ROCHESTER, N.Y. – The College at Brockport Women's Basketball team topped 70 points for its third straight contest but the Golden Eagles fell in the opening round of the 23rd Wendy's College Classic 87-78 to St. John Fisher as Nazareth College played host Tuesday evening.
Brockport (2-1 Overall) outscored the Cardinals in three of the four quarters but St. John Fisher's big second quarter was too much for the Golden Eagles to overcome. The Cardinals outscored Brockport in the second quarter 31-18.
In the fourth quarter Brockport trailed by 13 points after a Cardinal layup with 4:20 left on the clock. The Golden Eagles however staged a furious comeback over the span of the next two minutes.
The comeback started with a three-point play the hard way from Erin Cunningham. Cunningham drove down the lane getting fouled while making the basket before sinking a free throw. Schyler Laux hit a jumper in front of the Brockport bench on the next possession to trim the Cardinal lead to single digits at 76-68 that sparked her Golden Eagle teammates on the sideline.
Cunningham made another layup in the paint followed by another jumper from Laux to cut the lead down to four points. Brockport trailed 76-72 after the 9-0 run and appeared to have all of the momentum heading into the final three minutes of play.
The hot streak ran out for Brockport as nearly two minutes passed between the Golden Eagles next score. Fisher scored seven points during that period of play, taking back control of the game.
The Golden Eagles last held a lead in the early second quarter as Hannah Spencer added to the one point 16-15 lead from the first quarter with two free throws following a bench foul prior to the second quarter beginning.
Faith Welch played a strong 29 minutes off the bench, leading Brockport with 18 points and five assists. The junior guard utilized her slick handle and quick first step to consistently drive past the Cardinals.
In total Brockport had three additional players score in double digits as Hannah Rehbaum and Jenna Lividini scored 11 points each while Becky Rossier added 10. Olivia Suhr, Cunningham and Spencer narrowly missed the double digit point totals combining for 24 points.
Rossier grabbed seven rebounds to lead the team in addition to her team leading three steals and two blocks.
The Golden Eagles and Cardinals shot nearly the same amount of three pointers but Fisher doubled the success making eight to Brockport's four.
Brockport will face William Smith in the consolation bracket of the Wendy's Classic on Thursday at 8 p.m. as Roberts Wesleyan will play as the host. Be sure to stay up to date on all your Golden Eagle scores and awards by following @BportAthletics on Twitter and by liking the "Brockport Golden Eagles" Facebook page.
