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Herons earn spot in Liberty tourney with win over Brewers
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Latasha Coney scored a team-high 14 points against Vassar. (Photo by Kevin Colton) |
February 17, 2007
GENEVA, N.Y.—The William Smith College basketball team secured the final spot in the four-team Liberty League Tournament with a 72-51 victory over Vassar College in Bristol Gym this afternoon. Sophomore guard Latasha Coney (Lyons/Lyons, N.Y.) stole the spotlight on Senior Day, finishing with a team-high 14 points.
The Herons (14-10, 8-6) started the game on a 14-0 run and never looked back. Vassar managed to whittle its deficit down to nine, 17-8, with 12:10 to go in the first half, but a Coney three-pointer pushed William Smith’s lead back into double digits for good.
Junior guard Marisa Vespa (Immaculate Heart/Watertown, N.Y.) and first-year forward Erin Cunningham (Morris Knolls/Rockaway, N.J.) both posted double-doubles for the Herons. Vespa, who ended the regular season as the conference’s assist leader (140, 6.1 apg), scored 10 points and dished out 11 assists, while Cunningham notched 11 points and a game-high 10 rebounds. Junior forward Stephanie Czajkowski (Bishop Ludden/Syracuse, N.Y.) chipped in with 13 points.
Vassar (6-18, 1-13) was led by the 15 points and 10 rebounds of senior center Rachel Cerlen (Milburn/Florham Park, N.J.), while first-year forward Emily Haeuser (S. Portland/S. Portland, Maine) added 12 points.
William Smith shot 40.6 percent from the floor for the game, including 7 of 14 from long range, while committing just 11 turnovers. Meanwhile, the Brewers, who ended the season on a 13-game losing streak, shot just 30.6 percent, including a mere 7 of 32 in the first half, and turned the ball over 17 times.
The Herons tied Rensselaer for fourth place in the League standings, but earned the tournament bid by virtue of a season sweep of the Red Hawks. William Smith will square off with top-seeded St. Lawrence in Canton in the semifinal round. Tipoff is scheduled for 8 p.m.