By: Matt Palisin, Asst. SID
FREDONIA, N.Y. – The Fredonia State women's basketball team has made a late push for the playoffs. Just a few weeks ago, they were on the bubble. Now, although they have not officially clinched, they are in control of their own destiny in an effort to secure a home playoff game.
With both Buffalo State and Plattsburgh at 12-2, and the Devils at 8-6 with four games remaining, earning a top-two seed is a longshot. The top two seeds receive a bye.
The Nos. 3 and 4 seeds will get a first-round home playoff game. Currently, the Devils are two games behind Oneonta for third place, and tied with Cortland and Geneseo in the win column with eight victories. With wins over Buffalo State and Oneonta, the Devils would have a leg up if they remained tied with Cortland, who they split the season series with. The Devils face Geneseo on Friday in a game that will begin to clear up the playoff picture.
Here's how they look going into the weekend (top six teams advance):
Buffalo State 12-2
Plattsburgh 12-2
Oneonta 10-5
Geneseo 8-5
Fredonia State 8-6
Cortland 8-6
Brockport 4-9
Potsdam, New Paltz and Oswego - eliminated
Brockport is barely alive. They can leapfrog the Devils if they go 5-0 and the Devils go 0-4. The two teams will go head-to-head on Saturday.
Last weekend the team swept Oneonta and New Paltz. In their previous 16 games combined at those two venues covering nearly a decade, they had been 0-16. In addition, the Devils dropped games to Oneonta, Cortland and Oswego earlier this season. During their current four-game win streak, they avenged all three losses, as well as completing a season sweep of last year's SUNYAC champ, New Paltz.
The win streak has been marked by improved all-around play. This can be attributed to a number of younger players stepping up their games. Seniors
Becky Hebert (Hilton), the leading scorer in the SUNYAC, and
Jaimie Warren (Lake View/Frontier), the leading rebounder in the conference, have provided steady numbers all season and most of their careers.
It's the young, supporting cast that has made a difference lately.
Sophomore guard
Brittany LaForce (Weedsport) had 30 points -- a season-high 18 at Oneonta followed by a 12-point effort over New Paltz. Her previous high of 10 occurred a couple times early in the season. She also combined for eight three-pointers over the weekend.
"As the season has gone on," said first-year head coach
Linda Hill-MacDonald, "Brittany has grown accustomed to our style on offense and defense... and we've seen more of her potential. Last weekend was a break-out [series]."
Fellow sophomore
Sabrina Macaulay (Newark) had her fifth double-double of the season and ranks third in the SUNYAC in rebounding (9.0 per game) and sixth in blocked shots. She also is averaging 8.4 points per game.
Freshman
Alexis Cheatham (Lockport), who was not in the opening day lineup, is quickly becoming one of the most exciting players in the SUNYAC. She is capable of scoring – 17.5 ppg over the last eight games – and playmaking. Her 111 assists and 5.6 per game lead the conference. Her 39 three-pointers rank fourth on the Devils' all-time single-season list.
Another freshman --
Kathryn Halloran (Angola/Immaculata Academy) -- hasn't made as significant statistical contributions, but has been the first off the bench. "She is very focused. Nothing flashy... She works hard and is not going to back down," said Hill-MacDonald.
As for the games this weekend, Hill-MacDonald is first and foremost focused on Geneseo Friday. "They are a very talented team. Their strength is their size... and they have a point guard that can distribute and score."
Tipoff is a slated for 6 p.m. in Steele Hall.
Saturday the team takes on Brockport on Senior Day. Hebert, Warren and
Alicia Mikowicz are the team's three seniors. Game time is 2 p.m.
Notes: Cheatham's 111 assists rank 11th on the Devils' all-time list. Sherri Ervin's 151 in 1998-99 rank No. 1 ... The three ahead of Cheatham's 39 on the three-point list: Lori Taberski (54); Sarah Adkins (51); Maria Scaffidi (40) … Hebert's career point total is currently at 1,513 ... Her 23.5 ppg this year ranks eighth in DIII, while her shooting percentage of 59.2 ranks 11th ... Her school-record 44-point game vs. Oswego is the fifth highest scoring game in Division III this season … Hebert is the reinging SUNYAC and the ECAC New York Region player of the week. She averaged 22.5 points and shot 70 percent from the field in conference games at Oneonta and New Paltz .... Warren is at 1,064 career points … She ranks fifth on the team's all-time rebound list (707) ... There was one other 1,000-point tandem in school history, although they were not at the 1,000-point level at the same time: Clare Crowley (2000-2004) and Kim Guenther (1999-2003) played together three seasons.
