Elmira Soars in Second Half; Hawks Suffer Defeat
Elmira 79, Fredonia 65
For the second game in as many days, it was
Neil Randolph '15 who paved the way for an Elmira College men's basketball victory. Randolph, who scored a career-high 32 points in a win over Hilbert on Saturday, scored 11 of his game-high 27 points during a 15-0 Elmira College run to break open what was a 54-54 game with 8 minutes to play as the Soaring Eagles (2-3) went on to defeat the Fredonia State Blue Devils (1-3), 79-65.
The Purple and Gold trailed from the opening tip as Fredonia jumped out to an 11-7 lead with over 12 minutes to play, but that lead did not last long as EC put together a mini-run, capped off by a
Josh Keys '14 three-pointer, to take a one-point lead. From there, the two teams traded baskets, as well as the lead, until the Blue Devils went on an 8-0 run to take a nine point lead with two minutes left in the first half.
Trailing by seven after a lay-up from Randolph, the EC defense forced a Fredonia miss and
Derrick Vogel '14 gathered the rebound. With less than a second on the clock, Vogel let his three quarter-court desperation shot go and watched as the ball swished through the net as the horn sounded. That buzzer-beater cut Fredonia's halftime lead to four points as Elmira trailed 38-34.
The Soaring Eagles rode the momentum into the start of the second half as the men opened on a 6-0 run to take a 40-38 lead. From there the two teams battled back-and-forth as the lead changed hands seven times and was tied another five times, the last of which came at the eight minute mark.
Randolph hit three three-pointers and added a pair of free throws all in a span of 2:48 to give EC a 65-54 lead. Keys hit a three of his own to push the lead to 14 and
David Borelli '15 hit one of two free throws to cap Elmira's 15-0 run. With a 15-point lead under their belts and just four minutes to play, the Purple and Gold were able to cruise to the 79-65 victory.
Randolph was one of four EC players in double-digits as he produced a game-high 27 points on 6-12 shooting, including four three-pointers. Keys chipped in 13 points and three three-pointers, while Vogel and Borelli tacked on 11 apiece. Vogel nearly had a triple-double as the point guard finished with nine rebounds and seven assists as well.
Oswego 71, Hartwick 69
The men's basketball team rallied from a 17-point first half deficit but visiting Oswego would hold off the Hawks down the stretch as the Lakers walked away with a 71-69 victory on Sunday afternoon at Lambros Arena. The loss evens Hartwick's record at 2-2 while the Lakers improve to 4-1.
Hartwick found itself in a hole early in the first half as Oswego raced out to an 18-6 lead just seven minutes into the contest. The Hawks would cut the deficit to nine after the traditional three-point play from
Jared Suderley (Newport, NY/West Canada Valley) at 12:29 made it 18-9 in favor of the Lakers.
Oswego retained its double-digit lead at 11:57 on a layup by Larry Rivers. That bucket started a 16-8 Laker run that stretched their lead to 34-17 with 6:37 remaining in the first stanza.
The Hawks would make a strong comeback scoring 10 straight points to reduce the Oswego lead to 34-27 at 3:06 and outscoring the Lakers overall 17-6 to go into halftime trailing 38-36. 'Wick ended the half on strong note. Oswego's Brian Sortino would turn the ball over to the Hawks'
Matt Petruccione (Saratoga Springs, NY/Bishop Maginn) who ran to midcourt and heaved the ball up at the buzzer and found the basket for a three-pointer to cap off the Hartwick run.
Entering the second half, the Hawks looked to keep their momentum going. 'Wick kept the visitors at bay as the lead would not return to double digits. After a three-point shot from the Lakers' Daniel Ross gave Oswego State at 52-44 lead at 12:16, the Hawks would again rally.
A 13-2 Hartwick run gave the home team its first lead of the afternoon, on a layup by
Kyle Bradley (Cornwall, NY/Mansfield University), as 'Wick went ahead 55-54 with 7:38 showing on the clock. After an Oswego turnover,
Joey Lufkin's (Argyle, NY/Argyle) jumper increased the Hartwick lead to 57-43 at 7:07.
Oswego would tie the game on a three-pointer from Kyle Covley but a layup from Suderley regained the lead for the Hawks with just six minutes remaining in the game. A Bradley bucket with just a tick under five minutes left increased the Hawk lead to 61-57. Five points from Ross moved the Lakers ahead 62-61 with 4:08 remaining in the contest.
Hartwick wrestled back the lead on layup from Lufkin at 3:12. It would be the last lead for 'Wick in the contest as the score would be tied three times in just under two minutes with the final time coming with 44 seconds remaining.
The Lakers went ahead for good with eight ticks on the game clock on a layup from Rashawn Powell. Following the timeout, the Hawks inbounded the ball. Suderley tried to get a game-winning shot off but was whistled for going out of bounds and possession went back to the Lakers who brought the ball in and ran out the clock to come away for the victory.
Bradley led Hartwick with 18 points on 6-of-9 shooting while also pulling down eight rebounds and came up with three steals. Petruccione scored a career-high 14 points while shooting 4-of-7 from the floor. He made all four of his free throw attempts and also tacked on four rebounds. Suderley also had 14 points and grabbed eight rebounds. Lufkin added 12 points.
Oswego was led by Ross' 25 points. He had seven rebounds. Covley added 17 points and six rebounds while Powell contributed 16 points and 10 boards.
The Lakers shot 47.5% (28-of-59) from the floor compared to 41% (25-of-61) for Hartwick. Oswego also led in three-point shots as it hit 41.2% (7-of-17) to 'Wick's 38.5% (5-of-13). The teams were even in points in the paint, 36-36.
Oswego led in rebounds 39-24 and led 24-11 in second chance points. Hartwick did capitalize on 14 Laker turnovers with a 24-9 advantage.