MARCY, N.Y. – The SUNY Polytechnic Women's Basketball Team (1-0) got off to a good start on Sunday, winning their season opener over SUNY Canton (0-2) by a score of 78-64. After being down one at the half, the Wildcats exploded for 48 points in the second half on their way to a double-digit victory.
SUNY Poly shot well overall, but was on fire in the second half especially. The team knocked down 57% of their tries over the final 20 minutes of game time, and made 8 of 11 from the charity stripe. They outscored the Kangaroos 48 to 33.
Three players scored in double figures for SUNY Poly. Lauren Knowles (Salisbury Mills, N.Y. / Washingtonville) led all scorers with 21 points on 9-for-14 shooting, and tied fellow forward Geena Gallo (Ballston Spa, N.Y. / Ballston Spa) for the team lead in rebounds with 9. Gallo had a great game offensively as well, scoring 19 points on 9-for-16 shooting, while adding 2 steals and a block.
Gallo and Knowles combined to help the Wildcats out score the Kangaroos 36 to 20 in the paint. Junior center Erika Charbonneau (Boonville, N.Y. / Adirondack) helped as well, coming off the bench to score 8 points and grab 6 boards.
The biggest surprise of the night came from rookie Molly MacLachlan (Marcellus, N.Y. / Marcellus). The 5-11 guard scored 19 points in her debut game, leading the team with a 6-for-7 performance from the foul line and also knocking down a three-pointer. MacLachlan started and played 34 minutes, pulling down 7 rebounds and dishing out 4 assists to tie with Emily Alicea (Mohegan Lake, N.Y. / Lakeland) and Paige Gallo (Ballston Spa, N.Y. / Ballston Spa) for the team lead.
On the other side of the floor, the Kangaroos didn't shoot too badly at 42%. They were led by CaseyLynn Fulton with 19 points on 9-of-16 shooting. They were deadly from long range, making 7-of-13 three-pointers to SUNY Poly's 2-for-7.
The difference in an otherwise even game proved to be fouls. The Wildcats did an outstanding job getting to the line as the Kangaroos committed 25 fouls to SUNY Poly's 9. While the Wildcats didn't shoot as well from the charity stripe as they probably would have liked, they finished with 18 points off free throws to the Kangaroos' three.
The Wildcats will now hit the road for a 4-game stint, beginning this Saturday, November 22nd when they travel across town to take on the Utica Pioneers. Game time is scheduled for 2:00 pm.
