STONY BROOK, N.Y. – After trailing for more than 24 minutes of game time the Cornell women's basketball team used a gutty performance in the fourth quarter to erase a seven-point Stony Brook lead, but saw a game-tying shot fall short to drop a 63-61 decision to the Seawolves this evening at Island FCU Arena.
Cornell (2-5) was led by
Samantha Widmann and
Laura Bagwell-Katalinich with 19 and 18 points, respectively. Widmann also added a game-high 13 rebounds for her first double-double of the season.
Stony Brook won its sixth straight and improved to 6-1 overall behind Shania Johnson's 17 points on a 5-of-9 performance from beyond the arc, while Jerell Mathews finished with 15 points.
The Big Red shot well overall, connecting on .433 percent (26-60), while holding SBU to just .390 percent from the field (23-59). The Seawolves knocked down .333 percent from 3-point range (9-2), bolstered by a 5-of-9 performance in the second quarter.
Both teams finished with 37 rebounds but Cornell turned the ball over two extra times (17-15). Despite the extra turnovers, the Big Red's 10 steals were more productive, as Cornell had a 19-8 advantage in points off turnovers. Cornell also had the advantage in points in the paint (34-33) and second chance points (12-7).
Trailing by seven points at the start of the fourth quarter, the Big Red opened the stanza with consecutive layups from Jess Willerson and Widman to get make it a 50-47 contest, but a trey from Matthews temporarily ended the threat. The Big Red got within three points once more after four straight points from Widmann made it a 54-51 game and moments later back-to-back buckets from Bagwell-Katalinich, followed by a steal and a finish from
Kate Sramac gave Cornell its first lead in more than 24 minutes, 57-56 with 3:12 to play.
Johnson, who seemingly answered every Cornell threat with a big shot, came up once again with a trey to return the lead to the home team, but Bagwell-Katalinich answered with a layup to knot the game at 59-59 with :45 to play. A traditional three-point play from Jonae Cox with :18 on the clock seemed to seal the win for Stony Brook, but an offensive putback by Bagwell-Katalinich and a missed free throw from India Pagan gave Cornell a final chance with :04 to play, but the comeback came up short on the final shot as the Seawolves held on for the 63-61 victory.
Cornell's strong finish was only outdone by its impressive start as the Big Red's defense held Stony Brook to a 1-of-9 start as the visitors took a10-4 lead on trey from
Dylan Higgins with 3:45 to go in the first quarter. The Seawolves ended their slump with a trey from Matthews and then made it a one-point game (12-11) on a layup from McKenzie Bushee. Widmann closed the quarter with a free throw and a driving layup at the buzzer to send the Big Red into the first break with the 15-11 advantage.
Stony Brook got hot from beyond the arc in the second quarter, knocking down four treys on its first five attempts to spark a 14-2 run and take a 25-19 lead with 4:44 to go in the quarter. Widmann ended the run with a steal and finish, but once again Johnson answered with a trey to push the SBU advantage to 28-21. The teams traded baskets the rest of the way as the Seawolves took the 32-27 advantage into the half.
After missing its final three 3-point attempts of the half, Stony Brook knocked down one on its first possession of the third quarter to push its advantage to 35-27, but a hard-fought layup from Bagwell-Katalinich, followed by a steal and finish from
Danielle Jorgenson quickly brought the Big Red within four points (35-31). Cornell stayed within striking distance before back-to-back baskets from Pagan and Cox handed the home team a 45-37 lead with 2:49 to go in the quarter. A layup from Widmann ended the run but a traditional three-point play sent Stony Brook into the final break with a 50-43 lead.
The Big Red will take a two-week hiatus during the University's study break before returning to action at Newman Arena for a 7p.m. contest against Delaware State on Saturday, Dec. 15.
