The women's basketball team lost a close game to Oneonta on Friday, but captured their first win of the season against Alfred on Tuesday.
In Friday's game, the team played well in the first half but their offense stalled in the second. The Knights trailed by only one point going into halftime, but for 13 minutes in the second half, Geneseo's only points came off of free throws, allowing Oneonta to take its largest lead of the game.
"We had some good looks during that period, but were not hitting shots we normally make," said senior Annie Verdino.
Sophomore Khadija Campbell scored on a jumper with 37 seconds on the clock, but the Knights couldn't catch up, losing the game 58-55. The Knights hit only 19 of their 53 shots, and went 2-12 on three-pointers.
"We lose our patience in the offensive flow and fail to look for our best scoring chance. When you're struggling to shoot as it is, this can kill a team," said head coach Scott Hemer. "It will simply take some time."
"We have been trying to get adjusted to the new system that our coach presented to the team," said Campbell. "It's a fresh year for some of the returning players and we are learning how to play with a new coach and a new attitude towards the game."
Verdino was the team's leading scorer with 18 points. Campbell scored nine points and grabbed nine rebounds.
The loss left Geneseo 0-5 at that point. But Hemer, who is in his first season with Geneseo, remained undaunted.
"The fact that we're doing so many things right demonstrates that we're not that far off," he said.
The team was able to break their five-game slide on Tuesday with a 58-44 victory over Alfred University. The Knights forced 20 Alfred turnovers in the first half, helping them take a 32-19 lead at halftime.
Junior Tracy Wangelin scored 13 points in the game, and junior Amanda Bihr hit six of her seven free throws in the game. The result was Geneseo's first win of the season.
"We just need to keep working hard, continue to adapt to coach Hemer's system, and stay together as a team," said Verdino.