PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. – After trailing by one point going into the fourth quarter, the Plattsburgh State women's basketball team used a 12-0 tear to pull away late and win 65-53 over Morrisville in State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) action. Sophomore guard Julia Greek (Long Island, N.Y. / Ward Melville) led all players in points with 18 to go with five rebounds and three assists.

The Cardinals got strong contributions from senior guard/forward Payton Couture (Redford, N.Y. / Saranac) and junior center Imani Walcott (Albany, N.Y. / Albany) who both reached double figures with 14 and 13 points respectively. Couture also grabbed a team-high 11 rebounds for her fifth double-double of the season and recorded three blocks, two steals, and two assists while Walcott had seven rebounds and two steals. Junior guard Jaden Wilson (Johnstown, N.Y. / Johnstown) had a solid performance with nine points, three rebounds, and two assists. Kathy Peterson-Ross (Lake Forest, N.Y. / Lake Forest) was big on the boards for the Cardinals grabbing nine rebounds to go with five points while Selma Deisz (Bekkestua, Norway / Nadderud VGS) had six points and two rebounds.

For the Mustangs, Kieonna Christmas led her team in scoring with 17 points and led all players in rebounds with 12 for a double-double. Hannah Bonczkowski was in double figures as well with 13 points.

The Cardinals were solid from the field, shooting 35.5% while the Mustangs shot 27.7%. Both teams shot nearly the same from behind the arc with the Cardinals shooting 30.3% making 10 of 33 and the Mustangs shooting 31.4% making 11 of 35. The Cardinals shot better from the free line, shooting 78.6% compared to the Mustangs' 75.0%. The battle on the boards was even at 44 rebounds apiece but it was the Cardinals who took advantage of second-chance points with 12 to the Mustangs five. Both teams recorded 12 turnovers while the Cardinals had 16 points off turnovers and the Mustangs 14.

Plattsburgh State rises to 11-8 (7-5 SUNYAC) and is back in action on Friday, Feb. 7 when they travel to New Paltz for a 5:30 p.m. tip-off. Morrisville falls to 4-14 (1-10 SUNYAC) and is back in action on Tuesday, Feb. 4 when they host Buffalo State at 5:30 p.m.

After a three-pointer from Deisz followed by a jumper from Walcott gave Plattsburgh an early 10-4 lead at the 6:20 mark, the Mustangs responded with a three-pointer from Bonczkowski that made the score 10-7 Cardinals at the 6:07 mark. Five straight points from Plattsburgh pushed the Cardinals' lead to 15-7, however, a three-pointer from Hayley Dawson to end the first quarter made the score 17-13 after one.

Morrisville had a strong second quarter outscoring the Cardinals 18-8. After three straight three-pointers coming from Wilson, Hayley, and Greek Morrisville went on a 15-0 run that gave the Mustangs a 31-23 lead at the 2:19 mark. After a couple of minutes of scoreless action, Walcott scored the final basket of the quarter with a layup that made the score 31-25 at halftime.

Play was back and forth in the third quarter with the Cardinal slightly outscoring the Mustangs 20-15 to come within one. The Mustangs controlled the majority of the third quarter until a 7-2 run for Plattsburgh that saw two free throws from Walcott, a three from Greek, and a layup from Peterson-Ross to end the third quarter made the score 64-45 Mustangs after three quarters of play.

The Cardinals dominated the fourth quarter, outscoring the Mustangs 20-7. After Greek scored five straight points, the Cardinals took a 53-50 lead momentarily before a layup from Celeste Baldwin tied the game at 53 at the 4:19 mark. That basket would be the last for the Mustangs as Plattsburgh took control and ended the game with a 12-0 run led by Couture with five points and won 65-53.