Driscoll Nets 1,000 Points; Women's Hoops Wins 3rd Straight

Oswego State women's basketball overcame an eight-point halftime deficit to beat SUNYIT 82-72 in overtime at the Campus Center in Utica, N.Y. Wednesday night. Senior Sam Driscoll (pictured) knocked down seven three-pointers, one short of her single-game school record, and led all scorers with a career-high 27 points. She became the eighth Laker in program history to surpass the 1,000 point milestone.

Senior Sarah Lombard, who became the program's seventh 1,000-point scorer on Feb. 8, led the front court effort with 20 points and three steals. Center Jessica Collins fell just short of a double-double with eight points and a game-high 14 rebounds. Freshman Traci Bacon chipped in with 16 points and five assists.

The Lakers have now won three-straight games and improved their overall record to 12-10. They are 7-7 in SUNYAC play and remain in third place of the conference's West division. The Lakers have already clinched a spot in the SUNYAC post-season tournament and will play on the road in the quarterfinals Feb 26. Oswego State will finish out regular season at Freonia and Buffalo State this weekend.

Ryan Maloney

Upset! Women's Hoops Downs Brockport

The Oswego State women's basketball team got its biggest victory of the season, defeating visiting Brockport 74-58 on Saturday afternoon at Max Ziel Gymnasium in Oswego.


The Lakers are now 10-10 overall and 5-7 in the SUNY Athletic Conference. Brockport lost for just the fourth time all season, falling to 18-4 overall and 11-2 in the conference.

Oswego State was led by 16 points each from seniors Sarah Lombard and Sam Driscoll, who were honored before the game with classmates Alaina Hannahs and Jess Collins. The quartet was playing its final regular-season home game and each contributed greatly to the victory.

Collins had 12 points and six rebounds and Hannahs had four points and eight rebounds.

Brockport was led by Courtney Hines, Ashley Broadhurst, and Christine Princehorn as each scored 12 points in the game.

Oswego State held Brockport to just 29 percent shooting in the game, and forced 14 turnovers. Traci Bacon acored 13 points for the Lakers.

The Lakers are back in action Friday night at Morrisville.

Hoops Programs Extend Winning Streaks

The Oswego State women's basketball team defeated Morrisville 49-40 on Tuesday night at Max Ziel Gymnasium in Oswego. Oswego State's four-game winning streak has them back over .500 at 9-8 overall this season, and 4-5 in the SUNY Athletic Conference. Morrisville remained winless at 0-13 overall and 0-9 in the SUNYAC.

In a sloppy first half, Oswego State built a nine-point halftime lead at 27-18. That nine-point margin held up in the second half, as Driscoll scored eight of her 18 points after the break. Sarah Lombard added nine points for the Lakers and seven rebounds. Traci Bacon also had seven rebounds in the game. The Lakers will play on the road this weekend, at SUNYIT on Friday and at Cortland on Saturday. Both games begin at 6 p.m.

The men's basketball team turned a one-point halftime deficit into a big lead in the second half, and held on for an 83-78 win over Morrisville in a SUNY Athletic Conference game on Tuesday night at Max Ziel Gymnasium in Oswego. The Lakers had four players score in double figures, led by Tommy Downing with 24 points including six 3-pointers. Mahamoud Jabbi added 18, Nick Perioli scored 14, and Kyle Reuter finished the game with 13 for Oswego State.

After trailing 38-37 at halftime, the Lakers outscored Morrisville 35-15 to start the second half and held a 19-point lead with six and a half minutes remaining. Morrisville started to get baskets off of penetration and forced some Oswego State turnovers to get back into the contest, eventually cutting the lead to just three points in the final minute, but a pair of free throws by Downing sealed the victory.

Oswego State improved to 13-4 overall and 7-2 in the SUNYAC with their fifth straight win, while Morrisville is 4-11 and 1-8 in the conference. The Lakers return to action on Friday at SUNYIT and Saturday at Cortland. Both games begin at 8 p.m.

Women's Hoops Wins 3rd Straight

The Oswego State women's basketball team won its third straight game, defeating visiting Fredonia 64-55 on Saturday night at Max Ziel Gymnasium in Oswego.

