first inning for the Washington & Lee Generals helped lift them past the SUNY Oneonta baseball team today in Virginia 8-2.  Oneonta collected eight hits in the game including a pair of doubles, as they completed its season opening weekend of 2014.

Washington & Lee scored four runs on four hits in the bottom of the first.  Their first run came across after an outfield error allowed a runner to score from second base.  The other three runs came via a sacrifice fly, a double and an infield single.

Oneonta scored its first run in the top of the second with two outs.  Freshman Kerdesky singled and advanced to second base on an error by the center fielder.  He was followed by an RBI single off the bat from classmate Riedel.

The Generals added a single run in the second and two more in the third and, in the process, chased Oneonta starter, freshman Robert Marks (Brooklyn/Brooklyn Technical) from the game with one out in the third.  Marks was touched up for seven hits and six earned runs in his first collegiate outing.  He walked four and struck out two in the 18 batters he faced.

Kerdesky hit an RBI single in the fourth inning to drive in freshman Eastman, who hit a one-out double before going to third base on a fly out to right field by sophomore Stamile.

Eastman and Kerdesky each had a pair of hits to pace Oneonta.
 
 
Women’s Lacrosse (2-0)
 
Feb. 20^th at Redlands, W 11-10
Junior Jillian Donodeo (Holbrook/Sachem East) scored a pair of goals in the final 2:05 last Friday night to lift the SUNY Oneonta women's lacrosse team to a dramatic, 11-10, win over Redlands in its season opener.  Donodeo, who finished the game with four goals and two assists, scored the game-tying goal at 57:55.  She then picked up a ground ball on a failed clear attempt by Redlands with the clock winding down and went to goal where she put a shot to the back of the net with 15 seconds to go in the match.

The two teams battled close throughout the entire 60 minutes.  The largest lead for wither squad was two goals and that was by Oneonta, who led by two goals on two occasions early in the first half.

Oneonta jumped out to a 2-0 lead on goals by Donodeo and classmate Kiera McNally (East Northport/Northport).  Donodeo added an assist on McNally's goal while senior Chelsea Collins (St. James/Smithtown East) assisted on Donodeo's goal.

The Red Dragons maintained its two-goal advantage for most of the first half before three unanswered goals by Redlands gave them its first lead of the match at 6-5.  A goal by Donodeo tied the game heading into halftime.

After a goal by McNally gave Oneonta a 7-6 lead one minute into the second half, the two teams exchanged two goals at a time, which set up Donodeo's heroics.  Redlands scored back-to-back goals to go ahead 10-9 with less than five minutes to go in regulation.

McNally finished the game with three goals for Oneonta and junior Nikki Fioretti (Yorktown Heights/Yorktown) added a pair of goals and one assist.

Sophomore Amanda Reichardt (Kings Park/Kings Park) made eight saves in goal to pick up her first win of the season.
 
Feb. 22 at Chapman, W 21-12
The SUNY Oneonta women's lacrosse team scored the first eight goals of the match en route to a convincing 21-12 win today versus Chapman University, as they wrapped up its week in California.  The Red Dragons will return to New York with a 2-0 start to the 2014 season.

Today, it was junior Fioretti who led four players who scored multiple goals.  Fioretti finished the game with five goals including four of the first eight Oneonta scores.  Senior Casey Sarle (West Islip/West Islip) was next with four goals followed by junior McNally with three goals and sophomore Allison McClain (Wantagh/Wantagh), who scored a pair of goals.  Sarle also collected five draw controls to lead Oneonta.

Senior Collins led all players in the match with seven points, as she scored one goal while adding a collegiate high six assists.  The six assists ties for the third most for a single game in program history.

Oneonta held a 27-15 advantage in ground balls including seven by junior Marissa Makar(Yorktown/Yorktown).  Makar also added a team high five caused turnovers in the match.

Sophomore Reichardt played the first half for Oneonta in goal and came up with eight saves while allowing six goals.  Senior Laura Grose (Yorktown Heights/Yorktown) and sophomore Frankie Wilson (Odenton, MD/Arundel) split time in the second half and combined for a pair of saves.