FIGHTING TIGER WOMEN’S BASKETBALL KNOCKS-OFF #8 FMCC 44-41

The SUNY Cobleskill women’s basketball team made an important statement last night recording a 44-41 home victory beating the nationally ranked and perennial NJCAA Region III powerhouse Fulton-Montgomery Community College. The victory was the Fighting Tigers first win over the Raiders in 15 meetings between the programs since Fulton-Montgomery added women’s basketball as a varsity sport. With the victory Cobleskill moves to 11-1 overall on the season with a 3-0 record in Mountain Valley Conference play. The Raiders had been ranked eighth in the latest NJCAA Division III National Poll.

Trailing 29-19 with 10:32 remaining in regulation the Fighting Tigers battled back to tie the contest with 1:37 remaining in regulation at 41-41 on a three-point field goal by senior point guard Tanisha McClinton, Poughkeepsie, NY, Poughkeepsie High School, then took the lead for good at 43-41 when senior NJCAA All-American forward Dee Dee Smith, Monticello, NY, Redemption Christian Academy, rebounded a missed free throw and stuck it back in with 35 seconds remaining in the low scoring defensive battle.

“As far as the mental part of the game we were focused and defensively to hold a team of that caliber to 18 points at the half and to 41 for the game is excellent,” said Fighting Tiger Head Coach Josh Suttles. “I think during the second half when we fell behind by 10 points and came back we learned a lot about ourselves as a team. This was a total team effort as evidenced by the fact that we had no double digit scorers tonight. I think the real keys to this win were that we had 51 rebounds tonight and allowed them no transition baskets. This is a huge win for our program because like they say, ‘to be the best, you have to beat the best’ and given the Fulton program’s record the past few years that’s just what we did tonight.”  

Dee Dee Smith scored nine points, grabbed 14 rebounds and blocked two shots in the victory while Tanisha McClinton chipped in nine points to go with two steals in the contest. Senior center Crystal Ferrer, Bronx, NY, Redemption Christian Academy, helped the Fighting Tigers win the battle for the paint scoring seven points to go with 15 rebounds and two blocked shots. Freshman guard Erinn O’Rourke, South Glens Falls, NY, South Glens Falls High School, also played a major role in the victory with seven points as did freshman point guard Meghan Smida, Cobleskill, NY, Cobleskill-Richmondville High School, who chipped in six points on the evening.

The Fighting Tigers will close out the 2005 portion of their schedule on Saturday December 10th when they host the Red Barons of Corning Community College at the Iorio Gymnasium beginning at 1:00 PM.