Sam Driscoll scored 22 points for Oswego State and Traci Bacon added 13. Bacon scored 11 of her 13 points in the second half, and made three 3-pointers in the second half as Oswego State increased its lead.

The teams exchanged the lead through the first six minutes of the second half before Oswego State went on a 10-0 run, highlighted by baskets from Alaina Hannahs and Sarah Lombard, and took a 46-37 lead.

The Lakers evened their overall record at 8-8 with the victory and improved to 3-5 in the SUNYAC. Fredonia fell to 6-10 overall and 1-7 in the conference.

Oswego State hosts Morrisville on Tuesday at 6 p.m.

Men's & Women's Hoops Beat Utica

The Oswego State men's basketball team earned a tough 66-60 win over visiting Utica College on Tuesday night at Max Ziel Gymnasium in Oswego. The Lakers picked up their 10th victory of the season and are now 10-4 heading into the final 10 games of the season, all against SUNY Athletic Conference competition.

Tommy Downing scored a team-high 19 points, including 13 in the second half when he made three big 3-point shots for the Lakers. Nick Perioli (pictured) and Kendrick Pollard each scored 12 for Oswego State. Perioli had seven assists to go along with his points, and Mahamoud Jabbi blocked four shots, scored eight points and had four rebounds. Dom White led all Oswego State rebounders with seven. Oswego State benefitted from 21 Utica turnovers in the game.

Utica was led by James McClendon, who had 20 points and 10 rebounds in the game. Doug Herring added 15 for the Pioneers, who are now 8-7 on the season.

The Lakers continue their homestand on Friday at 8 p.m. against Buffalo State.

The Oswego State women's basketball team got 20-point performances from seniors Jessica Collins and Sam Driscoll in a 70-60 win over visiting Utica College in a non-league game at Max Ziel Gymnasium in Oswego on Tuesday night.

The Lakers trailed for most of the first half, but a late surge sent them to the locker room with a 34-29 halftime lead. The Lakers never trailed in the second half, stretching the lead to as many as 11 points and seeing the Pioneers cut the margin to just two on a pair of occasions, but Oswego State answered each time.

The Lakers finished the game 23-of-33 from the free-throw line and made 16 of their first 17 free-throw attempts in the game.

Collins and Driscoll led the way with 20 points each, and Heather Merino added 13 for Oswego State. Jenny Brewer (pictured) made a pair of 3-pointers and had eight points in the contest. Collins also had 13 rebounds and Alaina Hannahs had nine rebounds and five assists.

Utica was paced by Mallory Davis, who scored 17 points. Devon Croll had 15 and Jessica Berry scored 12. Dana Danzinger had six assists in the game.

The Lakers are now 6-8 on the season, while Utica fell to 8-7 overall.

Oswego State continues its homestand on Friday at 6 p.m. against Buffalo State.

Women's Hoops Drops 6th Straight

The Oswego State women's basketball team lost 60-56 at Geneseo Saturday afternoon. The loss marks the sixth straight for the Lakers and second in as many days. Genseo has won three of four after starting the season 1-9.

Senior guard Sam Driscoll (pictured) was a hot hand for Oswego State connecting on 5-of-11 from thee-point range to finish with 17 points. As a team the Lakers shot just 30% on the night.

Senior Annie Verdino led all scorers with 18 points and pulled down 10 rebounds for the Knights. Amanda Haney had a double-double of her own with 10 points and 12 rebounds.

The loss drops the Lakers (5-8, 1-5) to three games below-.500 for the first time since Feb. 1, 2003. They'll return to action Tuesday night as they host Utica at 6 p.m.

Ryan Maloney

Poor Shooting Dooms Lakers in 2nd Half

The Oswego State women's basketball team lost 58-48 at the Tuttle North Gym in Brockport Friday night. The Lakers led 45-42 after a three-pointer by Freshman Traci Bacon with just 4:21 left in the game. The Golden Eagles responded with a 9-0 run over the next 2:20 and never looked back.

Sam Driscoll (pictured) led Oswego State in scoring despite another poor shooting performance. Driscoll netted 12 points on 3-of-14 shooting, including 1-for-5 from behind the arc. She is 13-of-62 (.209) from the field and 6-0f-24 (.250) from long-range during Oswego State's current five-game losing streak.

