OSWEGO, N.Y. - The SUNY Poly women's basketball team lost to Oswego State 65-64 on Saturday evening in the Max Ziel Tournament hosted by Oswego State. The exciting game went right down to the wire with Oswego pulling ahead with nine seconds to play. With the loss, the Wildcats move to 1-1 on the season.
HOW IT HAPPENED: The Wildcats would get the scoring going early in the first quarter as Molly Burdick would knock down a jump shot to get the Wildcats on the board first 2-0. Oswego State however would respond back with threes from Logan Castiglione and Julia Logana to get the Lakers out in front 6-2. Early full-court pressure from the Wildcats would cause the Lakers to turn the ball over, leading to four fast break points for the Wildcats. After four lead changes in the first quarter, the Wildcats would take the lead 17-14 heading into the second quarter.
The Lakers would go on a 13-0 run to start the second quarter, however, to take a 27-17 lead. The second quarter would prove to be one of runs, however, as the Wildcats would score the next seven to cut the lead to 27-24. Lyrik Jackson would make a lay-up right at the buzzer to cut the Lakers' lead to 33-29 heading into halftime. Jackson would have 9 points in the first half to lead the Wildcats and Logan Castiglione would have 14 first-half points for the Lakers.
Jackson and Burdick would continue the scoring early in the second half for the Wildcats before a Lakers' three extended the lead to 43-34 with 7:10 to play in the third quarter. The Lakers would continue to build their third-quarter lead and take a 59-48 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
Early pressure from the Wildcats' defense would create scoring opportunities and cut the lead to 59-54 with six minutes to play. The Lakers would again push their lead to 61-54 before two baskets from Molly Burdick cut the score to 61-58 with four minutes to play. The Wildcats would retake the lead for the first time since the first quarter after a Burdick basket before a jump shot from Shania Iglesias would give the Lakers the lead 63-62. Lauren Denny would immediately go to the line for the Wildcats, making two huge free throws to take the lead 64-63 going into the last minute of the game. The exciting game would go right down the wire as Diamond Pickett would make a lay-up to put the Lakers ahead 65-64 with nine seconds to play, which would secure the victory for the Lakers.
NOTABLE STATISTICS:
- Molly Burdick would lead the all scorers with 25 points. She would also finish with 10 rebounds to complete the double-double.
- Karleigh Leo would score a team-high 17 points for the Lakers.
- Logan Castiglione and Chastin Giles would both record double-digit points for the Lakers,
- Lyrik Jackson and Lauren Denny would both finish in double digits for points with 17, and 11 respectively.
- Kierra Connor, Marica Laguerre, and Patricia Vanlue would all add points for the Wildcats.
UP NEXT: The Wildcats will travel to SUNY Morrisville on Wednesday, November 16th. The game is set to tip off at 6:00 PM.