Utica, NY – The Sage Colleges' women's basketball team travelled to Utica College on Saturday for a non-conference contest. The host Pioneers posted a 60-59 win to improve to 2-2 overall, while Sage drops to 2-2 as well on the year.
Down 33-25 at the half, the Gators made a strong run down the stretch in the second stanza of play.
With 2:22 left in the action, freshman guard Krystyn Knockwood (Troy, NY/Troy) tallied a three-pointer to give Sage a 59-57 lead. A few seconds later, Knockwood fouled Utica's Kelsey Cowell, who went to the free throw line at 1:59 and made the first of two free throws and despite a number of attempts Sage failed to connect on a basket in the following seconds of play.
With under a minute left to play, Mary Micelli was fouled and went to the line at 0:51 and sunk both of her free throws to tie the game and then give Utica a one-point lead. Micelli had a missed jumper at the 0:14 mark, before Sage's junior forward Carlee Hirt (Beacon, NY/John Jay) hauled in the rebound and had a shot attempt at the 0:02 mark that failed to hit the target and saw the Gators fall short at the final buzzer.
For the game, junior guard Megan Bowman (Dannemora, NY/Saranac) connected for a team-best 16 points after making 7-of-15 shots from the floor and handing out five assists with three steals. Knockwood finished with seven points, while Hirt added 12 points and 13 rebounds. Sophomore forward Sara Tironi (Cambridge, NY/Cambridge Central) added 12 points. Senior forward Chelsea Martin (Davenport, NY/Jefferson Central) connected for nine points, bringing her career total to 598 points as a Gator.
Sage returns to action on November 26 hosting RPI in a non-conference doubleheader at the Kahl Gym. The women's game tips at 6 p.m. and the men's contest, also with RPI follows at 8 p.m.
