Buffalo State Battles Past Fredonia, Advances to SUNYAC Title Game
CORTLAND, NY—Third-seeded Buffalo State (13-5) overcame an early five-goal deficit to rally past second-seeded Fredonia (14-4), 16-13, in the second SUNYAC semifinal today at top-seeded Cortland.
The Bengals will advance to the SUNYAC Championship for the second time in school history, marking the first time they will play in the title game since 2009. It is also the 100th victory in the 10-year career of head coach Meg Stevens.
Karen Shaddock (Corning/Corning East) and Mariah DeBolt (Waterloo/Waterloo) led the Bengals with three goals apiece. Kendyl Clarkson (Painted Post/Corning West) and Ashley Caporizzo (Liverpool/CNS) had two goals and two assists each. Brittany Nagowski (Lancaster/Lancaster) and Becca Martinez (Syracuse/Corcoran) also scored twice each, and Jenn Shaddock (Corning/Corning East) and Niki Paulhardt (Hanover, MN/Oswego) also scored.
Fredonia jumped out to a 6-1 lead less than 12 minutes into the game, but the Bengals roared back with six straight goals in a span of 3:24 to take a one-goal advantage. The Blue Devils answered, however, and took a 9-8 edge into the intermission.
Buffalo State took the lead for good at 13-12 with 11:26 remaining, and used a four-goal run to cushion its advantage, before killing the clock for the win.
Buffalo State overcame 19 turnovers and a poor day in transition succeeding on just 8 of 15 clear attempts. Fredonia also outshot the Bengals 27-25, but the Bengals held a 19-12 edge in draw controls, and Colleen George (Johnson City/Maine-Endwell) made eight saves between the pipes.
Buffalo State will face nationally-ranked No. 2 Cortland in tomorrow’s title game at noon. The Red Dragons defeated Brockport 11-9 in today’s first semifinal.
