Posted: Feb 26, 2011
Bracket
Senior Brittany Finkle scored 14 points on 5-6 from the field, 1-1 from the arc and 3-4 from the line with six rebounds and four assists to lead the top-seeded Geneseo women's basketball team to their fourth SUNYAC Championship title in program history, and first since 1996, with a 55-48 win over visiting #2 Oneonta.
Senior Brittany Finkle scored 14 points on 5-6 from the field, 1-1 from the arc and 3-4 from the line with six rebounds and four assists to lead the top-seeded Geneseo women's basketball team to their fourth SUNYAC Championship title in program history, and first since 1996, with a 55-48 win over visiting #2 Oneonta.
Geneseo junior Bri Dunton hit 7-10 from the line on her way to 14 points, senior Khadija Campbell, an All-Tournament pick, added nine points and eight rebounds and sophomore Melissa Graham, an All-Tournament choice, collected eight points and six caroms for Geneseo. Junior Samantha Szkotak and senior Mary Kate O'Connell netted 12 points each for Oneonta and senior Rebecca Bucci added 11 points, five rebounds, three assists and three steals for the Red Dragons. Szotak and Bucci claimed All-Tournament recognition.
In the first half, Oneonta led by six points at 12-6 with 13:34 to play on back-to-back three-pointers by Szkotak and Bucci. Geneseo responded with six straight points and then used a 9-0 run capped by a long-range shot by Dunton to take a 24-19 lead with 3:01 to play. The Red Dragons responded with the final three points of the half to trail, 24-22, at intermission. In the second half, Oneonta built a five-point lead at 35-30 with 12:42 to go on another triple by Bucci, but a Dunton layup concluded a 13-2 run which gave the Blue Knights a six-point bulge at 43-37 with 7:12 remaining. Senior Erika Puffer hit a layup with 1:13 remaining to cut the lead to two at 50-48, but Geneseo's Finkle hit a layup on a drive to the basket with 55 seconds left and Dunton made 3-4 from the line in the final 31 seconds to close out the win.
The championship game was the eight meeting all time between the two teams in the history of the SUNYAC tournament, but it was only the second match up in the finals. Oneonta prevailed in the first meeting in 1998. The win by Geneseo marks the fourth time a No. 1 seed has won the championship, since the tournament went to a non-divisional play format in 1999, and the sixth time the finals featured the No. 1 v No. 2 seed.
The championship game was the eight meeting all time between the two teams in the history of the SUNYAC tournament, but it was only the second match up in the finals. Oneonta prevailed in the first meeting in 1998. The win by Geneseo marks the fourth time a No. 1 seed has won the championship, since the tournament went to a non-divisional play format in 1999, and the sixth time the finals featured the No. 1 v No. 2 seed.
Geneseo moves to 25-3 on the season and receives the automatic bid to the NCAA Division III tournament, while Oneonta falls to 21-7. The national tournament pairings and sites will be announced on Monday afternoon.
ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
MVP: Brittany Finkle, Geneseo
Melissa Graham, Geneseo
Khadija Campbell, Geneseo
Samantha Szkotak, Oneonta
Rebecca Bucci, Oneonta
Brittany Cohen, Cortland
