Cornell’s (1-3) results for the past two games can be as the Verve’s symphony: bittersweet. Although it could have been a little more sweet than bitter, as the squad finally stepped into the winner’s circle last night.
On Friday, the Red extended its losing streak to three games after falling to Fairfield (3-0) at the Alumni Hall in Fairfield, Conn.
Although the Red was able to score 61 points in the game — which at that time was the most productive offensive performance of the season — the team could not overcome the advantage created by Fairfield’s 25-5 scoring run to finish out the first half.
The Red entered halftime trailing by 14, but was only able to close the gap to 11 points when there were 15 minutes left in the second half. After that, Fairfield took advantage of several scoring runs to put the game out of reach and secure its undefeated record.
Fairfield shot over 50 percent from the field and 3-point land. The Stags’ sophomore guard, Katelyn Linney, led both teams in scoring with a 23-point performance. She shot at an impressive 72 percent from the field and an equally strong 63 percent from downtown.
Cornell, on the other hand, shot 41 percent from the field and turned over the ball on 17 different occasions — nine of which came via steals. The Red’s young talent once again led the team as three out of the four players in double digits were underclassmen — two of them freshmen. Rookie guard Stephanie Long led the team in scoring with a career-high 16 points. Meanwhile, junior forward Maka Anyanwu contributed 12 points off the bench.
Despite the rough start to the season, Cornell was finally able to earn its first win of the season yesterday at Newman Arena against Winston-Salem State University (2-1).
Sophomore forward Clare Fitzpatrick’s 13 points and 11 rebounds — her first double-double of the season — led the Red to a 62-54 win and gave head coach Dayna Smith her 80th career win at the helm of the Red — tying her with Marnie Dacko as the winningest coach in the program’s history.
The Red entered halftime with a 32-28 advantage, and was able to hold the lead for the entire second period. However, Winston-Salem did not make things easy for Cornell as the Rams reduced the Red’s lead to one point with 3:28 left on the clock. In spite of this, the Red managed to secure the victory with a 9-2 scoring run in the final minutes of the game.
While most students will be taking advantage of this week’s Black Friday shopping craze and taking a break from academics, the Red will travel to Ypsilanti, Mich. to take on Eastern Michigan (3-2) in a non-conference matchup.
Original Author: AJ Ortiz