Alaina Lynch scored five points and posted career highs of four assists and four rebounds (Darl Zehr Photography)
ONEONTA, N.Y. – Cortland held Oneonta scoreless for more than 14 minutes of the second half to turn a close game into a blowout and the visiting Red Dragons defeated the host Red Dragons, 61-38, to remain perfect in SUNYAC play.
Cortland won its sixth straight game and is now 6-4 overall and 5-0 in the conference. Oneonta fell to 8-4 overall and 3-2 in league play.
Kerry McHugh (Monroe/Monroe-Woodbury) led Cortland with 14 points and added four rebounds and three assists. Kristy Vitucci (Deer Park) totaled 11 points, four boards and three assists and Justine Crespo (Monroe/Monroe-Woodbury) scored 10 points on 4-of-6 shooting and led the team with seven rebounds.
Shana Crespo (Monroe/Monroe-Woodury) added seven points, Alaina Lynch (Staten Island/Staten Island Tech) scored five points and rang up career highs of four assists and four rebounds, Shannon McGuire (West Babylon) matched her career best with five points, and Katie Carey (Greene) dished out three assists and pulled down a career-high five rebounds.
Madeline Frank was Oneonta's lone double-figure scorer with 12 points and also totaled eight rebounds and four assists. Teresa Anken finished with nine points and five rebounds and Casey Hayes led the hosts with nine rebounds.
Cortland led 12-6 after one quarter – the largest lead by either team for the game's first 26 minutes. Oneonta closed to within 31-28 at the half, and tied the game at 32-32 less than two minutes into the third.
Oneonta, playing with two of its normal starters, was still within two with about six and a half minutes left at 36-34 after two Alexa Amalbert free throws, but Cortland went on a 21-0 run over a span of more than 14 minutes. McHugh scored nine points during that stretch on three 3-pointers – the first to start the streak, as well as back-to-back left-corner jumpers a few minutes into the fourth than extended the Cortland lead to 52-34. Vitucci closed the run with a trey with less than four minutes remaining to give Cortland a 57-34 advantage, and Oneonta ended its drought with just over two minutes left on a Johanna Gaffney layup.
Cortland shot 40 percent from the floor overall and 36 percent (9-of-25) from the 3-point arc. Cortland held Oneonta to just 13 percent shooting in the second half (4-of-31), including 0-of-13 from 3-point range, and the hosts finished the game 28 percent overall and eight percent (2-of-24) from the arc.
Cortland will play at New Paltz Saturday at 1 p.m.
