By Monica D’Ippolito
MONTCLAIR, NJ – After more than a three-week hiatus off the court, the State University of New York New Paltz continued its winning ways Monday night as the Hawks fought back to claim a 57-49 victory over tournament host Montclair State.
The Red Hawks, who are playing host to the annual Mike Scala Memorial Tournament, led for the majority of the first half and even extended to as many as eight, but the visiting Hawks refused to go away.
SUNY New Paltz secured the opening points of the game, but Montclair went ahead on two straight buckets in the paint and obtained an eight-point lead with less than 20 seconds remaining in the first quarter following a Hawks turnover. Sierra Carter made sure to gain two points back before the end of the period, aggressively attacking the hoop to earn a trip to the line where she made both attempts to trim the score, 18-12 entering the second quarter.
The Red Hawks scored the first two points of the second period to re-establish their eight-point cushion, but SUNY New Paltz answered with three-straight makes from the perimeter, coming from Brianna Fitzgerald, Hannah Vanderzee and Carter to trim the score, 22-21. Montclair took advantage of its size inside, and an acrobatic up-and-under, and-1 finish allowed the hosts to remain in front with Kayden Cornell responding for the Hawks once again behind the arc to get her team within one.
SUNY New Paltz struggled finding the bottom of the hoop in the final three-plus minutes with Cornell’s triple the last bucket of the half as Carter netted four free throws to cut into Montclair’s lead, 31-28 at the break.
The Hawks defense took over in the second half, stifling the Red Hawks who turned the ball over 27 times with 15 coming in the second half, while scoring just 18 points on 8-for-24 shooting.
A steal by Carter led to a pair of free throws from Fitzgerald who took advantage of the extra possession with a drive through the lane. Her made pair cut the difference to one and SUNY New Paltz started taking over down the stretch. On the next defensive possession, Vanderzee got up for a block with the team pushing quickly down the floor. Vanderzee then zipped a chest-pass to Summer Perry running the floor and the freshman added two on the break, pushing the Hawks ahead for the first time since the four-minute mark of the first quarter.
Swarming defense by SUNY New Paltz following a defensive rebound by Montclair forced a turnover and resulted in a four-point swing, as Perry connected again, this time on a turn-around hook shot from the paint to up the lead to three. Vanderzee gave the Hawks their largest lead of the quarter after getting her bucket in paint to go off a dish from Fitzgerald with three minutes to play in the period. The visitors then went cold for about a five-minute stretch, which bled into the fourth quarter. Carter broke up the scoreless run, as she placed in a layup off a feed from Fitzgerald. The Red Hawks responded with a 3-pointer on the other end and the game was once again within one.
The Red Hawks took their final lead midway through the fourth, but Carter again was the catalyst as she answered with two more points in the paint to regain the Hawks advantage. SUNY New Paltz sustained the slight margin from there, as Fitzgerald and Carter took over the final four minutes. An offensive board by Fitzgerald, led to a 1-v-1 isolation, resulting in an easy bucket in the paint for the two-time All-American. Out of a timeout, Fitzgerald connected again with Vanderzee picking up another assist on the play. Carter then helped solidify the game as she drained a 3-pointer with two minutes left to create an eight-point cushion, stiff-arming any thoughts from the Red Hawks on a late comeback.
Carter finished with a game- and career-high 19 points on an efficient 5-for-7 shooting, including 2-for-3 from 3-point range and 7-for-9 from the free throw line, while adding six rebounds, two assists and a game-high four steals in 35 minutes. Fitzgerald followed with 17 points, nine rebounds, four assists, three blocks and two steals. Vanderzee was the facilitator, as she finished with a game-high six assists to go along with nine points, two rebounds, a block and three steals.
