Sports Snippets: November 19, 2023

Compiled by WRILEY NELSON

Oneonta Basketball Sweeps Hartwick

ONEONTA—SUNY Oneonta men’s and women’s basketball teams each defeated Hartwick College in a season-opening Battle of the Hills on Wednesday, November 8. Sophomore Amanda Zuntag led the women’s team to a 65-55 victory with a career-high 24 points; Junior Nadia Brown and senior Molly Stephens finished with nine points each. The lead bounced back and forth throughout the first three quarters before the Red Dragons finally pulled away for good.

On the men’s side, sophomore Javen Flowers-Smith led the way with 23 points in an uneven 91-53 win. The Red Dragons led by double digits at the half and never looked back. Junior Xavier Hill scored 15 points.

“I’m really proud of how our guys came out tonight,” said head coach Cameron Conover. “We challenged our team to have a defensive mindset and that’s exactly what they did. We showed great improvement from our scrimmage and I know our guys are eager to get back to work tomorrow.”

Conover estimated that about 2,000 people were in attendance for the hometown game.

Hartwick Field Hockey Falls in NCAA

GLASSBORO, NJ—Hartwick College field hockey’s season came to an end with a 5-0 loss to Rowan University in the first round of the NCAA tournament on Wednesday, November 8. Goalkeeper Ashley Luppens made eight saves in the loss. Julie Ruzzi led Hartwick offensively with seven shots, two of which were on goal. The Hawks won the Empire 8 Conference tournament, defeating St. John Fisher on Saturday, November 4.

Hartwick Swimming Defeats Oneonta

ONEONTA—The Hartwick College men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams defeated SUNY Oneonta in a dual meet on Saturday, November 11. In the men’s competition, the Hawks took first place in the 400 medley relay, the 1000 freestyle, the 100 breaststroke, the 500 freestyle, and the 100 and 200 butterfly events. On the women’s side, Hartwick racked up an even more impressive win. The Hawks won the 400 medley, 1000 freestyle, 200 freestyle, 100 and 200 backstroke, 100 and 200 breaststroke, 50 freestyle, 100 and 500 freestyle, 400 individual medley, and 200 freestyle.

Red Dragons Fall in NCAA Second Round

LEXINGTON, VA—The SUNY Oneonta men’s soccer season came to an end with a 2-1 loss to Washington and Lee in the second round of the NCAA Division III tournament on Sunday, November 12. The Generals scored early in each half for a two-goal lead until Oneonta senior John Bernardi scored in the 67th minute.

“It was a really disappointing finish to the season,” said head coach Iain Byrne. “Except for a spell at the beginning of the second half, we felt we dominated the ball, created numerous chances, but just couldn’t capitalize.” The Red Dragons finished the year with a 15-4-3 record overall.

Oneonta Wrestling Sweeps Electric City Duals

SCRANTON, PA—SUNY Oneonta wrestling went 5-0 with 22 pins in the Electric City Duals in Scranton on Sunday, November 12. Junior Jack Ryan led the Red Dragons with four falls and was named SUNY Athletic Conference Wrestler of the Week. Seniors Adonis Morano, Santos Ocasio and Kenneth Sauer recorded two pins each. Head coach Duane Ritter reached his 200th career victory. Ritter is in his 20th season at Oneonta. The Red Dragons defeated the University of Scranton’s A and B teams, New Jersey City University, Keystone College, and Elmira College.