Women's Basketball's Upset Bid Falls Short

Women's Basketball's Upset Bid Falls Short
November 7, 2023

CONTACT: Adam Sopris, a.sopris@hvcc.edu, (518) 629-7898 or (518) 416-2137
FOR RELEASE: Immediate, Tuesday, November 7, 2023

The Hudson Valley Community College women's basketball team faltered late in their upset big against No. 6 Fulton-Montgomery and were defeated 80-75 in the 2023 season-opener at the McDonough Sports Complex on the campus of HVCC on Tuesday evening.

Hudson Valley started slow as they eased back into the swing of the new season and fell behind the defending NJCAA Region 3 champions and nationally-ranked Raiders 20-12 following the first quarter. In the second quarter, the Vikings found their stride and outscored Fulton-Montgomery 24-18 and entered the halftime break trailing the Raiders 38-36. In the second quarter, Hudson Valley shot 58-percent from the floor and were led by Sidney Phillips and Abbigail Newell, who combined to score 15 points in the quarter. Phillips finished the quarter with eight points on 4-of-4 shooting and Newell added seven points on 3-of-4 shooting, including 1-of-1 from behind the three-point arc. The Vikings defense also played a big role in the turnaround as they held Fulton-Montgomery to 27-percent shooting (6-of-22) as the Vikings closed the gap.

The third quarter featured a lot of great play and was evenly matched as both programs scored 18 points in the quarter to set up a critical fourth quarter with a potential upset of the nationally-ranked Raiders within reach for Hudson Valley.

The Vikings spread the offensive production in the fourth with seven players scoring at least two points in the quarter. Phillips finished the quarter with six points and ended the game with a team-best 18 points, seven rebounds before fouling out late in the fourth quarter.

In total, the Vikings had five individuals finish the game with at least 10 points. Joining Phillips was Destiny Pipino, who finished with 14 points, seven rebounds, four assists, four steals in 31 minutes of action. Leah Pergola scored 12 points on 5-of-14 shooting and added 10 points for her first collegiate double-double.

Abigayle Yetto added 10 points, four steals and Newell tallied 12 points off the bench on 5-of-10 shooting.

Up next for the women's program is a home matchup against SUNY Orange on Thursday, Nov. 9 at 5 p.m. at the McDonough Sports Complex on the campus of HVCC.