After trailing against Maine by 10 points with 7:57 left in the game, the Stony Brook Women’s Basketball team sought to do something it has already done several times this season — come back to win.
Despite nine fourth quarter points from freshman guard Davion Wingate and a 9-1 scoring run by head coach Caroline McCombs’ group that trimmed the lead to two points, the Seawolves were unable to head back to Long Island with a victory, as the Black Bears prevailed 55-52 on Sunday afternoon.
Stony Brook had two opportunities to tie the game in the final seconds while trailing Maine by three points. After the Seawolves inbounded the ball with 20 seconds remaining, the Black Bears intentionally fouled senior guard Kim Hanlon, putting her at the free throw line, where she had only made 1-for-7 attempts in the game to that point.
Hanlon made both from the charity stripe to bring Stony Brook within one. But Black Bears senior guard Lauren Bodine knocked down a pair of free throws herself on the other end of the court—two of her 10 points off the bench—with 12 seconds left on the clock.
Looking to force overtime, Stony Brook junior forward Christa Scognamiglio missed a 3-pointer in the final second of the game and with that the Seawolves lost their second consecutive game on the road, falling to 5-2 in America East play following a nine-game winning streak.
Stony Brook shot the ball more efficiently than Maine did in the contest, leading in field goal percentage 46.2 percent to 34.5 percent. The downfall for the Seawolves came in the mistakes department, where they turned the ball over 20 times. The Black Bears led 21-8 in points off of turnovers with the extra possessions given to them.
Senior forward Liz Wood led the way for Maine, now 6-1 in conference play. Wood scored a game-high 20 points, including three 3-point field goals in the first half and an important layup over Stony Brook senior forward Brittany Snow with three minutes left to give her team a four-point lead.
For the Seawolves, Scognamiglio made four 3-pointers herself, as she scored 16 points in the game, including 13 in the first half. That effort helped Stony Brook take a 30-29 lead at halftime.
In the second half, offense was more scarce for McCombs’ team. Wingate came alive in the final two quarters, as she scored all 13 of her points after halftime. But the rest of the team combined for only nine second-half points.
Freshman forward Ogechi Anyagaligbo rebounded the ball well, leading the team with eight boards, all in the second half. But, she was not a major contributor in the Seawolves offense. Anyagaligbo was held to only four points, tying her lowest total of the season.
Stony Brook will be back in action at home on Saturday, where the team will host Vermont at 2 p.m. Junior guard Kori Bayne-Walker, the team leader in assists and a second-team all-conference selectee last season, is expected to return after missing eight of the team’s last nine games with a lower-body injury.
