UTICA, NY – The Alfred University women's basketball team came up short in a 60-54 overtime loss to Utica College on Friday evening from the Clark Gymnasium.
The Saxons (6-9, 1-5 Empire 8) tied their season-high with 11 successful three-point shots, while the defense held the Pioneers (14-2, 5-2 Empire 8) to 32.8 percent from the field.
Ana Ion (Bucharest, Romania/Episcopal School of Jacksonville) led the Saxons with a double-double performance that consisted of 17 points and 14 rebounds.
Karly Welty (Portville, NY/Portville Central) finished with eight points and three boards.
Gillian Flint (Caledonia, NY/Caledonia-Mumford) ended the game with nine points and four steals for AU.
"I'm really proud of the job our ladies did tonight," Head Coach
Mike Moskowitz said. "Our effort, discipline, and intensity was excellent. Unfortunately, I didn't do a good enough job helping them execute the late game situations down the stretch. The resiliency of a group is how they respond to adversity. This group responded and came ready to win."
Early shots from Flint and Welty had the Saxons leading by as many as five points in the early moments of the first quarter. Back-to-back three-point shots from Ion extended the lead for AU. The Saxons put together a 6-0 run to end the first quarter, as they led by a 21-9 margin. Alfred University relied on their defense in the second quarter, allowing only five points to Utica before leading 22-14 at halftime.
A three-point shot from
Leah Harkenrider (Hornell, NY/Hornell) opened scoring for the Saxons in the second half. AU continued to hit shots from deep, as three-point shots from Flint, Ion, and Welty had the team leading 35-26 at the end of the third quarter. A 9-0 run by Utica to open the fourth quarter tied the game with 7:30 remaining. A three-point shot from
Rebecca Jewett (Nyack, NY/Nyack) gave AU the lead with 5:30 left in the fourth quarter. Successful three-point shots from Ion and Flint moments later extended the Saxons lead to eight points. Two late three-point shots from Utica was followed by a layup with 16 seconds remaining to tie the game and ultimately send it into overtime.
The Pioneers jumped out to a four-point lead over the Saxons in overtime with 1:35 remaining. A three-point shot from Ion had Alfred University trailing by one point. Forced turnovers and successful free throws by Utica distanced their lead and sealed the game.
"Our crew deserved to win tonight and I got in the way of that, so that's tough to swallow," Moskowitz said. "We will be ready to go for Tuesday's home game versus Houghton."
Alfred University will next host Houghton College on Tuesday with tip-off scheduled for 5:30 PM.
