December 4, 2007
ONEONTA, N.Y. - Christi Podgorski led four players in double figures as Oneonta State rallied from a halftime deficit to defeat Hartwick 69-57 in women's basketball action Tuesday evening at Binder Gym.
Podgorski connected on seven of 14 shots from the floor and went five of six from the foul line in a 21-point, five-rebound effort. Shannon Weir posted 15 points, while Amanda McDowell and Sara Chrystie added 13 and 11 points respectively as Oneonta State evened its record at 2-2 overall. Hartwick dropped its fourth-consecutive decision and fell to 1-5.
After Podgorski opened the scoring with five consecutive points, Hartwick rallied and took its first lead at 8-7 on two free throws by Kara Foro (Schenectady, N.Y.). The Hawks built the lead up to 14-8 on free throws by Sarah Waltersdorf (Clifton Park, N.Y.). After Megan Bucci (Marlboro, N.Y.) gave the Red Dragons a brief 23-22 advantage on a jumper with 6:16 left in the opening half, the Hawks responded and used a 7-0 run to once again gain a six point lead. Hartwick took a slim 32-30 lead into intermission on two free throws by Danee Harrison (Ansonia, Conn.) right before the buzzer.
With the Hawks leading 35-32, Oneonta State made its move. The Red Dragons took the lead for good on back to back baskets by McDowell with 17:22. Oneonta State broke open a four-point lead with an 11-2 run that pushed the advantage up to 55-40 on two free throws by Weir with 10:38 left.
Hartwick did make one last challenge with four consecutive three-pointers, two by Foro to pull back within 57-52 with 5:34 left, but Oneonta State cemented the victory by hitting nine of 12 free throws in the final five minutes.
Fritzi Flores (Bergenfield, N.J.) netted a career-high 17 points for Hartwick, hitting 6 of 10 shots from the field. Foro finished with her second double-figured point total of the year with 14.
Oneonta State shot 22 of 47 from the floor (.468) and hit 23 of 30 (.767) from the charity stripe in the win. Hartwick only managed to connect on 18 of 56 shots from the field, but drilled nine of 18 three-point attempts. The red dragons won the battle of the boards 38-30 behind Megan Bucci's game-high nine. Harrison hauled down a team-best eight for the Hawks.
Hartwick returns to action Friday evening as it hosts RIT. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m.
