Boxscore
ITHACA, N.Y. -- Senior Allie Fedorowicz had 22 points to lead three players in double figures as Cornell improved to 4-3 on the season with a 74-64 win over Colgate on Thrusday evening at Newman Arena. The win, the Big Red's third in its last four games, came as the home team limited the Raiders (5-3) to 39 percent shooting on the day.
Fedorowicz added six rebounds and four assists to her game-high scoring total. She connectedo n 7-of-16 shots from the floor and 3-of-10 from beyond the 3-point arc. Lauren Benson added 14 points, eight rebounds, six assists and just one turnover from the point guard position, while Virginia McMunigal had 12 points, three rebounds and two assists without committing a miscue. Overall, Cornell assisted on 15 of its 24 baskets and committed just 11 turnovers. Freshman Whitney Hagan provided a big spark off the bench with six timely points to go along with seven rebounds. She entered the game with a total of just 11 points and four rebounds in her first five contests for the Big Red.
Krista Moser had 12 points and 10 rebounds for a double-double, while Sami Kozlowski had 10 points, four assists and three rebounds. The Raiders held a 41-38 edge on the backboards.
“This was an important win for us,” said head coach Dayna Smith. “We're about to enter the University study break period and it's tough going into a 17-day lay-off when you're coming off a loss. So we wanted to get this win badly. I think it was important for our team morale.”
Cornell held the Raiders without a field goal for nearly five minutes as it jumped out to a 7-0 lead, thanks to lay-ups by Fedorowicz and Allie Munson sandwiched around a 3-pointer from Benson. After Kendra Brim got Colgate on the board at the 15:38 mark, Clare Fitzpatrick responded with a pair of made free throws to return the Big Red's lead to seven points, 9-2.
Cornell eventually pushed its lead to double-digits when a lay-up by Hagan made it a 20-9 contest with 8:28 left to play in the first half. The teams traded baskets before Colgate used a furious 20-9 scoring run over the closing minutes to knot the game at 31-31 at the intermission.
“I think we played poor defense over the last few minutes of the first half,” explained Smith. “That really limited our ability to run, which is this team's strength. At halftime, we really stressed pushing the ball more on a make or a miss and dictating the tempo.”
After a jumper by Tricia Oakes gave the visitors an early lead in the second half, Cornell responded with back-to-back 3-pointers by Benson and Fedorowicz to go up, 37-33. The trey by Fedorowicz was just the beginning as she racked up nine points in just over three minutes of action, including a traditional three-point play to give the Big Red a 45-40 lead with 15:09 to play.
Once again, Cornell would push its lead to nine points, going up 51-42 on a layup by Benson, but over the next six minutes, Colgate would shrink that advantage to four points, 55-51, on a 3-pointer by Candice Green.
A trey by Taylor Flynn on Cornell's next possession ended the Raiders' run and a jumper by McMunigal pushed the Big Red advantage back to nine points with just over six minutes to play.
After a pair of made free throws by McMunigal put Cornell up, 62-54, Colgate got six unanswered points to make it a two-point game. The Big Red responded with the next eight points on a free throw by Munson, a layup by Hagan and five points by McMunigal on a 3-pointer and a pair of free throws to take a commanding 70-60 lead at the 1:35 mark.
From there, Cornell cruised to the 74-64 victory.
The Big Red enters its study-break period and will return to action on Saturday, Dec. 19 when it travels to Riverdale, N.Y., to take on Manhattan College at 7 p.m.
