The Geneseo women's basketball team notched two more victories this weekend as they beat conference opponents SUNY Potsdam by eight points and SUNY Plattsburgh by 18 points.
On Friday the Knights fell behind Potsdam early but quickly erased the 13-7 deficit, taking a commanding 31-27 halftime lead. From that point on Geneseo never looked back, exploding for 43 second-half points and the 74-66 win.
Despite not having a dominant scoring presence on the roster, Geneseo has been able excel this year by playing solid defense and having a number of players who can create opportunities and score key points.
"I think it's our balance that's really getting it done for us," said head coach Scott Hemer. "We've been able to find different people every night who are able to step up and contribute."
Leading the balanced attack was sophomore Katelyn Charbonneau who scored a career-high 15 points, sinking 5-8 from beyond the arc, and fellow sophomore Bri Dunton who scored 11 points and matched her career high with eight assists.
Other contributors included juniors Alyssa Polosky and Melissa Loughlin who both added 10 points; Polosky also had nine rebounds.
"Offensively we did some special things [Friday night], we looked really sharp for long stretches and that's something we've been missing at times this year," Hemer said.
That offensive rhythm took a hit, however, during the first five minutes of Saturday's game against Plattsburgh, when junior forward Khadija Campbell was sidelined with a foot injury.
Campbell, who missed nearly all of last season with an injury, is arguably the team's best player. According to Hemer, Campbell will be reevaluated in the coming days but it is expected that she will miss a week or two.
Even with the key injury, the Knights effortlessly defeated the Cardinals, 65-47, as Geneseo outscored and outrebounded their opponents by double digits.
"We really wanted to be one of the top defensive teams in the conference as well as the top rebounding team," Hemer said. "We've stuck to that as a priority and it has given ourselves a chance to win games."
Dunton had another solid game, scoring 16 points with six assists and six rebounds.
With the two wins, the Knights have won five of their last six games, improving to 9-6 on the season and 5-3 in SUNYAC conference play.
Geneseo continues their season at home this weekend with two important conference matchups: Friday against SUNY Oswego and Saturday against SUNY Cortland.
"Our goal is simple," Hemer said. "If we can concentrate on doing the little things right and improving as a team every time we're on the floor, I think the scoreboard will take care of itself."
[Editor's note: Tuesday night the women's team tallied their fourth win in a row, beating the Fredonia Blue Devils 58-52. Campbell played 28 minutes despite the injury she suffered in the previous game against Plattsburgh. Dunton scored a team-high 14 points.]