ITHACA, N.Y. – In a game of momentum swings, it appeared as if the Cornell women's basketball team (9-11, 2-6) was sitting right where it wanted to be as the fourth quarter started to unveil. Just when it looked like the Big Red was on its way to victory, the tides turned again, and Dartmouth made a 10-point Cornell lead disappear, going on to defeat the Big Red, 67-65, on Saturday evening at Newman Arena in Ithaca, N.Y.
Laura Bagwell-Katalinich notched her fourth 20-point outing of the season in the loss, scoring a game-high 23 points and pacing three Big Red student-athletes in double figures. Samantha Widmann (13) and Kate Sramac (12) also notched double-digit points, but for Sramac, her point total purely scratched the surface to her stat line for the night. In addition to her 12 points, the junior finished the contest with five rebounds, five assists, and a career-high seven steals. Her seven steals ranks fourth all-time in Cornell women's basketball history for a single game.
As a team, Cornell turned Dartmouth over repeatedly, forcing the Big Green into 27 turnovers for the contest and capitalizing on the Dartmouth miscues. The Big Red collected a total of 17 steals as compared to the Big Green's five, ultimately scoring 23 points off of Dartmouth's turnovers.
Led by Theresa Grace Mbanefo's career-high 10 rebounds, the Big Red also rebounded well, out-rebounding the Big Green, 34-26. Mbanefo chipped in eight points, finishing the contest just two points away from a double-double.
But despite Cornell's successes on the glass and in turning Dartmouth over, the Big Green had a spectacular shooting night from the floor, shooting a stellar 61.4% (27-44). Dartmouth just couldn't miss, making shot after shot to keep itself in the game and ultimately surge ahead when it mattered most.
The first quarter was all about Dartmouth, who after things were tied up early at 6-6, went on an 11-2 run to end the first period of play up 17-8. The Big Green continued to build up its lead over the opening minutes of the second quarter, scoring the first eight points of the frame to take its largest lead of the game at 26-10.
Cornell then flipped a switch, shifting the momentum and closing out the half on a 17-3 run from the eight-minute mark to the end of the period, heading into the locker room down by just two, 29-27.
The Big Red came out of the half strong, tying the game up, 29-29, on a Widmann jumper on the first possession of the third quarter. On its next possession, Widmann struck again, knocking down a 3-pointer on a Danielle Jorgenson assist to give Cornell a 32-31 lead. Although Cornell controlled the game for much of the third, the two teams stayed within a basket or two of each other until the closing minute of the period when Sramac sank a 3-pointer to give the Big Red a 55-49 lead heading into the fourth.
The Big Red led by as many as 10 in the fourth quarter, holding a 59-49 advantage over the Big Green with 7:56 remaining in the game. At this point, the momentum turned again, and Dartmouth quickly chipped away at the Big Red lead, going on a 14-4 run to tie things up, 63-63 with 1:22 left on the clock.
A pair of Dartmouth free throws gave the Big Green a 65-63 advantage, but Widmann responded with a lay-up to tie it back up, 65-65. Dartmouth's Elle Louie had the final say in how the contest would end, netting the game winner on a lay-up with 13 seconds left in the contest, as Dartmouth prevailed, 67-65.
The Big Red will open a four-game road stand when it travels to Yale on Friday, Feb. 21 at 6 p.m. in New Haven, Conn. and Brown on Saturday, Feb. 22 at 5 p.m. in Providence, R.I.
