Following a win against Mount St. Mary’s, Cornell women’s basketball (2-4, 0-0 Ivy) took the floor against the University at Albany (4-2, 0-0 America East) and No. 16 Ohio State (5-1, 0-0 Big 10) in what they hoped would be a strong stretch of games.
In their first home game of the season on Nov. 22 against Albany, turnovers and a lack of scoring in the second and third quarters concluded with a Cornell defeat.
The Great Danes led 16-14 at the end of the first quarter, with Cornell senior guard Kaya Ingram and freshman guard Clarke Jackson combining for 10 points to lead the way. In the second quarter, the Red only racked up six points, with four turnovers leading to increased opportunities for the Great Danes.
The Red had a difficult time handling forward Helene Haegerstrand throughout the game, especially in the second quarter as she racked up seven of her 17 points to lead Albany to a 28-20 halftime advantage.
The third quarter looked similar to how the Red closed out the half with only eight points being scored. Senior guard Mia Beam had the hot hand, recording five points for Cornell whose attempt to stay in the game faltered as the lead grew to 50-28.
Despite the Red outscoring the Great Danes 17-7 in the fourth quarter, their effort came up short as the final score was 57-45.
In Cornell’s second game of the week, the No. 16 Ohio State Buckeyes showed the Red why they are ranked with a 83-40 beatdown. A quick 13-4 advantage by the Buckeyes put Cornell in an early hole which became too difficult to climb out of. The Buckeyes led 22-11 at the end of the first.
Cornell’s offensive attack struggled throughout, with the team putting up two points in the second quarter and turning the ball over 17 times in the first 20 minutes. On the other side of the ball, Ohio State recorded 22 points off turnovers in the first half, extending the score to 45-13.
A more aggressive and eager Cornell team came out in the second half to face the Buckeyes. Jumpers by junior forward Summer Parker-Hall and sophomore forward Emily Pape gave the team early momentum, but Ohio State did not let up and matched every bucket.
More turnovers hurt the Red later in the quarter and into the fourth — the Buckeyes’ lead grew to 41 as the final 10 minutes began and ended at 43 as the buzzer sounded.
The Red will look to rebound from their difficult stretch as they travel to Vestal, New York to face Binghamton University (2-5, 0-0 America East) at 6:07 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 29. The game will be broadcasted on ESPN+.