Gators almost upend FSC in women's hoops action
Farmingdale, NY--- The Sage Colleges' women's basketball team travelled to Farmingdale State for a Skyline Conference contest with the Rams. FSC improved to a perfect 5-0 in the Skyline Conference after a 62-46 win over Sage. The Rams evened up their overall record at 6-6, while the Gators fell to 6-8, 2-4 in conference play.
Farmingdale State trailed 16-5 early in the first half, before a 9-0 run which was highlighted by 3-pointers from Nikita Green (Roosevelt, N.Y.) and Jeanette Zubizarreta (Bay Shore, N.Y.), cut the deficit to 16-14. The Rams would tie the game 25-25 with under a minute remaining in the half and take a two point lead into the break as freshman guard Christina Merrill (Levittown, N.Y.) converted a layup with 10 seconds left on the clock. Pacing Sage in the early action was senior guard Sarah Carciobolo (Niskayuna, NY/South Colonie) as she tallied a jumper and a layup in the early action.
In the second half, the Rams opened up a nine point advantage, 39-30, with 13:18 to play. Sage would cut the lead to 47-39, but Farmingdale State answered with a 10-2 run as Zubizarreta hit two 3-pointers and converted a layup. The Rams held a double digit lead the remainder of the game and defeated Sage 62-46.
Zubizarreta led Farmingdale State with a game-high 17 points, including four 3-pointers. Senior guard Kayla Koch (Kings Park, N.Y.) had 14 points and five rebounds, while Green added 10 points. Senior forward Natasha Smalls (Harlem, N.Y.) had a team-leading 13 rebounds.
Sage was led by junior guard Sage's junior Carly Vallee (East Greenbush, NY/Catholic Central), who scored a team-high 12 points. Vallee netted four three-pointers giving her 32 this season an elevating her career total to 86, while is one shy of the No. 4 spot on the Gator career list.
Freshman guard Megan Bowman (Saranac, NY/Saranac) tallied 11 points and six assists for the Gators. Carciobolo added nine points on the afternoon, which gives her 992 career points.
Sage returns to action in a non-conference game on January 17 at Plattsburgh State in a 6 p.m. contest.