As a team the Lakers shot just 30% from the floor and committed 22 turnovers. The Eagles did not fare much better as they shot just 34%, including a 2-for-16 three-point performance. Capitalizing on turnovers seemed to be the difference in the game as Brockport was able to convert the Lakers' mistakes into 21 points. Oswego State could only convert 10 points off of 16 Eagle turnovers.

Brockport streched their ECAC West lead to three-and-a-half games over the Lakers. The Eagles are 4-0 in conference play and 11-2 overall. Meanwhile, Oswego State's skid has put their conference mark at 1-4 with an overall record of 5-7. The Lakers look to get back to their winning ways tomorrow at Geneseo. Tip-off is scheduled for 2 P.M.

Ryan Maloney

Clarkson comes to "The Z" looking for 3rd straight W

The Oswego State women's basketball team hosts Clarkson (2-4) tomorrow night at the Max Ziel Gymnasium. The Lakers (3-2) and Golden Knights appear to be headed in opposite directions as Oswego State has lost their last two while Clarkson has prevailed in their last pair. Clarkson began the season with a string of four losses while the Lakers started 3-0.

The two teams share one common opponent. Clarkson lost 76-44 to Potsdam on Nov. 27. Oswego State lost to the Bears 84-70 three days later. Knights leading scorer Monica Thomas was just 1-for-8 from the field with five points in Clarkson's loss. Laker shooting percentage leader Sarah Lombard shot just 1-for-6 in Oswego State's loss. She has missed just 9-of-29 shots on the year.

Both teams came into the 2007-08 season with new coaches. Tracy Bruno came to the Lakers after serving on the staff at Hillsdale College. KJ Krasco was hired at Clarkson after two seasons as an assistant with cross-town rival St. Lawrence. The Knights are led by the play of their back court as 10 of their 13 players are listed as guards, including Thomas (9.3 PPG). The top scorer for Oswego State is also a back court player, senior guard Sam Driscoll (12.6 PPG).

Clarkson's roster features two former Central New York high school standouts. Freshman Lauren Pluchino spent last season in the Liverpool Warriors' back court. Sophomore Michelle Reddinger is a former front court force for C.W. Baker.

Ryan Maloney

First-half dominance leads to Oswego State victory

The Oswego State women's basketball team defeated Rensselaer 66-52 Tuesday night at Max Ziel Gymnasium in Oswego. Laker senior Sarah Lombard led all scorers with 18 points. She made her first seven field goal attempts of the game. Lombard missed her last field goal attempt, ending her streak of 13 consecutive field goals made to start the season.Oswego State's defense forced 29 Red Hawks turnovers. Senior Alaina Hannahs and junior Heather Merino led the Lakers with four steals each. Hannahs also had seven assists and eight rebounds. Laker guard Sam Driscoll fell just short of a double-double, pouring in 10 points while pulling down seven rebounds.

The Lakers held Rensselaer to just 18 points in the first half, and led 36-18 at the break. Rensselaer outscored Oswego State in the second half 34-30. Tory Lyons led the Red Hawks with 16 points in the game and also had eight rebounds. Elizabeth Barker had nine points and nine boards for RPI.

Oswego State improved its record to 3-0 on the season while RPI fell to 1-2. The Lakers return to action Nov. 30 when they host Potsdam in their SUNYAC opener.

Lakers win big; capture Skidmore Invitational title

The Oswego State women's basketball team defeated the host Skidmore Thoroughbreds 63-42 on Sunday afternoon in the championship game of the Skidmore Invitational at Saratoga Springs. Laker senior Sam Driscoll was the tournament's Most Valuable Player and fellow senior Jessica Collins was on the all-tournament team.

Sarah Lombard had 13 points on 6-for-6 shooting from the field. Collins scored 12 points and pulled down nine rebounds. Alaina Hannahs also had nine rebounds, and added four assists. Driscoll made a pair of 3-pointers in the game and finished with 11 points.

Oswego State is now 2-0 on the season and plays its first home game of the year on Tuesday at 7 p.m. when they welcome Rensselaer to Max Ziel Gymnasium.